It's time to nominate young innovators for the Ontario Science Centre's 2014 Weston Youth Innovation Award
TORONTO, Oct. 23, 2013 /CNW/ - Lots of people talk about making the world better. The Ontario Science Centre wants to recognize and support youth to take action to make it better.
Nominations are now open for the prestigious Weston Youth Innovation Award. The Ontario Science Centre is looking for Canadians aged 14 to 18 who have used science in creative ways to find solutions to real-world problems. Successful candidates must have taken steps to put their ideas into action, making a positive change locally or in the wider community.
"We are so proud of these young people who, as high school students, not only asked questions but have the determination and creativity to find answers," said Catherine Paisley, Ontario Science Centre Vice President, Science Education. "This year, once again, we are looking for Canadian youth who are natural innovators and deserve recognition and the opportunity to share their work with the public".
2013 winner Adam Noble, a grade 12 student from Peterborough, Ontario, wanted to know how nanosilver, an antibacterial agent added to clothing and other consumer products, affected living things in his home-town water system. He conducted tests using Euglena microorganisms grown in his parents' sauna and discovered that the plant-like creatures had an affinity for absorbing nanosilver. Adam went on to invent a Euglena-based biofilter for removing nanosilver from water supplies. The city of Kawartha Lakes is planning to test his prototype next year in their water-treatment facilities.
The winning applicant or team will be featured in a video animation by the Centre's award-winning graphics team, to be broadcast online and in the Weston Family Innovation Centre -- the news hub of the Science Centre, which welcomes more than one million visitors each year. In addition, they will receive a $2,000 prize, travel expenses to attend the award ceremony in Toronto, and an Ontario Science Centre membership. Finalists also receive recognition.
Do you know someone who might qualify? Please contact [email protected].
Youth are invited to put their names forward. Teachers and community leaders are asked to encourage potential candidates to apply.
Nominations must be received by February 1, 2014. An external jury will make a selection in April 2014 and the winner will be announced on the website by June 15, 2014.
Detailed information about the Weston Youth Innovation Award and information on past winners can be found at www.OntarioScienceCentre.ca/innovationaward.
About the Weston Youth Innovation Award
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 delights, informs and challenges the communities we serve, enriching people's lives and understanding through engagement with science of local, national and global relevance. Since 1969, the Ontario Science Centre has welcomed over 46 million visitors, with an interactive approach that was the model for Science Centres around the world. It is the public centre for innovative thinking and provocative dialogue in science and technology, aiming to inspire a lifelong journey of curiosity, discovery and action to create a better future for the planet. The Ontario Science Centre is an agency of the Government of Ontario. Please visit us at OntarioScienceCentre.ca. Facebook: www.Facebook.com/OntarioScienceCentre. Twitter: @OntScienceCtr.
YouTube: www.YouTube.com/user/OntarioScienceCentre.
SOURCE: Ontario Science Centre
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