Business View Magazine | December 2020

266 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE DECEMBER 2020 communities to identify innovative ways to improve the lives of their residents through data and connected technology, starting with community-based engagement on pressing local needs. The first round received an incredible number of submissions. Winners and finalists alike are bringing their proposals to life to tackle issues such as mental health, energy, poverty, public transit, and the sharing of traditional culture and knowledge. One inspiring example that has evolved during the pandemic is in Ontario. There, one Smart Cities Challenge winner is adapting its project to the realities of COVID-19. The City of Guelph and the County of Wellington are working to transform their regional food ecosystem. They are leveraging big data and technology to become Canada’s first Circular Food Economy, which aims to increase access to nutritious food and find ways to repurpose food that is thrown out. Their winning proposal also includes a rural broadband access pilot program, work on the county’s solid waste management master plan, and other initiatives. When the pandemic hit, the city amended its project to include an emergency food relief plan to provide those in need with access to nutritious food, as part of their “Grow Back Better: Our Food Future’s 10-point COVID Recovery Plan.” Programs such as the Smart Cities Challenge aim to support big ideas that solve community problems. At the same time, communities across the country are facing new and different challenges during the current health crisis. The top-of-mind issue today is how we safely reopen during an ongoing pandemic. That is why we have created the Canada Healthy Communities Initiative. I announced the new program in August. The goal of the Healthy Communities Initiative is to make our cities and towns more livable, more active, healthier and more accessible. This new program will repurpose approximately $31.3 million from the Smart Cities Challenge