From left: AVP of Research (Society & Impact) Sukhvinder Obhi; PhD student Ahana Malhotra; associate professor Michelle Phoenix; Rachelle Ihekwoaba, manager of community strategies for the City of Hamilton; and Stephen Heathorn, associate dean of the Faculty of Humanities.
On November 25, McMaster hosted its inaugural Societal Impact Pitch Competition. Fifteen McMaster graduate students presented three-minute pitches on their research, emphasizing its real-world impact and potential to drive change.
The $500 second prize went to Ahana Malhotra, a PhD candidate in the DeGroote School of Business Management Science program, for her pitch focused on an innovative food bank delivery program.
“In Canada, one in seven people face hunger and lack access to nutritious food. Simultaneously, about 11.2 million tonnes of food are wasted each year — equivalent to the weight of 95 CN Towers,” says Malhotra, whose research focuses on finding practical and sustainable solutions to food insecurity.
“And here’s the staggering part: this wasted food could feed every person in Canada for five months.”
Malhotra is developing an app that will get food donations delivered directly to food banks by volunteer ride-sharing drivers.
The solution aims to reduce food waste, lower operational costs, cut down on CO2 emissions and allow food banks to to get their products to people in need while it’s fresh.
Read the full McMaster article