EBA recently announced the renewal of our corporate long-term commitment to support Partners in the Horn of Africa (Partners) and, as such, approached Partners looking for new opportunities to renew employee interest and foster further collaboration. Partners responded with a proposed reforestation project, to which EBA has committed to support. The new project is called GROW Ethiopia.

GROW Ethiopia is EBA’s initiative to raise funds for a two-year reforestation project in the state of Gojjam in Ethiopia. Gojjam is often referred to as the “breadbasket” of Ethiopia as the farmers in this region produce so much of Ethiopia’s food. This intense farming, in combination with a large population, has created a landscape devoid of trees and has led to extensive soil erosion and subsequent loss of arable land. The GROW Ethiopia Project will:

• Plant 66,667 trees;


• Restore 10 ha of arable land to productivity;


• Improve soil moisture retention;


• Improve forage resources;


• Facilitate bee raising;


• Provide a sustainable source of wood to the community in the future; and


• Provide training and employment to 100 local villagers.

A GROW Ethiopia fundraising drive is planned for the week of September 14 to 18, 2009. To encourage employee participation, funds will be raised by donation through an inter-office challenge. Progress and updates will be announced daily on myEBA, along with various articles describing our past and ongoing projects there. Staff can win prizes by participating in a trivia contest, Early-Bird draw, and/or random participation draws. The GRAND PRIZE for the office with the highest participation is the title of "Honorary Head Office for 2010". The final participation tally and total funds raised for the GROW Ethiopia initiative will be announced on Monday, September 21, 2009.

Donations may be made by cash, cheque, or payroll deduction (deducted from October 2009 salary). Cheques should be made out to EBA Engineering Consultants Ltd. or EWD Consulting Corp. Donations of any size are gratefully accepted; however, a minimum donation of $25 is required by Partners to qualify for a tax receipt and a minimum donation of $10 is required to be entered into the prize draws. If you wish to make a donation, just fill out the donation form which will be placed on your desk Monday morning (September 14) and submit it to your local office coordinator (listed on the form). Forms must be submitted by 3:00 pm (local time) each day in order to be eligible for the prize (if available that day).

If you are away the week of September 14 to 18, but would like to donate to this project, please contact Cam Kulak ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ) to get a copy of the donation form.

Thank you (in advance) for your thoughtful consideration of this project!