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Cooperathon powered by Desjardins X Velocity Speed Challenge

Name: Cooperathon powered by Desjardins X Velocity Speed Challenge
Start: 2026-03-24T16:30:00.000-04:00
End: 2026-03-24T20:00:00.000-04:00
Location: South Campus Hall

Velocity Events

South Campus Hall

Waterloo, Canada

Past Event

Welcome! To join the event, please register below.

About Event

Join the team behind the Cooperathon powered by Desjardins and Velocity, the entrepreneurial centre at the University of Waterloo for a speed challenge where you’ll team up to build solutions with real-world impact.

Come race against the clock to find innovative solutions to important problems facing people, our planet and our prosperity.

The Speed Challenge is open to anyone aged 18 and up, regardless of whether you are a student of UWaterloo, Wilfrid Laurier University, Conestoga College or a resident of Kitchener-Waterloo.

NO TECHNICAL BACKGROUND REQUIRED!

Join the Speed Challenge to:

Learn and practice skills in ideation and innovation and apply these skills to start creating solutions to issues that can help people, planet and prosperity

Learn more about the Cooperathon powered by Desjardins, a Canada-wide free entrepreneurial program that helps develop an innovative idea to start a business or advance academic research, culminating in a competition offering $100K in cash prizes and personalized support to empower projects with the highest social, environmental, or economic impact potential come to life.

Problem Spaces

People: Solutions promoting well-being, equity, and accessibility.
Planet: Solutions for sustainability, climate resilience, and the natural environment.
Prosperity: Solutions for economic inclusion, industrial modernization, and digital trust.

Speed Challenge agenda:

4:30-5:00 PM – Arrive, check in, dinner is served
5:00-5:15 PM – Introduction of Speed Challenge flow, introduction of problem spaces and information about the Cooperathon powered by Desjardins and team formation
5:15-5:35 PM – Form your Speed Challenge team
5:35-5:45 PM – Determine the specific problem your team will work on
5:45-6:30 PM – Conduct research to better understand your problem and build out your proposed solution
6:30-7:00 PM – Finalize your pitch
7:00-7:40 PM – Pitch your idea (2 minutes per team, no slides) 7:40-7:50 PM – Judges deliberate the winners
7:50-8:00 PM – Winners announced!

Location