Since 2011 we have been working with Priority One and Woods, the Creative Agency to develop and implement this programme and we are passionate about it! The creative thinking and energy of the students inspires us and it's a privilege to assist in nurturing that talent through the YIA competition.
YIA recognises that, as a region, we need to be proactive and use our expertise through innovation and sustainability to make us globally competitive for the future. Together with Woods, we have developed resources and worked hard with Priority One to get the message into schools to get students into the innovation mindset and to see it as a career pathway. YIA explores, through learning, the basics of investigating and spotting opportunities, developing ideas, and creating and realising a product or service.
A panel of innovation leaders is convened to judge the awards each year. The judges use the five categories of research, communication, sustainability, innovation, and creativity to select the finalists and ultimately the supreme winners in Junior and Senior Secondary School and Young Professional categories.
In 2013 we introduced the Innovation Forum. The YIA Judges, all experts
in their field, each presented their views on innovation answering the questions: how do you foster a culture of innovation; what will give your business the edge; and what is the first step. The Forum was very popular and delivered on our aim for YIA to establish innovation events around the awards each year that constructively engage with regional businesses.
We also host an Internship for the Secondary School student entry that shows promise and has qualities that are of a standard that deserves additional support.
We donate our time to making this event a success and growing its appeal and effectiveness year on year. Creative thinking and innovation is what drives us and we delight in seeing the students engage and excel.
“Four years into the Young Innovator Awards and another crop of very talented young people put forward some very professional innovation ideas and projects. This YIA process is incredibly important to young people today, to the Bay of Plenty Region and to New Zealand. Some of these young people will go on from here to develop and grow some fantastic businesses in New Zealand and will, in so doing, inspire many others to follow.”
David Darling – 2013
“It is so important to foster innovation and creativity as both a skill and a mind-set in our young people, and to encourage them to think and act sustainably too. YIA is a great initiative and I’m thrilled to have had the chance to meet some of these students with their bright ideas – they’re our future.”
Mark Pennington – 2012
“These talented students from the Western Bay of Plenty region reinforce my belief that New Zealand will embrace innovation and creative business to build prosperity here. The quality of their ideas and their focus on business opportunity shows that a new generation is thinking in new ways. New Zealand’s future is to be a place where talent wants to live and the Western Bay of Plenty Young Innovator Awards programme is leading the way.”
Sir Paul Callaghan – 2011
“More than 130 on-line registrations indicated a high level of interest for the inaugural Young Innovator Awards. Congratulations must go to the 56 students from eight Western Bay of Plenty schools that set themselves a goal, followed through and submitted an entry within the given deadline. This demonstrated excellent time management, an important skill for employers to have in the workplace. Thanks must also go to the teachers for helping to promote this competition in their respective schools.”
Sir Ray Avery – 2010
