Civic Impact

This week the YWCA Toronto honours seven Toronto women who have worked to improve the lives of women and girls both within and beyond the GTA. The Women of Distinction Awards Dinner, now in its 32nd year, is presented by Sun Life Financial and is held at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre.

As the main YWCA Toronto fundraising event, the May 16 gala is used to fund the nonprofits ongoing initiatives.

"The funds go towards all of our programs," says Sarah Blackstock, director of advocacy and communication for YWCA Toronto,  "so that includes Canada's only fulltime girls centre, which we run in Scarborough, that includes our shelters, employment programs, housing, community support programs and even advocacy work."

Apart from fundraising, Blackstock says the award ceremony is about visibility and empowerment.

This year's honoured women are:

Elyse Allan - Business
 
Soteira Hortop - Young Woman of Distinction
 
Judith Humphrey - Entrepreneurship
 
Angela James - Sport
 
Bridget Lynch - Healthcare
 
Pamela Palmater - Social Justice
 
Anne Sado - Education

"The event is important because as a women's organization, as a feminist organization, it's important for us to do two things," says Blackstock. "One is to celebrate our successes and the second is to highlight the barriers women continue to face and the issue we continue we continue to grapple with."

By honouring women of diverse career backgrounds—from business leaders to teachers—and showcasing their successes and challenges, Blackstock says Women of Distinction is an empowering evening.

"That's what draws people to the event and that's what draws the guests and that's what draws the sponsors as well," she says.

Writer: Katia Snukal
Source: Sarah Blackstock, Director of Advocacy & Communication, YWCA Toronto

A team of George Brown students will represent Canada in an international software design competition in Sydney, Australia, after winning a national competition. 

Team GREENi (Timur Sharaftinov, Alecsander Granger, Vasily Gurin and Dmitry Zhivotovsky) came first in the Software Design category in the April 30 competition of Microsoft 2012 Imagine Cup Canada. The students were recognized for an energy-saving program called GREENi, which uses Microsoft Kinect in combination with light and carbon dioxide sensors to monitor lighting and ventilation systems. By implementing the system in their lab and monitoring when energy systems should be active, the students were able to significantly reduce energy consumption.

Founded 10 years ago, the Imagine Cup challenges university and high school to harness technology for the greater good of the humanity and the planet. 

Team GREENi will head to Australia in early July to participate in the worldwide finals, competing against other national winners.

"Great ideas don't accomplish much if they remain on paper," stated Leo Salemi, a faculty member from the Centre for Construction and Engineering Technologies at George Brown College. "I'm very proud of Team GREENi and we are thrilled to be given the opportunity to showcase how we used technology to turn our ideas into reality at Imagine Cup 2012 in Australia."

Writer: Katia Snukal
Source: Imagine Cup

OCAD University had announced a partnership with four major universities in Brazil. 

The collaboration—the result of a joint effort by OCAD, the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada (AUCC), the four Brazil institutions and Brazil's Science Without Borders Program—will ensure a consistent flow of students, resources, and research between the two countries. 

OCAD University president Dr. Sara Diamond says Brazil is a uniquely situated partner for Canadians working in tech development, especially considering Brazil's explosive economic growth. Both countries also share some challenges, says Diamond, "such as bringing the Internet into remote areas."

The ties between OCAD and the four Brazil institutions—Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio de Janeiro, Universidade de Brasília, Universidade Anhenbi Morumbi, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul—are already strong, says Diamond. The new agreement aims to formalize the relationships. 

"A number of faculty here, including myself, have had ongoing research relationships with Brazilian faculty at various universities, in fields such as inclusive technologies, data visualization, art and technology, wearable technologies, virtual reality and mobile design," says Diamond. "As well, a number of these universities are part of a network of data visualization researchers who work with Canadians."

Opportunities for joint collaboration include mobile technologies and intersections between art and technology, as well as social medial and biomedical visualization. 

Writer: Katia Snukal
Source:  OCAD University President, Dr. Sara Diamond

Trying to change your life can be disorienting enough, so the website you turn to for help should be simple and straightforward.

That's the impetus behind a Toronto nonprofit's recent website overhaul. MicroSkills, an organization that provides resources and skill-building programs to GTA youth, women and newcomers, recently teamed up with Toronto ad firm Eden Advertising & Interactive, to make accessing those resources even easier. 

The website's only been live for a few weeks, but the initial buzz is promising.

"Feedback from MicroSkills to Eden has been very positive," says Esther Willinger, president of Eden Advertising. "MicroSkills has also reported that traffic to the site and length of visits within the site have gone up since the new site was launched."

There's a lot of information provided throughout the site, she says, "so the challenge was structuring the new site in a way that is concise and easy to navigate for all the audiences that MicroSkills needs to address" including not only users, but also employers and pontential sponsors. The MircroSkills website now boasts a leaner user interface, easier navigation, online videos, search feature and social media plugins.

Launched in 1984, MicroSkills is a multicultural nonprofit aimed at improving the social and economic well-being of its users by helping them to build their skill sets and connecting them to resources they need to get where they want to go. 

Writer: Katia Snukal
Source: Esther Willinger, President, Eden Advertising & Interactive Inc.

Last week Canada Walks announced the launch of Walk Friendly Ontario (WFO), a new designation program that will reward walkable and sustainable communities throughout the province. 
 
While the the tool for assessing walkability and sustainability is still in development, organizers have already made comprehensive criteria available online to give communities a chance to gather information, prepare and make changes in advance of the 2013 deadline.

"Walking, engineering, placemaking, education and encouragement" are among the most essential criteria says project manger Kate Hall. After applications are received in the spring and summer of 2013, qualified communities will be awarded one of four designators: bronze, silver, gold and platinum. In the meantime, Hall says "communities can begin looking at what kind of resources are [on the website] and they can start to work on their application so they're ready when it comes out." 

Sponsored by a grant from the province of Ontario, WFO is part of a larger national project, Canada Walks, working to make walkability an important political and social issue at the municipal, provincial and national levels.

"Because walking is the most natural method of transportation, we sometimes take it for granted and neglect to consider what constitutes a walk-friendly built environment in community planning," says Hall. "We create space for everything else on our streets except people. The WFO program is about making sure that walking is "on the radar" of city/town planners, engineers and decision-makers."

Writer: Katia Snukal
Source: Kate Hall, Consultant, Green Communities Canada & Project Manager, Walk Friendly Ontario

Toronto's North York General Hospital (NYGH) announced last Thursday the formal launch of a $150-million fundraising campaign, the hospital's largest to-date.

The campaign was kick-started by donors Charlotte and Lewis Steinberg, and Gulshan and Pyarali G. Nanji, who recently made significant monetary donations to the hospital. 

The Steinberg's donation of $12 million, the largest single donation in the hospital's history, will be used to redevelop the emergency ward and to establish a new acute-care unit. Additionally, the donations by the Steinbergs and Nanjis will be used to purchase two much needed CT scanners. 

NYGH's large-scale fundraising initiative is part of the hospital's larger vision, to not only improve the infrastructure and quality of care at the hospital, but also to take advantage of the unique research opportunities it offers.

With three sites in North Central Toronto—the General Site (Leslie and Sheppard), the Branson Site and Urgent Care Centre (Finch and Bathurst) and the Seniors' Health Centre (Leslie and Sheppard)—NYGH is not only of Toronto's busiest hospitals, it also serves one of Canada's most diverse communities and has the country's highest elderly patient population. The hope is that this campaign money will bolster research and care aimed directly at NYGH's unique community.

"The hospital is uniquely suited to [patient care] research," Murphy says, "We see so many more patients—particularly an older aging population—than a lot of places across Canada.... We have a unique opportunity to learn from the care we provide those patients because they come from such different backgrounds."

Murphy says NYGH physicians have already been doing "ad-hoc" research in patient care. The $19.5 million earmarked for research will formalize and expand these projects.

While NYGH has raised 48 per cent of their $150-million goal, Angela Murphy, director of campaign and major gifts at NYGH, expects it will take about five years to raise the rest. "While the hospital will look to a variety of sources for funds, the hope is that other large donors will come forward. Major gift donations are the best chance we have at raising this money in quick way and getting started on projects sooner."

Writer: Katia Snukal
Source: Angela Murphy, Director of Campaign and Major Gifts, North York General Hospital

Toronto's City Builder Book Club—a book club that turns reading about city-building into an act of city-building itself—has wrapped up the reading of its first book.

The book club, a joint venture between the Centre for City Ecology and Creative Urban Projects (CUP), brings together readers from within and beyond Toronto who have a keen interest in city-building and want to participate in larger conversation on iconic city-focused texts. The goal of the project, according the website is "to facilitate a deeper understanding of how cities work by hosting a guided reading and discussion of books that have developed and challenged our ideas on this topic." The club officially launched in February; its inaugural book, not surprisingly, was Jane Jacobs’ The Death and Life of Great American Cities. 

Here’s how it worked: Each week, the book club members would read selected chapters and have the opportunity to discuss the week's readings on message boards, Facebook and Twitter.  

But what is particularly novel is the reading guide system developed by the organizers. In addition to online discussions, books club members were also privy to weekly chapter analysis. Along with blog entries from members of the Centre for City Ecology and Creative Urban Projects, urban celebrity bloggers included former Toronto mayor John Sewell, Margaret Zeidler, founder of Toronto's Urbanspace Property Group, and Aaron Renn, founder and writer of the popular Chicago blog Urbanophile.

The choice for book number two hasn't been made yet, but Steven Dale, founding principal of CUP, it will be announced soon. "The response has been very very positive, [the book club] is going to keep going and new and exciting things are going to happen in the future."

The Book Club also worked with Toronto's Swipe Books, who made sure extra copies of Jacobs' text were on-hand, and the Toronto Public Library, which provided weekly lists of additional source material to members of the mailing list.

Writer: Katia Snukal
Source: Steven Dale, Founding Principal, Creative Urban Projects

The journey from prototype to market can be a lonely, confusing and expensive one for even the most driven and informed entrepreneurs. 

To make the path of emerging entrepreneurs a little smoother, quicker and easier, this week MaRS Discovery District launched JOLT, a business accelerator that will provide 16 Canadian entrepreneurs with the tools and resources they need to get their product to market. Aimed at entrepreneurs in the communications and entertainment sectors, JOLT will provide successful applicants with a combination of mentorship and financing as they work to get their product off the ground. 

"Startup accelerators implement a unique funding methodology and innovation model. Instead of funding one startup at a time, they are mentored and funded in groups for efficiency," says Susan McGill, JOLT's executive director. "The pace of innovation continues to move ahead at an accelerated rate, thus creating lot of ambiguity in the market. It's difficult to have any visibility into the future when business models and competitive advantages can change overnight... To flourish and succeed in this new economy, early stage startups need access to the right infrastructure, capital and culture."

The 16 successful applicants will get space at the MaRS facility, $30,000 each is seed financing, as well as mentorship from business leaders within and beyond MaRS. After four-months of tailored sessions where the entrepreneurs will be given the tools they need to build, market and advertise their product, they will be given the opportunity to pitch their ideas to venture capital investors. 

Successful applicants will also have access to 80 handpicked mentors from investment, technology, communications and entertainment companies in Canada, including Polar Mobile, Spark59 and Google.

JOLT is accepting applications until May 30.

Writer: Kat Snukal
Source: Susan McGill, Executive Director, JOLT

In September 2008, the Metrolinx board of directors voted to adopt a $50-billion transportation plan for the Toronto and Hamilton region. In June 2013, they’re going to tell the province how to pay for it.

In the meantime, Toronto's civic leaders are already mobilizing to become part of the conversation. In anticipation of the release of Metrolinx's 2013 Metrolinx Investment Strategy, Toronto's CivicAction Alliance—a multi-sectoral coalition of thousands of Toronto civic leaders—has launched the Regional Transportation Initiative.

The initiative will bring together Toronto civic leaders with a stake in the region's transportation future. The coalition of business leaders, NGOs and citizens will work to support Metrolinx's 2008 Big Move plan and the highly anticipated 2013 Investment Strategy that will outline a plan to fund it. 

Like many of the individuals and organizations she works with, Mitzie Hunter, CEO of CivicAction, believes in the importance, and the potentially transformative effects, of Metrolinx's Big Move. But she recognizes that without secured funding, many of the plan's most important projects will never be implemented.

"We've got this good plan but so far only about 20 per cent of capital projects are funded," says Hunter. "That leaves almost $40 billion left to raise."

That's why, Hunter argues, it's so important to get civic leaders to support this initiative. "We expect [the 2013 Metrolinx investment strategy] to include new sources of funding that go beyond existing tax revenues. We want to be there to support that."

By the fall, CivicAction and their partners will reveal a campaign aimed at mobilizing support and awareness for the 2013 Metrolinx announcements. 

Metrolinx was established in 2006 by the Government of Ontario to "improve the coordination and integration of all modes of transportation in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area." Read more information on the agency here. 

Writer: Katia Snukal
Source: Mitzie Hunter, CEO of CivicAction

The University of Toronto is a core of member of an new multimillion dollar NYC-based research consortium. 

Details were released April 23 when New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced the launch of The Center for Urban Science and Progress (CUSP), a new school and research collective to be located in Brooklyn. CUSP will focus on using applied science to find technological solutions to critical issues facing the world's cities. CUSP's mandate includes everything from tech integration to transportation congestion, public safety to public health.

Spearheaded by NYU and NYU-Poly, in partnership with number of international academic institutions as well as private technology companies, CUSP will offer graduate degrees in Engineering and Sciences. U of T is the only Canadian institution represented, joining an impressive list of schools that includes the City University of New York, Carnegie Mellon University, the University of Warwick and the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay.

"We're very excited about the partnership," says Yu-Ling Cheng, acting dean at U of T's Faculty of Applied Science and Engineering, "[CUSP] provides a lot of opportunities for sharing knowledge and resources."

While the finer details are still being worked out, Cheng believes that CUSP will have a significant impact on urban engineering at U of T and, if all goes according to plan, on urban problem-solving in the city at large. Not only will the partnership allow students and faculty in applied sciences to work at the brand new Brooklyn campus, U of T is also developing a new professional Master's program on city engineering and management as a result of the partnership.  

"We already have experience and capacity in the urban sciences," says Cheng. "We have a lot to bring to the table, but we recognize that there are strengths elsewhere. It's an opportunity to explore common synergies that exist within and beyond U of T."

Writer: Katia Snukal
Source: Yu-Ling Cheng, Acting Dean, Faculty of Applied Science and Engineering, Director of the Centre for Global Engineering, University of Toronto

Canada's National Volunteer Week may have just ended, but for one Toronto organization, the celebration is still in full swing.

Volunteer Toronto, a nonprofit that encourages Torontonions to get engaged in their communities, celebrated Volunteer Week by setting a challenge for themselves and Toronto’s high-school students.

In a push that lasts until May 6, Volunteer Toronto aims to get high-school-aged youth to collectively clock 5,000 hours of volunteer time. The challenge comes as a result of a collaboration with the fourth annual ChangeTheWorld Ontario Youth Volunteer Challenge, a program supported by the Ontario Ministry of Citizenship and Immigration.

"National Volunteer Week is often seen as a chance to recognize volunteers currently making a difference in the world," stated Deborah Gardner, executive director of Volunteer Toronto, in a news release. "But it's also an opportunity to reach out to the next generations of volunteers that aren't yet active in their communities and challenge them to be a part of the change."

Volunteer Toronto has coordinated with a number of nonprofit organizations throughout the city that are providing high-school students with opportunities to get involved. Participating organizations include the Daily Bread Food Bank, the East Scarborough Storefront and the Toronto Public Library. A full list of organization is available here.

Writer: Katia Snukal
Source: Volunteer Toronto 

This week a class of University of Toronto students had an opportunity few undergrads get—the chance to present original research in a public forum.

In an all-day April 16 event at Hart House's Great Hall, dozens of student teams showcased their original design solutions to problems facing Toronto communities. 

The design showcase was the culmination of a term's worth of work in a course called Praxis, a mandatory class for U of T's first-year Engineering Science students. Now in its seventh year, the course challenges students to identify problems in Toronto communities, work in teams to come up with design solutions to those problems and present their findings in a public showcase. 

"Praxis means an integration of theory and practice," says course instructor Jason Foster. "That's the core philosophy of the course, bringing engineering work into day-to-day lives."

"[The program] was very challenging but also very fun. It is such a unique program and so different from other courses," says Jewel Ho, an Engineering Science student whose team presented on Hyrdoshelf, an indoor hydroponics food-growing system designed for Toronto highrises. "It focuses on idea generation, communication and teamwork. There is a lot of creativity, innovation and freedom involved." 

Snow Wang, whose team worked on a design to improve pedestrian safety at Finch and Bathurst, says the culmination of course work in a public showcase “makes it feels like we're actually working in the real world. Like we’re really getting to use what we learned."

The Praxis Design Showcase regularly draws members of the media, manufacturers, city officials and the general public. And while at times nerve-racking, the exposure not only helps students learn to communicate, but also creates a dialog between university students and the rest of the city.

"The university is often criticized for being closed off," says Foster, "but Praxis really gets a dialog going between students and the larger community."

While no Praxis projects have ever been implemented in full, Foster is confident that students have influenced designers and policy makers who've been invited to hear them speak. "What we're really shooting for is awareness and influence... and I think for sure student ideas have made their way into other design projects."

Projects presented in this year's showcase covered everything from accessibility (wayfinding for visually impaired people using the TTC and new assistive aids for the elderly), sustainability (urban agriculture in high-density communities and revamping downtown bike parking) and safety (improving safety for Toronto's winter cyclists). 

The full list of 2012 project is available here.

Writer: Katia Snukal
Source: Jason Foster, Design Instructor, Engineering Science, University of Toronto

Last Friday Toronto celebrated its green leaders.

In a ceremony hosted by Sangita Patel, weather specialist for CityNews, the Green Toronto Awards were presented to nine NGOs, private companies and individuals who demonstrated outstanding leadership in keeping Toronto clean and green. 

The awards—co-sponsored by the City of Toronto and Green Living Enterprises—were presented at Toronto's Exhibition Centre on the opening night of the 2012 Green Living Show (GLS).

"It's fantastic to be recognized by Toronto's green community,"  says Chris Carradine, VP of marketing for ecobee, the Toronto-based startup that won in the Energy Conservation category. Ecobee was recognized for the success of its programmable and wifi-enabled thermostat (you can read Yonge Street's feature on ecobee here).

"We wanted to make a product that was easy to use, smart and green," says Carradine, "We designed an intelligent algorithm that shows historical trends and patterns and logs data. [Based on North American averages], the average home dweller using the ecobee systems saves between 500 and 600 dollars a year. We're very excited to be recognized for this."

Carradine was especially excited about being recognized at the GLS, an event that he says brings Ontario's green community together "and gives us a chance to meet and interact with our customers." Ecobee first attended the GLS three years ago and hasn't missed it since.

The other eight award winners represent a diverse group of Toronto entrepreneurs, designers and community organizations. They are Friends of the Rouge Watershed (Community Projects Award); Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre (Green Business Award); Ocean Wise's Toronto Office (Environmental Awareness Award); Natalie Rizzo (Youth Leadership Award); The Centre for Green Cities at Evergreen Brick Works, designed by Diamond Schmitt Architects (Green Design Award);  Water-on-Wheels (Water Efficiency Award); Chris Winter (Leadership Award); and Not Far From the Tree (Local Food Award).

You can read more about the 2012 winners here. 

Writer: Katia Snukal
Source: Chris Carradine, VP of Marketing, ecobee ltd., and Green Living Enterprises

When it comes to building a successful social venture, good ideas, creativity and drive go a long way. But without networks and contacts, the uphill climb can be especially steep.

In an effort to give emerging social innovators the leg-up they need, the Centre for Social Innovation (CSI) has announced that the Youth Agents of Change Program will be offered for a third year.

The 20 successful applicants will spend the year building their enterprises and becoming part of the CSI family. In addition to desk space and access to CSI resources, the winners will receive tailored mentorship, as well as opportunities to build networks and contacts throughout the year.

"Young people—like all people—need access to learning and development opportunities," says Eli Malinsky, director of programs and partnerships at CSI, "but one thing that young people often lack is networks—connections to people in different fields, with different experiences and points of view. The most unique feature of our Agents of Change Program is the way in which we bring young entrepreneurs into our community.... It's these personal and professional contacts that connect people to the resources and knowledge they need, and which often spell the difference between success and failure."

The program is open to anyone aged between 19 and 29 who is building any sort of social venture at any stage in its development (so long as it aims to make "a positive difference in our city and our world"). Last year's agents worked on everything from a nonprofit travel company and a for-profit program for adults with autism to developing more efficient energy management systems. 

Since last year the Youth Agents of Change program has been cosponsored by ING Direct, which has made a three-year financial commitment to the program.