How Ariane Champigny found her path through Experience Ventures
A Université de Sherbrooke communications student’s placement led to new connections
When Ariane Champigny first signed up for an Experience Ventures placement, her motivation was practical.
“I’m going to be honest — it was the $500 honorarium,” she laughs. “I had no idea what it was. But I thought, ‘Why not? It’s a new experience.’”
That first step turned into something much larger. It brought her home to Sherbrooke every week during her co-op term, helped her develop confidence in her own ideas, and connected her with people she now calls “life colleagues.”
The project was part of Défis Nova, a semester-long challenge where interdisciplinary student teams collaborate with local organizations to solve real-world problems. Défis Nova is organized by the Université de Sherbrooke through its entrepreneurship and social innovation resources, with all activities taking place at the Quartier général de l’entrepreneuriat — Sherbrooke’s entrepreneurship hub. The program is offered in partnership with Experience Ventures, powered by the Hunter Hub for Entrepreneurial Thinking at the University of Calgary and funded in part by the Government of Canada’s Innovative Work-Integrated Learning Initiative (I-WIL). The program’s goal is to enable college and university students to practice entrepreneurial thinking alongside real-world innovators.
Champigny and her team were paired with the city’s public transit provider, Société de transport de Sherbrooke (STS). Their mission: to tackle the abstract but very real challenge of encouraging more people to use sustainable transportation.
Every Wednesday, they met at the entrepreneurship hub to work through the challenge together.
“We realized it wasn’t just about the buses. The problem is that people don’t see public transport as part of their lives,” Champigny explains. “It’s not a habit here. People feel safer in their cars, especially when the infrastructure isn’t perfect. But we couldn’t propose building new roads — we had no budget.”
Instead, her team got creative. Drawing on each other’s strengths — from engineering to environmental science to communications — they proposed a partnership between STS and local events, offering discounts and fun incentives to introduce public transport in a positive, low-pressure setting.
“If someone takes the bus home from a festival instead of driving, that first experience could change how they see it,” she says. “People are scared of trying something new during their morning commute. But at an event? It’s less stressful. It’s fun.”
The team even presented their solution directly to STS staff, whose feedback surprised them.
“They told us, ‘Some of your ideas we’re already implementing — but nobody knows about them.’ And that’s when it clicked for me. It wasn’t a transport problem. It was a communication problem.”
That insight stuck with her. Not used to the spotlight, Champigny suddenly found herself pitching ideas every week — first to her peers, and eventually to decision-makers.
“It was so challenging. I study communication, but I’m usually more behind the scenes,” she says. “But week after week, I had to speak. I really did great at the last pitch. I learned to speak about my ideas with more confidence.”
It also changed her understanding of what a career in communication could look like.
“Before, I didn’t know my niche. Now, I want to work with startups or nonprofits. I want to use communication to support missions I believe in — especially around social or environmental impact.”
Outside the presentations, one of the most meaningful outcomes was the community she found.
“Our team became very close. We were from different programs, different backgrounds, but we just clicked. We still have dinner together every week. Even now, months later. We support each other. We go to events. We’ve built something real.”
Champigny’s bond with a fellow participant in another Défis Nova team has also carried forward. They’re both heading to Europe this fall — Champigny to England, her teammate to France — with plans to meet in Paris while abroad.
“I think that’s one of the most important things I got from this experience — connection.”
Since that initial placement, Champigny has stayed involved, helping to organize a condensed weekend version of the program.
“I wanted to help other students have that same experience — meet new people, try something new. For me, it confirmed that I love event planning.”
Reflecting on her journey with Défis Nova and Experience Ventures, she admits it’s been transformative.
“It sounds cheesy, but it really changed my life,” Champigny says. “Everything that I do now kind of happened because of Défis Nova… all the connections I have now, all the opportunities and the choices I make. It changed a lot of things for me in a positive way.”