Aug. 18, 2022

Whether it involves getting a mining truck to the Northwest Territories or receiving an over-sized cargo coming from Germany, Seneca graduates Georgina and Karina Perez Perez help companies move just about anything from anywhere.

“Transportation affects everything,” said Georgina. “Everything you have has been shipped from somewhere.”

The sisters and best friends are both winners of the Canadian International Freight Forwarders Association’s Young Logistics Professional (YLP) Award — Georgina in 2021 and Karina in 2022. 

This September, they are headed to Korea for the FIATA International Federation of Freight Forwarders Associations’ World Congress.

As this year’s winner of the Americas region, Karina will present her dissertation from the YLP Award — Resilient Solutions: The Future of Freight Forwarding and Logistics — and represent Canada in the global round of the competition.

“It’s not just about going from A to B,” she said of her dissertation. “There’s a lot of focus on sustainability since transportation is one of the major sources of pollution. We are here to provide sustainable solutions.”

The world winner of the 2022 YLP Award will be announced during their trip in Korea.

“I’d like to bring the gold to Canada,” said Karina. “It’s been very exciting for me to follow in Georgina’s footsteps. I really look up to her. She’s my big sister.”

Originally from Mexico, the sisters have been interested in the goods and services transportation industry since a young age. Their parents work in the food industry and have shown them what goes into packaging frozen fruits so they can be displayed in stores around the world.

“I remember watching those big ships and vessels off the coast of Mexico,” said Georgina. “I was fascinated by them.”

They came to Seneca together to take the International Transportation & Customs diploma program. 

Georgina, who is four years older than Karina, also holds a bachelor’s degree in biochemical engineering and a master’s degree in food science and technology. Karina has a bachelor’s degree in biotechnology engineering and has participated in an exchange program on business administration and management in Quebec.

“We were living in different states back in Mexico,” said Karina. “We always wanted to have an adventure together abroad. Coming to Canada and studying together at Seneca was a reunion for us.”

While at Seneca, Georgina and Karina learned about the YLP Award and the trainee program at DSV Global Transport and Logistics. Both now work for DSV, which is located in Milton, Ont.  

“We learned about DSV through networking events at Seneca,” said Georgina. “It’s been great to work there.”

Seneca, they say, provided them with a great experience that prepared them for the challenges of their careers and inspired them to keep learning.

“Knowledge helps to inform solutions,” said Georgina. “I want to keep learning to help people around me.”

As for Karina, who served as a Seneca ambassador and was featured in the Challenge Accepted campaign, the knowledge they acquired at Seneca is all applicable.

“There are so many opportunities available just by being at the school,” she said. “I’m very #SenecaProud.”