Social entrepreneurship is where innovation meets impact.
In Applied Health Sciences, we are building on the University of Waterloo’s long tradition of developing entrepreneurs by providing our students with resources and opportunities to tackle pressing social concerns linked to health and well-being. By fostering innovation outside traditional business models, we are sparking ideas for widespread impact and mobilizing solutions for healthier societies.
Hack4Health
Each year, community members, students and researchers join Applied Health Sciences and the Murray Alzheimer Research and Education Program for a hack-a-thon to improve the lives of those living with degenerative neurological conditions. The 48-hour event drives the creation of software, hardware and social innovations that will enhance quality of life for people with multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias across a variety of care settings.
Big Ideas Challenge for Social Good
In collaboration with Waterloo’s social incubator St. Paul’s GreenHouse, Applied Health Sciences launched the Big Ideas Challenge for Social Good. The annual pitch competition gives students the opportunity to present their concepts for social ventures to a panel of alumni, community members and established social entrepreneurs. By leveraging the power of competition to drive innovation, Big Ideas aims to both inspire and support the next generation of social entrepreneurs.
A first-aid kit for mental health
As a first-year Health Studies student, Tina Chan (pictured above) struggled with anxiety and stress. While counselling helped, appointment times were often inconvenient and the week between sessions felt too long. What she really needed was a first-aid kit for mental health. Pitching the concept at the Big Ideas Challenge for Social Good, Chan won a spot at the University of Waterloo’s social startup incubator, St. Paul’s GreenHouse, and developed the Panic, Anxiety & Stress Support (PASS) Kit. Based on cognitive behavioural therapy research, each kit contains flashcards with concise, tweet-length advice to guide students through common pressures of university life. The kits also include chewing gum, a stress ball, ear plugs and an eye mask — items proven to engage and occupy the senses, thwart destructive coping behaviours and help break negative thought patterns. With incidences of anxiety and stress among postsecondary students on the rise, Chan hopes her kits will reduce stigma around mental health issues and give more students tools for success.
Saving labs time and money
Checking fat content on nutrition labels might be a routine part of deciding which food products you buy, but unbeknownst to most consumers, measuring trans and saturated fats can be a tedious and expensive process for manufacturers. As a post-doctoral student in the Department of Kinesiology, Adam Metherel wanted to give companies a faster and more costefficient option. Under the supervision of Professor Ken Stark and in partnership with Certo Labs Inc., he developed a specialized syringe that can quickly filter fatty acids in a one-step process. The invention saves lab technicians from manually pipetting samples and running them through a centrifuge to separate fat content. By refining the process into a single step, the syringe significantly cuts analysis time and can lower production costs. The invention won Metherel the Mitacs and NRC-IRAP Award for Commercialization and is now being distributed by MilliporeSigma to industrial labs around the world.
