Videos pre-finalist 2023
The pre-finalists for the Innovation Award, the Amsterdam competition for innovative ideas that contribute to a better world.
Visit the showcase pages to see each pre-finalists showcase their idea through a personal video.
Daphne Gnago and Riccardo Bonazza (HvA): MatSwap
Daphne Gnago and Riccardo Bonazza (HvA): MatSwap – use your mattress to the fullest Many students might experience sleeping difficulties as they don’t have the means to afford quality bedding. In the meanwhile, mattress waste is creating consequent environmental issues as most mattresses are disposed of or incinerated before reaching their intended lifespan. MatSwap is […]
Ewelina Weglarz-Tomczak (UvA): Lysosomal protease inhibitors for Alzheimer’s
Ewelina Weglarz-Tomczak (UvA): Novel lysosomal protease inhibitors for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease Highly specified proteases are the key regulators in the molecular mechanism of neurodegeneration in Alzheimer’s disease. AI-powered technology developed by NatInLab has led to the discovery of how those proteases are controlled in the human organism. Based on this knowledge, developing novel, […]
Georges Janssens (Amsterdam UMC): My Health Buddy
Georges Janssens (Amsterdam UMC): MyHeBu (My Health Buddy), a wearable device-based and AI-powered digital twin to track your health and aging. Many people are tracking all of their health data using wearable devices, but it’s not really giving them answers to simple questions like: ‘How often should I exercise?’, or ‘Is my high protein diet […]
Gerben ter Riet (HvA): Urban Vitality Open Science Checklist
Gerben ter Riet (HvA): Urban Vitality Open Science Checklist: No Time to Waste In medical research alone, each year, hundreds of billions of euros are wasted, due to poor questions, poor choice of methodologies, poor reporting and archiving. The Open Science Checklist aims to optimize research projects, from start to end, in order to research waste […]
Hanneke Velthuijsen (HvA): Happy Minds
Hanneke Velthuijsen (HvA): Happy Minds – A high impact stress reduction method for mental & emotional well-being in urban education In today’s society, children are increasingly experiencing stress. They face social-emotional problems more often than ever before. A promising solution to this issue appears to be mindfulness and SEL (Social-Emotional Learning). These practices teach children from an […]
Job Calis (Amsterdam UMC) and Mark Hoogendoorn (VU): IMPALA
Job Calis (Amsterdam UMC) and Mark Hoogendoorn (VU): IMPALA: Innovative Monitoring system for PAediatrics in Low-resource settings: an Aid to save lives. Each year, more than 3 million children die in poor countries. At least half of these deaths can be prevented by early recognition, before patients deteriorate. In Europe, patient monitors are used to […]
Jonathan de Long (UvA): Mitigating drought effects on grassland productivity
Jonathan de Long (UvA): Mitigating drought effects on grassland productivity by understanding grass-fungi-drought soil legacy interactions Drought events are becoming more frequent and more intense. This results in decreases in grassland productivity and financial losses for farmers. Upon rewetting after drought, so-called drought soil legacy effects can lead to carbon and nitrogen losses from the soil. […]
Lukas Helmbrecht (AMOLF and UvA): LumetalliX
Lukas Helmbrecht (AMOLF and UvA): LumetalliX – spray and make Lead light up! Lead is a highly toxic substance that causes permanent brain damage, affecting one in three children globally as stated by UNICEF. The toxic lead is all around us. For example in paint, household items and even children’s toys. Unfortunately, detecting lead is […]
Marjon van Rijn (HvA): Journey to the end of life
Marjon van Rijn (HvA): Journey to the end of life Research indicates that healthcare professionals often struggle to initiate conversations about the wishes and preferences for care and treatment at the end of life with older people. A partial solution lies in providing training for these discussions within a safe learning environment by way of […]
Matteo Mazzanti (UvA): Novel quantum logic gates architecture
Matteo Mazzanti (UvA): Novel quantum logic gates architecture with trapped ions and optical tweezers There are complex problems that classical computers struggle to solve. For example, route optimization, drug design, and material discovery all require extraordinary computational power. Quantum computers are central in the solution to this problem. However, today’s quantum computers are difficult to […]