Belleville’s youngest Liberal party candidate targets mental health issues after winning nomination
New provincial Liberal candidate Emilie Leneveu. File photo QNetNews.
Belleville entrepreneur and biotechnologist Emilie Leneveu is the youngest new provincial Liberal candidate acclaimed for the Bay of Quinte riding.
She is also a graduate of Loyalist College.
Leneveu, 23, won the nomination on November 29. She said it is part of an Ontario Liberal Party initiative to recruit 30 young leaders under 30.
“It is an interesting feeling to be the youngest candidate of the party,” she said. “It is also encouraging to know that half of the 124 ridings are to be represented by women.”
She said the journey to her nomination was quite smooth, although, at times, it was challenging.
“Going through the vetting process felt longer. It was over the summer, but now that the nomination is over and everything is in place, I am excited to push forward,” Leneveu said.
She is a director of the Quinte Regional Science and Technology Fair board and the Centre for Workforce Development Board. She’s a youth advisor on an education committee of the Canadian Commission for the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). She’s currently the content creation director for The Small Social Company, a marketing firm serving Belleville, Napanee, and Kingston.
Leneveu is a 2018 graduate of Loyalist College’s advanced biotechnology program and was a valedictorian. She said her interest in municipal and provincial politics came from her time pursuing post-secondary education at Loyalist College.
“Towards the end of my post-secondary education at Loyalist College, I not only realized that I wanted to continue making a difference within the college community, but I wanted to extend it to our riding and the province as a whole,” Leneveu said.
Karen Holder, a biotechnology professor at Loyalist College, said she is not surprised that Leneveu chose to take the political route.
“I suspect that Emilie is choosing a political arena for her future because it will allow her to contribute meaningfully to the many realms of life that are so important to her,” Holder said. ” She is passionate about community engagement, empowerment of youth, empowerment of women, mental health advocacy, entrepreneurship, STEM, sustainability, and many others.”
Holder said Leneveu’s transition to politics would not be difficult because she has achieved so much on both regional and national levels.
“She has open channels of communication with many federal politicians, all of whom have provided her with encouragement to pursue the goals and challenges that come with politics,” she said. “Her breadth of experience, her entrepreneurial spirit, and her willingness to step up and put words into action will take her far.”
Karen Holder said some Biosciences faculty learned of Emilie when she was still a high school student in Trenton, given her accomplishments at the Quinte Regional Science and Technology Fair that took her to the Canada-Wide competitions.
Holder said Leneveu then spent four years in Biosciences to earn three diplomas in Biotechnology, Biotechnology – Advanced, and Cannabis Applied Science and played her part in improving mental health services at Loyalist College.
“Not content with pursuing only academics, she also founded the college’s chapter of Jack.org, making Loyalist College the 9th college in Canada to host a chapter of this national organization to bring the supportive conversation around youth mental health to her peers on campus,” she said.
Leneveu said that the youth and her community motivate her to engage in politics.
“I would love to see us regain certain youth programs and services and become as collaborative as possible within our community and communities at large, she said. “I believe that in these virtual and uncertain times, there are opportunities for us to collaborate with several ridings across Ontario, and I am excited about that.”
She said she is looking forward to the challenge of running against MPP Todd Smith in the election. Leneveu said the MPP Todd Smith and the provincial leader are doing a good job at ensuring the community’s safety and well-being, but she believes she can do better.
“I just think we might be able to do a little bit more of a better job than what is being done right now,” Leneveu said, and I hope to amplify more voices and take an innovative approach in my youthful candidacy,” she added.
Leneveu said some of the issues she hopes to tackle if elected include environmental issues, education, and mental health, among others. She said if elected, she will evolve the way the programs are run currently.
“Being a recent Loyalist graduate and someone who has relied on mental health services both in post-secondary education and outside of it, I empathize with both students and adults who are navigating various community services, especially in these difficult times,” she said.
Leneveu said it is important for youth to engage in politics to participate in community development and hold their leaders accountable for their work.
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