Two Canadian innovations were among 13 concepts on display at the United Nations in New York earlier this week as part of an international “innovation marketplace”—a session on sustainable innovation and development held during the U.N. General Assembly.
The marketplace focused on inventions that use science and technology to achieve the U.N.’s development goals.
The innovations that represented Canada include a type of packaging that uses nanotechnology to lengthen the shelf life of soft fruits, and a “Lucky Iron Fish” used to combat anemia.
“It was an opportunity to showcase from already-funded innovations and to talk about the importance of simple innovations and how they will be a tool to combat world problems,” said Gavin Armstrong, a Ph.D. student at Guelph University, who presented the Lucky Iron Fish.
“A lot of organizations have the same goal, which is to use a simple technology to combat a global problem.”
Armstrong’s innovation is a small piece of iron shaped like a fish that can be placed in water and boiled, releasing potentially up to 75 percent of a person’s daily iron requirements. The goal of the fish, which is reusable for up to five years, is to reduce anemia in developing countries. It has been used extensively in parts of Asia.
Armstrong is commercializing the innovation, which was developed by former Guelph graduate student Christopher Charles.
“There were a lot of groups interested in having the Lucky Iron Fish be part of their agenda in solving iron deficiency and malnutrition,” said Armstrong. “Iron deficiency is a global problem and nearly half of the world’s population suffers from it.”
Among other technologies on display was a program that uses rats to identify people with tuberculosis, and a presentation by D-tree International that highlighted its work on a guide used by health workers to consult for diagnosis and treatment of diseases. The D-Tree I is currently being used in parts of Africa.
