A new program that gives students the opportunity to obtain funding for creative learning projects will officially launch on Feb. 22 at a public event in Kitchener.
The Youth Creativity Fund, which has support from the Cambridge Chamber of Commerce, the Greater Kitchener Waterloo Chambers of Commerce, and BEP Waterloo Region, promotes creative confidence by connecting student-driven and designed ideas with donations from people who want to see the creativity of youth in Waterloo Region flourish.
The program allows students to apply to receive up to $1,000 in micro grants to complete their project.
Some of the projects currently underway include an app for the unhoused, self-published books on important local topics, a device to self-water plants for grandparents who have limited mobility, a high school incubator program housing for the next tech entrepreneurs and research for a new product to get healthy fresh foods into local food banks.
“The greatest natural resource we have are the minds of our children,” HIP Development CEO Scott Higgins, who serves on the Youth Creativity Fund committee said in a release.
“It’s not trees, it’s not oil and gas; it’s the ideas that come out of our kids.”
Cambridge Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Greg Durocher feels supporting the fund aligns well with the vision for the future of the region.
“This kind of creativity is the wheelhouse of the Chamber of Commerce,” he said.
“We always look down the road a generation or two because they're not only our community’s future leaders but our job creators for the rest of the 21st century.”
The launch will take place at the Ken Seiling Waterloo Region Museum, located at 10 Huron St. in Kitchener.
Guests in attendance will have the opportunity to speak with students who have gained funding and started working on their projects. It will also serve as a networking opportunity for local employers, school board officials and politicians to discuss future opportunities to support local youth.
Admission is free and doors open at 5 p.m.
