Join our host Michael Unger as we uncover the passion behind great ideas, meet STEAM thought leaders and talk with young people working on inspiring innovations.
Season 1: Episode 101: Meet Braxton Chan
Braxton Chan developed an innovative treatment for osteochondral defects using fibrocartilage transplantation and the 16-year-old from Cranbrook, BC was a finalist in the 2020 Youth Innovation Showcase. We learn how he came up with his idea and what he's been up to since the competition.
Season 1: Episode 102: Meet Manisha Narula
Manisha is a social innovator with experience in education, youth empowerment and community engagement. As the current Director of Community at League of Innovators, Manisha is working on mobilizing the next generation of entrepreneurs and innovators and developing a culture of youth entrepreneurship across Canada. Manisha speaks with Michael about what inspires her and why it's important to her to help other young innovators.
Season 1: Episode 103: Meet Norbert Banyi
After watching bronchoscopy procedures, 19-year-old UBC student Norbert Banyi saw that nurses would perform a jaw-thrust maneuver throughout the procedure. He realized there was a greater need for mechanical jaw-thrust devices which could optimize those procedures, freeing up medical hands to redistribute resources. Host Michael Unger finds out about Norbert's innovation process and what he's up to now.
Season 1: Episode 104: Meet Jahan Gill
For their YIS submission, Jahan Gill and Patrick Cioata designed a clever solution: a fully biodegradable, 3D-printed pencil.
Their pencil takes a mere 2 years to biodegrade, compared to regular one which takes 200 years. With all that waste being saved, you could build 4000 houses and 55 cars. Their solution is also cheaper and easier to produce than ones that involve a spring mechanism.
Host Michael Unger speaks to Jahan about how they came up with their design and what inspired it!
Season 1: Episode 105: Meet Marco Pasqua
When Marco lost his job in 2017, it turned out to be the biggest blessing in disguise. He is an advocate for people with disabilities in the workplace and founder of the CUBE Principle for networking. Hear how he got advice on branding from Gene Simmons and his tips for networking virtually during Covid!
Season1: Episode 106: Meet Patrick Cioata
For his project - a biodegradable mechanical pencil - Patrick Cioata took an everyday problem and looked at how one small impact can drastically change the amount of waste produced. It's that kind of thinking that helps young innovators make an impact! Listen to what inspired him and what helps a innovation team find success!
Season1: Episode 107: Meet Cameron Beck
Learn about block coding and how it crosses language barriers and hear how Cameron Beck, Community Developer at Kids Code Jeunesse, got into coding from video games as well as what you can expect from his upcoming Feb. 24 workshop as part of the Youth Innovation Showcase!
Season1: Episode 108: Meet Carin Bondar
Michael speaks with biologist and professor Dr. Carin Bondar. Bondar’s work appears on National Geographic, TED, Animal Planet, Netflix and The Science Channel. She is an adventurer and explorer, having discovered 11 new species of beetles and snails in the remote jungles of Borneo. Hear about what inspired her to pursue science and how she sees art and science interact!
Season1: Episode 109: Meet Madeleine Guenette
On International Women's Day, Michael interviews Science Fair Foundation BC's Executive Director Madeleine Guenette and learns what she was like in high school, how important self-confidence is in life, and why she calls herself a science fair "lifer." She also gives her advice for young women in STEM and business!
Season1: Episode 110: Meet Emily Avrill
Founder of Emcologique and 2020 Youth Innovation Showcase finalist Emily Averill speaks with host Michael Unger about what prompted her to create an online education resource for youth exploring the outdoors. Learn about her love for "creepy crawlies" and #campvibes as well as what the innovation process was like and how she's changed her prototype over the past year in response to new information and new demands.
Season1: Episode 111: Meet Bruce Porter
Hear all about how "addictive" science fairs can be!
Host Michael Unger talks to Yukon-based scientist Bruce Porter about his science fair project studying how to stop micro plastics from invading the environment as well as the work he's done around pristine waters.
Learn why "It's hard to educate people about something that they can't see." Porter talks about how and why it's important to get buy-in from others to help push a project forward.
Season1: Episode 112: Meet Milo Eirew
Host Michael Unger speaks with young innovator Milo Eirew about his project The Sound Compass - a tool for deaf drivers to alert them to oncoming emergency vehicles.
He explains the physics of sound with regards to his work and how he's incorporating machine learning sound recognition into the innovation.
Also - hear about some of his past projects, including extracting DNA from a strawberry and the Cardio Cardigan - a lifesaving wearable robotic device.
Season1: Episode 113: Meet Leah Coss
Leah Coss is on a mission to change the way we value and educate people in society - after being what she calls "being a really confused kid putting up a really good front."
She talks with host Michael Unger about how she dealt with school that sometimes felt like a battleground, how being called a "natural" can sometimes hamper growth, why she's named her alter ego Francine and how young people can 'future-proof' themselves for a world filled with AI.
Coss is the Founder & Co-Founder of growing organizations such as Build a Biz Kids, BBK Network, The Fuel Academy & Your Current Future.
More episodes coming soon!
Do you have an idea for our next podcast episode? Tell us! Reach out at
info@sciencefairs.ca or on social. We'd love to hear from you.