“During my internship, I became very comfortable speaking to businesses and explaining the benefits of my expertise. I learned about the kinds of things industry was interested in and how my research could address them.” she said. “It gave me the boost of confidence that I needed.”

Innovation, whether researcher, technology, or social, is widely viewed as being “gender blind” or “gender neutral,” places where male and female do not matter. But according to Sarah, this is the first misconception we need to confront.

Montreal-based start-up incubator TandemLaunch is the recipient of the Mitacs Industry Award for Exceptional Leadership.

Mitacs Elevate alumnus Richard Beal is the recipient of the First Place, $20,000 prize of the inaugural Mitacs Entrepreneur Awards for his company, COFOVO Energy.

Mitacs Step alumnae Kit Chen and Neesha Desai are the recipients of the Third Place, $10,000 prize at the inaugural Mitacs Entrepreneur Awards for their company, Alieo Games.

Mitacs Accelerate alumnus Guillaume Brault is the recipient of the second place, $15,000 prize of the inaugural Mitacs Entrepreneur Awards with co-founder Viviane Bélair for their company, Inova Source.

Mitacs Accelerate alumnus Clayton Hiles was the recipient of an Honourable Mention at the inaugural Mitacs Entrepreneur Awards.

“Mitacs has been phenomenal. Its programs help us develop better long-term relationships with graduates and their professors, which gives us access to more ideas and talent that we can develop in the future.”