BCIC Sponsors Upcoming Competitions and Seminars
Vancouver – The BC Innovation Council is pleased to be a title sponsor for the 2009 New Ventures BC Competition and the Impact Microcredit Competition which are both open to all British Columbians:
* 2009 New Ventures BC Competition – BCIC will be providing a total of $180,000 towards the Proof of Concept Awards towards the competition prizes. BCIC’s Proof of Concept Development Prize provides funding to New Ventures BC winners, to demonstrate the commercial potential of a new technology product, process or service. The funding supports advancement of the technology along the commercialization continuum in order to attract investors, commercial partners, and future customers.
The competition is open to everyone in British Columbia and entries will be accepted from a person, team or business. NVBC welcomes technology business ideas from all sectors. Registration for the competition will open shortly. Deadline to enter is midnight, April 20, 2009.
The New Ventures BC Seminar Series starts on April 1st – Assessing the Opportunity with Bob de Wit. Got a better mouse-trap? What to do next? Commercializing new technologies and building companies around them starts by measuring whether you have the right stuff and then crafting your story so that people will buy into your venture. Join this interactive event that will review what it means to be a technology entrepreneur and help you develop a business opportunity statement that can be used to take your idea or business to the next level.
* This year’s series includes nine seminars and one networking event.
* New this year, is a seminar with tips on creating the perfect business pitch and another on how to plan your exit strategy.
* Attend the entire series for just $100, the seminar fee will also cover your entry in the competition.
* Or, attend individual seminars for $20 each. New Ventures BC volunteers and students with valid i.d. cards may attend for free.
Registration and Networking: 6:30pm
Seminar: 7:00pm
SFU Segal School of Business, 500 Granville St.
Vancouver, B.C.
* 2009 Impact Microcredit Competition with scholarship prize funds towards the winning teams. The Young Innovator Scholarship will be awarded to the top teams in support of innovative and entrepreneurial Grade 12 students to enter full-time science, technology and business programs in the province’s post-secondary institutions.
This Competition involves 200 high schools across Canada and is comprised of one task: high school teams/individuals are given one hundred dollars and are tasked to turn that amount into as much money as possible in one week. Winners will be awarded and proceeds are given to their charity of choice. Teams are encouraged to harness their talents in a way that thinks WAY outside the box, challenged to push boundaries and build an initiative from the ground up. Impact Microcredit provides the tools and the money to create a real-life project in a competition to test creativity and innovation. Impact Microcredit hopes to promote the entrepreneurial spirit to secondary school students and inspire them to become entrepreneurs themselves.
About Impact
The Impact Entrepreneurship Group is Canada’s largest non-profit, student-run organization dedicated to encouraging the entrepreneurial spirit amongst youth in Canada and becoming a starting point and catalyst for youth interested in entrepreneurship and leadership. Since 2004, Impact has developed programs both at the national and local level that reach over 100,000 young people each year. Consisting of over 100 student volunteers nationwide, Impact is dedicated to driving the entrepreneurial spirit.
