The Ontario Science Centre is accepting nominations for the 2017 Weston Youth Innovation Award
Know an innovative youth using science and technology to make the world a better place?
TORONTO, Jan. 12, 2017 /CNW/ - Calling all Canadian innovators between the ages of 14 and 18! The Ontario Science Centre wants to recognize you for making the world a better place through science and technology. Nominations are now open for the 2017 Weston Youth Innovation Award. Now in its ninth year, the annual award recognizes and supports young Canadians who apply science and technology creatively with the goal of making a positive difference locally or even globally.
"As an important contributor to the province's innovation and education ecosystems, the Ontario Science Centre is proud to encourage young Canadians in this area," said Catherine Paisley, Ontario Science Centre Vice-President, Science Education and Science Experience. "The Weston Youth Innovation Award is a prestigious honour that provides a platform for talented young innovators to not just tell their stories but to showcase their work to the broader public and to inspire others. In fact, the calibre of work that we've been receiving from the candidates over the past nine years has been truly remarkable."
Open to all Canadians aged 14 to 18, this year's recipient will receive a $2,000 prize, travel expenses to attend the award ceremony in Toronto and an Ontario Science Centre membership. In addition, the recipient will be featured in a video animation by the Science Centre's award-winning graphics team that will be broadcast online and in the Weston Family Innovation Centre, a hub for current science in the Science Centre where nearly one million visitors are welcomed each year. It is here where the Centre currently features the 2016 Award Winner Emma Mogus who created the Tongue-Interface-Communication (TiC), a tongue controlled computer mouse, to provide those with communication deficiencies and physical limitations the opportunity to participate fully in society. Learn more about the TiC here: http://bit.ly/WYIA2016.
"Winning the 2016 Weston Youth Innovation Award was truly an honour," added Mogus, "for me the best thing about science is knowing that my ideas can have an impact on a global scale. This award gave me the opportunity to further develop the TiC and ensure it assists those who will benefit most from its use. The support from the team at the Ontario Science Centre was phenomenal from the incredible animation on YouTube to the publicity outreach that helped me share my story with millions of people."
Do you know an innovative youth who might qualify for the Weston Youth Innovation Award? Please contact [email protected].
Youth are invited to put their names forward, and teachers and community leaders are asked to encourage potential candidates to apply.
Completed application packages must be received by March 17, 2017. An external jury will make a selection in May 2017 and the winner will be announced on the website by June 2017.
Detailed information about the Weston Youth Innovation Award and past winners can be found at www.OntarioScienceCentre.ca/innovationaward.
The Weston Youth Innovation Award was established in 2008 to encourage and recognize young Canadian innovators and was named in recognition of The W. Garfield Weston Foundation's $15 million lead gift to the Ontario Science Centre's Agents of Change initiative. This national award builds on the Foundation's longstanding tradition of support to educational initiatives for Canadian youth.
About the Ontario Science Centre
The Ontario Science Centre has welcomed more than 51 million visitors since it opened in 1969, implementing an interactive approach adopted by science centres around the world. Today, the Science Centre is a leader in free-choice science learning and a key player in Ontario's innovation ecosystem, offering lifelong learning through hands-on, engaging experiences. It is a prime venue for public dialogue about science, technology and society. The Ontario Science Centre is an agency of the Government of Ontario funded in part by the Ontario Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport. As a publicly assisted organization, the Science Centre relies on generous individuals, corporations and foundations who share a commitment to science and education for additional operating support. For more information about the Ontario Science Centre, please visit www.OntarioScienceCentre.ca
About The W. Garfield Weston Foundation
The W. Garfield Weston Foundation is a private Canadian family foundation, established in the 1950s by Willard Garfield Weston and his wife Reta. In 1924 Garfield inherited his father's company and during his life established baking and retail businesses throughout Canada and in many parts of the world. The founders believed that as the funds are generated through the hard work and success of these Canadian companies, grants should be given in Canada for the benefit of Canadians. For three generations, The W. Garfield Weston Foundation has maintained a family tradition of supporting charitable organizations across Canada. Today the Foundation directs the majority of its funds to projects in the fields of land conservation, education, and scientific research in Canada's North. In addition, it provides funds to further Canada's research in neuroscience.
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SOURCE Ontario Science Centre
Media contacts: Anna Relyea, Director, Strategic Communications, 416-696-3273 | c: 416-668-1967, [email protected]; Jefferson Darrell, Media Relations Officer, 416-696-3154, [email protected]; Andrea Mus, Media Relations Officer, 416-696-3191 | c: 416-895-5482, [email protected]
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