The Ontario Science Centre announced the six winners of the 2021 Weston Youth Innovation Award for their work developing innovative projects. Andrew Pun of Toronto, Ontario, won the top prize of $15,000 for a 3D smartphone camera attachment and AI web app that identifies seven types of skin lesions, including melanoma and basal cell carcinoma.
Press release: Ontario Science Centre celebrates six Canadian youths for innovative science projects
Our Foundation has long supported education programs and scholarships to benefit the well-being of Canadians. We believe that with education comes opportunity and security.
With the looming labour market gap in the skilled trades, we chose to focus our support on trades education through the Weston Family Scholarship in the Skilled Trades Program. The program was developed as a model to encourage student success from start to finish, giving students additional support in their skilled trades career journey.
We created the Weston Family Scholarship in the Skilled Trades Report as a summary of our findings after many years of working with colleges to support students undertaking college-based training of post-secondary pre-apprenticeship diplomas, certificates and apprenticeships. The report was developed in collaboration with the participating colleges: Algonquin College, Camosun College, Conestoga College, Durham College and Loyalist College, to be used as a tool for potential future skilled trades programming and funding.
After more than a decade of supporting skilled trades education in Canada, we are sunsetting our program in 2022. We hope that the learnings shared in our report will inspire similar skilled trades funding in the future.
Read the Report: Weston Family Scholarship in the Skilled Trades Report
The Weston Family Foundation has provided $7.6 million in funding toward the Canadian Canoe Museum’s new facility in Peterborough, Ontario. Our Foundation has maintained a long-standing relationship with the Museum for more than 20 years, offering consistent support and leadership throughout its growth.
This contribution supported the design, construction, and development of educational programming for the new museum, which opened in May 2024 on Little Lake in Peterborough. The Foundation’s donation represented the largest known private gift to a charitable organization in Peterborough at the time.
The new facility gives visitors access to the world’s largest collection of canoes, kayaks, and paddled watercrafts. It features 600 watercraft, thousands of small artefacts, and an archive, along with new experiential elements such as a boardwalk and dock access that connect visitors directly to Little Lake.
For more information, please visit the Canadian Canoe Museum.
Gabriella Mante (she/her) joined the Weston Family Foundation in July of 2019. She is a member of the Operations team and is responsible for ensuring the administrative and grant management needs of the Foundation are being met.
Prior to joining the Foundation, Gabriella was a Programme Officer at the Stephen Lewis Foundation, where she managed a portfolio of grants distributed to community-based organizations in sub-Saharan Africa.
Gabriella holds an Honours Bachelor of Arts degree in Peace, Conflict, & Justice Studies and Political Science from the University of Toronto.
For more than six decades, the Weston Family Foundation has supported projects across Canada that contribute to a vibrant and resilient country. These special projects address a wide range of needs in both urban and rural communities, including initiatives in arts, culture, and heritage, as well as community-based programs that enhance the well-being of Canadians.
The Foundation’s Board of Directors initiates all special project grants, and unsolicited proposals are not accepted. For funding opportunities in our two focus areas, please visit the Grant Calls page or follow us on LinkedIn.
Supply chain disruptions – leading to acute fears of empty shelves – currency fluctuations, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the impact of climate change on global food production exposed the many vulnerabilities of Canada’s import-reliant food system. In response, the Weston Family Foundation launched the Homegrown Innovation Challenge, a $33 million funding initiative designed to strengthen domestic food production and resilience.
The Challenge supports innovators developing sustainable, cost-effective, and scalable solutions to enable Canadian producers to grow berries out of season. Through the Spark, Shepherd, and Scaling phases, participating teams receive grant funding, mentorship, and networking opportunities to advance their ideas from concept to market.
Learn more about the Challenge and the four finalist Scaling teams through the Homegrown Innovation Challenge website.
The Ontario Science Centre announced the five winners of the 2020 Weston Youth Innovation Award for their work developing innovative projects. 15-year-old Ethan Chan of Victoria, BC, won the top prize of $15,000 for a device that accurately monitors and records kidney disease data.
Press release: Ontario Science Centre announces the 2020 Weston Youth Innovation Awards