On October 25, I had the opportunity to attend and present a keynote speech at the Aqua Hacking Challenge Finals in Toronto, Canada. The event, sponsored by the de Gaspé Beaubien Foundation is in its fourth year and was presented as a part of Ontario’s Water Innovation Week. At the challenge, five finalist teams of university students competed for a chance to win $50,000 in prizes and a spot working with local incubators. So far the challenge has spawned over 60 engineering and tech-related solutions with 15 on the market or in development. The interdisciplinary student groups are paired with stakeholders and innovators to solve known issues facing Canadian watersheds.
Together with mentors from water, engineering and technology sectors, each finalist this year targeted a clean-tech solution for the Lake Ontario region. The first prize winning Team E-Nundation produces maps of potentially flooded areas and floodwater depth based on discharge forecasts from Environment Canada. This information will help prepare municipalities and the public by improving prediction and adaption strategies to flooding.
Second place team, WaterPuris, hacked the home toilet bowl. Recognizing the challenge presented by endocrine-disrupting chemicals in the waste stream, they decided to go right to the source using a combo of hydrogen peroxide and UV light to degrade EDCs.
The three remaining finalists targeted data collection challenges, helping governments predict and measure sewage outflow patterns, and documenting the reasons behind them.
The five finalist teams have been working on their projects since the event launch in March and will now continue developing their ideas with the help of mentors. Next season, the Aqua Hacking Challenge will move to a new watershed, inspiring a new army of water warriors to develop solutions for the future.
About the de Gaspé Beaubien Foundation and AquaHacking
Founded in 1990, the de Gaspé Beaubien Foundation is a family-run philanthropic organization dedicated to water conservation and to supporting family businesses. The Foundation employs an approach known as entrepreneurial philanthropy in its aim to support individuals, families in business, and organizations in becoming responsible agents of positive and sustainable change within their communities. The de Gaspé Beaubien Foundation spearheaded AquaHacking, which is now also supported by various partner organisations. AquaHacking is a freshwater tech challenge, engaging young innovators to develop clean-tech solutions for pressing freshwater issues.
