The spring 2021 term competition circuit was a little quieter than usual, but that did not stop our undergraduate, graduate, alumni students from taking centre stage. Here is a summary of their noteworthy accomplishments during the recent competition season.
Concept $5k
At the spring term Concept $5k competition several teams made it to the finals including Master of Business, Entrepreneurship and Technology (MBET)-student ventures ASPx; EMRE and Enterprise Co-op (E Co-op)-student ventures Microbuild; Scena and Maesos.
One of the winners, Maesos, founded by BET 300 and E Co-op students, is developing an IoT microclimate monitoring network using smart weather sensors and novel plant health sensors to optimize agricultural management, maximize yield and combat damage caused by weather, pests, diseases and sprays. Check out their winning pitch.
2021 CEC Youth Innovation Challenge
Since 2017, the Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC) has hosted the annual Youth Innovation Challenge, a contest that invites youth from Canada, Mexico and the United States to submit their innovative ideas and solutions for improving both the environment and the economy in North America.
Gabriel Saunders, a recent MBET class of 2020 graduate, won this year's CEC Youth Innovation Challenge for the venture he founded with fellow MBET students, Decomp. Learn more about this environmental technology venture.
GreenHouse Social Impact Fund
St.Paul's GreenHouse is Waterloo's preeminent social impact incubator. GreenHouse's Social Impact Fund pitch competitions happen every term and there have been many Conrad School student finalists and winners in the past. This spring 2021 term is no different.
In addition to their win at CEC, Decomp also took the top prize of $5000 at this competition. BioCycle, founded by ECo-op student Krystal Yang, was awarded $1500 for their venture which seeks to collect and biodegrade single-use menstrual products. Read about all the competitors in the spring 2021 term competition on the GreenHouse blog.