Vancouver, BC — The University of British Columbia and the University of Washington are partnering with Mitacs on the Incubator Internship Pilot, a unique start-up exchange program in support of the Cascadia Innovation Corridor.
The program will foster stronger networks and ecosystem access for start-ups in the region by leveraging the common and complementary strengths of British Columbia and Washington State. By connecting start-up businesses and emerging entrepreneurs to international incubators and ecosystems, they will have access to the regional knowledge and networks in markets of strategic value.
In the first year, Mitacs will provide up to C$50,000 for 10 incubator internships for short-term entrepreneurship residencies between the University of Washington’s Global Innovation Exchange (GIX) and the University of British Columbia’s entrepreneurship@UBC (e@UBC) program.
Quotes:
Catherine Chick, Chief Information Officer, Mitacs
“Entrepreneurship can connect global communities and foster knowledge sharing between universities and industry. Mitacs is pleased to support start-ups in leveraging the strengths of the Cascadia Innovation Corridor to grow and scale their businesses.”
Gail Murphy, Vice-President Research & Innovation, University of British Columbia
“We are excited at UBC to be partnering with GIX, the University of Washington, and Mitacs to help generate a robust entrepreneurial ecosystem in the Cascadia region. This internship program will not only connect the young companies to the programming and resources of our incubators, but also to one another, enabling them to share valuable experiences and forge new relationships.”
Vikram Jandhyala, co-Executive Director of the Global Innovation Exchange
“UW GIX looks forward to introducing the British Columbia innovation ecosystem to our students and entrepreneurs. The rigour of UBC’s entrepreneurship program and the generous support of Mitacs will allow our students to have a step forward in their knowledge and access to the BC market. In turn, we welcome the opportunity to introduce BC entrepreneurs to the Greater Seattle innovation ecosystem.”
About Mitacs:
Mitacs is a Canadian not-for-profit organization that fosters growth and innovation for business and academia. Funded by the Government of Canada, all provinces, and Canadian universities, Mitacs supports entrepreneurship by developing talent and connecting innovative businesses with skilled researchers across all disciplines.
About the University of British Columbia:
The University of British Columbia is a global centre for research and teaching, consistently ranked among the top 20 public universities in the world. Since 1915, UBC’s entrepreneurial spirit has embraced innovation and challenged the status quo. UBC encourages its students, staff, and faculty to challenge convention, lead discovery and explore new ways of learning. At UBC, bold thinking is given a place to develop into ideas that can change the world. entrepreneurship@UBC is an on-campus accelerator that delivers an unprecedented combination of education, venture creation, and seed funding to maximize the number of successful ventures coming out of the University.
About the University of Washington and Global Innovation Exchange:
UW is ranked in the top ten in the world for research universities and is ranked the public university for innovation in the world. With foundational support from Microsoft, UW and Tsinghua University of China are the first two academic institutes in a global partnership between research universities and innovative corporations to develop leaders in innovation. GIX pioneers new forms of teaching and learning by connecting world-class learners and faculty with research-led companies and not-for-profit organizations to collaborate on solutions to global challenges.
About the Cascadia Innovation Corridor:
The CIC is built upon a shared spirit of creativity, innovation, and entrepreneurship. The Corridor boasts world-renowned research organizations and global corporate leaders in a diverse array of existing and emerging technology disciplines.
