City of Toronto holding contest to improve its public spaces with help of young people

City of Toronto Media Relations has issued the following:

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News Release:  June 5, 2014

City of Toronto holding contest to improve its public spaces with help of young people

The City of Toronto has launched an urban ideas competition inviting young people to share in the shaping of Toronto’s future. Local urban strategy studio Distl and the City are jointly hosting the NXT City Prize to invite young people to submit creative ideas to improve Toronto's public spaces.

The competition reaches out to young people under 30 years of age and asks them to submit innovative, creative ways to improve a particular public space anywhere in the city. Winning entries will be judged on how well the idea contributes to the local community and to the city as a whole. Submissions can be done individually or in teams of up to four.

“The NXT City Prize is an ideal platform for youth to take ownership of their city and to apply their creative talents to solve everyday challenges with Toronto's urban spaces," said Jennifer Keesmaat, Chief Planner for the City of Toronto. “This is a chance for young, creative minds to offer new ideas and see them realized.”

A panel of judges will select the winner, who will receive $5,000 cash and the chance to have their winning idea implemented. Two runner-up prizes of $2,500 each will also be awarded for the most original entry and for the top entry by an individual/team under 18 years of age.

“The goal of this competition is to encourage young people to think critically about how we’re using public spaces and move away from conventional thinking about those spaces,” said Distl co-founder, Mackenzie Keast. “It’s their future and their opportunity to shape the city in which they live.”

The judging panel will select one winner based on a variety of criteria, including originality, innovation, feasibility, impact and clarity. The winner will have the opportunity to work alongside a group of experts and will receive $10,000 in seed funding to help realize their vision.

The working group is comprised of representatives from various City divisions as well as external partners LOOP and Gen Y Inc.

The competition will close July 31. Winners will be announced at an outdoor awards gala on August 14.

More information is available at http://www.nxtcityprize.com.

Toronto is Canada's largest city, the fourth largest in North America, and home to a diverse population of about 2.8 million people. It is a global centre for business, finance, arts and culture and is consistently ranked one of the world's most livable cities. Toronto is proud to be the Host City for the 2015 Pan American and Parapan American Games. For information on non-emergency City services and programs, Toronto residents, businesses and visitors can visit http://www.toronto.ca, call 311, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, or follow us @TorontoComms.

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Media contacts:

Bruce Hawkins, Strategic Communications, 416-392-3496, bhawkin@toronto.ca Mackenzie Keast, Partner, Distl, 647-470-7021, mackenzie@distl.com