Details
| Award Name | Governor General’s Innovation Awards |
| Agency | Governor General’s Innovation Awards |
| Value | N/A |
Deadlines
| Notify sciapps@yorku.ca of intention to apply | ASAP |
| Application due to FSc RO at sciapps@yorku.ca for full review | 09-03-2024 |
| Application and fully signed ORS checklist due to FSc RO at sciapps@yorku.ca for mandatory review | 09-06-2024 |
| Final application and fully signed ORS checklist due to SIRI at dfrasca@yorku.ca | 09-16-2024 |
Please see this memo for information on the internal process of this award.
Background
The Governor General’s Innovation Awards are an annual celebration of innovations that exemplify excellence and help improve the quality of life in Canada and around the world.
The Awards are given to individuals, teams and/or organizations whose innovations are
- Truly exceptional;
- Transformative; and,
- Positive in their impact on quality of life in Canada.
The awards are not intended for lifetime achievement or innovations that have not yet demonstrated impact. Rather, by recognizing active, current innovators across the breadth of our economy and society the Awards help foster an active culture that celebrates innovation that is having a meaningful impact on our lives.
Eligibility
Nominees must be living Canadian citizens or permanent residents. Posthumous nominations are not eligible. Nominees may be from any sector of activity – the arts, sciences, business, not-for-profit or community-based, for example.
Nominees can be at any stage in their life or career. The aim is to have at least one young innovator among the winners who is 30 years of age or younger and who, individually or as leader of a team and/or organization, has been undertaking exceptional, transformative and innovative activities.
The innovations for which nominees are proposed must be demonstrably having an active impact in the economy or society.
Required Materials
- A summary explaining the nature, significance and impact of the nominee’s innovation or innovative activities. (Maximum 500 characters, including spaces.)
- Specific evidence of how the nomination addresses each of the three selection criteria (inspiration, leadership and impact). In order to fully inform the merit-review adjudication please address the following questions:
- Inspiration – How was the process of innovation and implementation characterized by inspiration in the use of new knowledge, technology, approaches or methods; what made this nominee’s thinking process truly different and creative? (Maximum 2000 characters, including spaces.)
- Leadership – How did the nominee(s) demonstrate leadership in their work? Discuss evidence of initiative, collaboration, risk-taking and problem solving in the process of developing and implementing the innovation. (Maximum 2000 characters, including spaces.)
- Impact – Is the innovation in question having a positive effect in the world? Describe the successful implementation of the innovation in the sector, economy, society or culture, and the role of the nominee(s) in that implementation. If possible, please quantify the impact. For example, a nominee(s) may have created a B Corporation to market the innovation and realize social benefits at the same time, with sales of $$ and # of persons assisted. (Maximum 2000 characters, including spaces.)
Evaluation Process
All eligible nominations are received by the Rideau Hall Foundation and undergo a two-stage merit-review selection process involving an Assessment Committee and a Selection Committee.
The Assessment Committee members are recruited for their knowledge in private, public and social innovation. By thoroughly examining each nomination, the committee determines to what degree the nominees meet the specific selection criteria. The committee is assisted by field-specific experts from across Canada who provide advice on the transformative nature of the innovations embodied in each nomination. The committee members then identify up to 20 top nominations from all those submitted by the nominating partners. This group of nominees is recommended to the Selection Committee as finalists for the Governor General’s Innovation Awards.
The Selection Committee is composed of distinguished individuals chosen for their expertise in and breadth of understanding of Canadian innovation. The committee members examine the list of finalists and select up to six award winners whose work exemplifies innovations that are truly exceptional, transformative and are having a positive impact on society, and who best meet the selection criteria.
How to Apply
York University researchers are reminded that all applications for external research funding, including Letters of Intent, must be reviewed and approved by the Office of Research Services before they are submitted to the granting agency. For internal approval, the application must be accompanied by a completed ORS Checklist, which requires the Dean’s signature. Please send the complete application, with the finalized budget and a completed ORS checklist to sciapps@yorku.ca, five days prior to agency deadline.
ORS is accepting electronic applications – the process is outlined here.