IGNITE | SCALE | SAN DIEGO, an Urban Innovation Program, Announces Winner of its 2020 Challenge
SAN DIEGO - June 2020 - IGNITE | SCALE | SAN DIEGO, an Urban Innovation Program and collaboration between Smart Cities Accelerator, Labs + Environment (SCALE) San Diego, US Ignite, City of San Diego and with support from Cox Communications, announced the winner and runner up for its 2020 urban challenge program at a virtual event earlier today. Both teams earned continued guidance from the program's partners and sponsors to help popularize their solution, connect them with potential customers and partnership opportunities.
City Canvas slightly inched out 2-Way for top honors for its Arts & Culture solution. Both teams were awarded continued product development support including mentoring from Jacques Chirazi, Director of Student Entrepreneurship at UCSD and Dana Springs, consultant and former head of the City of San Diego Arts & Culture Commission; connection to subject matter experts from the City, SANDAG, Arts & Culture Commission, Jacobs Center and more; and cash prizes to help underwrite product development costs.
Through a series of community events in 2020, IGNITE | SCALE | SAN DIEGO recruited, coached and mentored teams of students, technologists, entrepreneurs, software developers and change makers to invent novel approaches to current community challenges as identified in collaboration with the City of San Diego. These included: Arts and Culture Engagement, Mobility and Mode Sharing in Low to Moderate Income (LMI) Communities, and New Interfaces for Communities to interact with the City of San Diego. Out of the six teams formed, three emerged as winners of the initial competition based on the strength of their proposed solutions.
All the participants of the 2020 challenge were given access to technology and mentorship, as well as customer feedback, and networking opportunities. The teams will continue work to have their solutions implemented or incubated as new ventures.
"This process has been invaluable to my growth and that of my team members. We were given the opportunity to hear from advisors and mentors, make connections and learn how to take a concept and develop it into a viable solution for the citizens of San Diego," said Michelle Houganhout of the City Canvas team.
Program organizers say this is an example of the power of private and public sector collaboration to find novel solutions to stubborn urban challenges.
"I drew inspiration from this year's teams. Despite all the uncertainty of the past few months with Covid-19 and having to make the program fully virtual, the teams showed amazing creativity, commitment and dedication in developing inventive solutions that will make a difference in the quality of life for San Diegans and others," said SCALE San Diego Co-Founder and Managing Partner Daniel Obodovski. "Our partners - US Ignite, the City of San Diego and Cox Communications - pulled their collective resources and expertise to help find and grow real-world solutions that can impact our entire region and beyond. That's a win for everyone."
The San Diego program has also garnered broad support from the City, SANDAG, University of San Diego, SDSU and the business community. The program's steering committee includes, business, community, and local government leaders; startup founders, venture capitalists, academics, technologists and others.
"Congratulations to City Canvas and 2-Way on their successful concepts. Cox has invested billions of dollars in our broadband network over the years to power our next-generation gigabit communities, so it's been exciting to see these teams create innovative solutions for San Diego," says Cox Communications Senior Vice President and Region Manager Sam Attisha. "Many thanks to all involved in the 2020 IGNITE | SCALE | SAN DIEGO program for their hard work to make this program a success this year in spite of the challenges everyone has faced during the coronavirus pandemic. It really demonstrates what a community can achieve when we all work together."
According to Deputy COO for Smart & Sustainable Communities, City of San Diego, Erik Caldwell, the program is a strong example of the ideas that can be uncovered at little or no cost to the city itself. "It's an example of the quality solutions we can find to common urban challenges at virtually zero cost to taxpayers when we combine local talent with the right mentors and resources. Our city is diverse, resilient and home to talented individuals like these team members who care enough to offer their ideas, develop and share them with their community. That's what makes San Diego such an incredible place to live."
To learn more about IGNITE | SCALE | SAN DIEGO and how you can get involved, visit https://www.scalesd.com/innovation-2020/.
SCALE drives urban innovation in San Diego and beyond. Our mission is to bridge the gap between technology and urban challenges. Through our partnership with the City, universities and corporations we tackle real urban problems with the best local talent and cutting-edge technology. We achieve our mission through a blend of community engagement, facilitation, and innovative projects. http://scalesd.com/. Connect: Twitter and LinkedIn.
US Ignite, Inc. is a non-profit organization accelerating the smart city movement by guiding communities into the connected future, creating a path for private sector growth, and advancing technology research that's at the heart of smart city development. www.us-ignite.org