WC129 MarApr2023 - Flipbook - Page 12
COLLABORATION
On the Fast Track
AquaEntrepreneur unites start-ups and municipalities
in water project deployment BY MELISSA DICK
RINKING WATER SHORTAGES,
unprecedented flooding, emerging contaminants of concern, aging infrastructure,
labour shortages. These are only some of the
examples of the increasing threats related to
water resource management faced by communities
of all sizes across Canada. Municipalities are in the
challenging position to respond to many of these
pressures, but they are also uniquely placed to find
creative ways to improve their services to support
more resilient operations. Collaboration with innovative private sector companies can offer one key to
unlocking water security at a municipal level.
Since 2015, the non-profit organization AquaAction has served as the innovation catalyst for end-users in both the public and private sectors, supporting
dozens of teams of young problem-solvers in the
development of cutting-edge technological solutions
to address complex water management issues. Of
these creative teams and solutions, 28 were formalized as start-ups and continue to work to bring their
disruptive services and products to market today.
They join the growing number of small and emerging
companies in the water sector that are developing
new systems and services thanks to innovative technologies, solutions, and processes, some of which can
respond to pain points experienced in the municipal
water sector.
Melissa Dick
Intermediary role in collaborative projects
In discussions with early-stage companies targeting
the municipal sector, AquaAction identified two
common barriers. First, many municipal end-users
request examples and data from field experimentation
D
Melissa Dick is a program manager
with AquaAction. To learn more about
AquaEntrepreneur, reach out to Melissa at
melissa@aquaaction.org.
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WATER C AN ADA • M ARCH/APRIL 2023
WAT E R C A N A D A . N E T
AquaAction
Water operator Ben Brant providing a guided tour of the Mohawks of the Bay of Quinte Water Treatment Plant to AquaAction
program participants.
