$70,000 Innovation Circle Discovery Prize awarded to urban trees project

Ryerson University’s groundbreaking research has recently been given a boost thanks to the new Ryerson Innovation Circle pitch competition. Held on April 30 at the Student Learning Centre on the Ryerson campus, the competition featured three research teams vying for the inaugural $70,000 Ryerson Innovation Circle Discovery Prize.

The Discovery Prize was established with generous donations from members of the Ryerson Innovation Circle, an alliance of seven accomplished Toronto leaders who are aiming to create more innovative research opportunities at Ryerson. The Ryerson Innovation Circle members also served as judges for the event, and included Eddie Chan, Ronnen Harary, Moez Kassam, Gurbani Marwah, Isaac Olowolafe Jr., Joshua Reisman, and Karlee Vukets.

The goal of the Innovation Circle is to fund a research project that addresses an important global challenge and can be applied in other cities around the world. This year’s teams were tasked with finding a way to create sustainable change that will improve Toronto and the lives of its residents.

The call for proposals attracted 12 teams, from which were selected three finalists for the pitch competition. The three teams — comprised of Ryerson faculty and graduate students — each proposed innovative research projects to a panel of judges in the hopes of winning the $70,000 prize. The money enables the successful group to cover operating costs, secure new equipment, and hire more graduate students to give their project momentum.

The winning team includes Ryerson geography and environmental studies professor Dr. Andrew Millward, Ryerson alumnus and project co-founder Nikesh Bhagat, PhD candidate Amber Grant and master’s student Courtney Carrier. The winning group’s project, Citytrees (external link) , will allow the public — especially secondary school students — to share urban forest education and stewardship information about Toronto’s forests using an online platform. The project’s goal is to help urban residents recognize the value of Toronto's forests, learn how to care for trees, and encourage them to plant more trees in their communities. This way the entire city will reap the environmental, social and economic benefits.

“Citytrees endeavours to be a suite of freely accessible tools and opportunities for communities that aspire to be more than the sum of their parts. In doing so it will help create a healthier future for our cities,” says co-founder Bhagat.

The two other research teams presented equally ambitious projects. One team pitched a smart phone app that enables drivers to use their mobile phones to detect and report road potholes to city maintenance workers. The other group planned a study to improve immigrant equity and inclusion in developing healthy built environments in the Greater Toronto Area.

The enthusiasm for the Citytrees project from the Ryerson Innovation Circle is especially meaningful to Amber Grant, a member of the winning team. “While the funding will help us to better develop Citytrees, the support of the Innovation Circle also shows us that they believe in the work we are doing. And that is truly inspiring.”

If you are interested in supporting the Ryerson Innovation Circle or would like more information about this initiative, please contact Michelle Hounslow at 416-979-5000 ext. 4629 or michelle.hounslow@torontomu.ca.