Four start-ups, doing everything from reducing killer western Sydney commutes to making geocoded address information more accessible, have won an ‘open innovation’ competition with the prize a 12-week accelerator program hosted by the University of Western Sydney, and access to potential clients provided by co-sponsor PwC.
The competition sought to solve four problems experienced by people living in Sydney’s western sprawl, identified by PwC and UWS in conjunction with the NSW Government and program partners Google and Cisco.
- A lack of teleworking and smart work hubs, fuelling the predicament for residents of Greater Western Sydney who work in the Sydney CBD, who are forced to spend up to three hours commuting each day.
- Low uptake of healthy, affordable, and sustainable diets.
- Supporting small to medium businesses in the region’s burgeoning health sector.
- Establishing an up-to-date, open database of address information.
The winning solution to the telework stream problem came from Brad Krauskopf and Caroline McLaren of Coactiv8, whose solution involved the co-creation, community activation and ongoing consultation with independent operators of a sustainable Western Sydney network of smart hub spaces. Read the full Business Review Weekly article…
Image: HubAustralia
