Meet the GTA’s greatest young inventors!
On March 28, 206 young and brilliant minds took over the Innovation Complex Rotunda as ICUBE collaborated with I3 – Investigate! Invent! Innovate! supporting the next wave of inventors and entrepreneurs in the GTA. For the second consecutive year, UTM hosted the Invention Convention GTA showcasing students in grades 7 and 8 solving everyday issues by applying their science, math and technology skills to invent an innovative product.
As part of Entrepreneurship Week at U of T, the middle school students displayed 52 projects. The presentations in the Rotunda piqued the interest of those passing by, but the minds and enthusiasm of the young entrepreneurs were what really attracted the visitors. Many university students, faculty and staff were eager to learn about the invention and innovation process that these young Alexander Graham Bells and Olivia Pooles were able to produce.
Ideas included a revolutionary glove that reduced the shaking of hands due to tremors; a grip that helps stop finger pain experienced after playing video games for a long period of time; a self-defence wristband featuring an alarm, camera, pepper spray and flashlight; and even an electric scarecrow that senses animals near crops.
“Some of these students pitch as well as our master’s students,” declared Rose Mary Craig, program coordinator of the Master of Science in Sustainability Management program. While all of the inventors were at different stages of the innovation process, each had their own prototypes and detailed business plans including pricing strategies and marketing campaigns. Some went so far as to print business cards, create their own websites and set up social media channels to promote their products. Diana Aldaz, of the Department of Management, who has entrepreneurial endeavors of her own, stated, “I didn’t want to leave, they were all so good!”
Samara, Ifeoluwa, Elsa and Ria hope to modify their self-defense wristband to make it more compact and user-friendly. Geetika, Divhleen, Azmi and Dilpreet look forward to increasing the sales of The Fit to help the nearly 20.5 million people in North America who suffer from tremor-related psychological disorders. Syed, Sahil and Harman are eager to release their product into the market and make your gaming experience perfect through the VIB Grip.
Brian Do, a commerce-finance student at UTM, was very impressed by the ideas that the inventors were able to develop, and encouraged them to “keep going to pursue your idea and never give up. As Thomas Edison once said, ‘our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time’.”