Super six unveiled as Homerton Changemakers Catalyst Fund winners

The Changemakers programme at Homerton College is dedicated to equipping young individuals with essential life skills, tools and resources to help make genuine and positive change in the world.

The initiative is now in its third year: Grants are awarded for establishing a social enterprise or business, to support an existing start-up or project, to develop a creative project or campaign or for research towards a new enterprise.

Projects can be in any field, but must be focused on public good and societal change, and students are encouraged to embrace the use of technology. Teams have the chance to secure up to £2,000 in funding, complemented by hands-on mentoring from experienced entrepreneurs and leaders through organisations such as Cambridge Wireless, TTP, ARU – and from Homerton’s own alumni community.

A springboard for a growing number of start-up enterprises, the Catalyst Fund provides much-needed support and investment at a crucial stage of the students’ fledgling projects.

One of the winners – Kate Lucas with her project ‘Sparkbots’ – has also recently been awarded the Vice Chancellor’s Social Impact Award in the category ‘Volunteer of the Year’. Through the Changemakers programme she found out about the funding and support offered to students in order to help with projects in the local community.

After putting her in touch with Cambridge Science Centre, Kate and fellow student Henry Wall worked together to deliver a series of after school sessions in King’s Hedges to teach a group of 7-11 year old school children about robotics and explore their ideas and hopes for the future of technology.

Kate says: “I’m really looking forward to building on this relationship with CSC, and finding more ways to help with the amazing work they are doing for young people in Cambridge and the surrounding areas.

“This was really the launchpad that gave me the confidence to enter the Changemakers Catalyst Fund competition. I learned so much through these volunteering activities and wanted to transform this into a tangible, wide reaching impact.”

In addition to their initial funding and mentoring, the winners of the Catalyst Fund will have an exciting opportunity to secure additional funding through prestigious prizes presented during a showcase event on October 3. The winning groups will take to the stand and showcase their projects in front of senior members of Cambridge’s innovation and investor eco-system, academic colleagues and Changemakers peers.

Among the awards is the Ivan Baines Prize, donated by serial entrepreneur Rupert Baines in memory of his son Ivan. Valued at £1.500, the prize not only includes financial support but also entails three months of invaluable mentoring from Rupert himself.

Additionally, the Lovely Naha Foundation Prize, donated by Abhi Naha in honour of his entrepreneurial mother, Lovely Naha, offers a £500 prize along with three months of Abhi’s expert guidance as a mentor. New this year, the Rowland Orugboh Prize promises £1,000 and three months mentoring from Olu Orugboh, CEO of Synergy and Deputy Board Member of Cambridge Wireless.

For more information, or if you’d like to attend the showcase event on October 3 2024 as a media representative or a potential mentor or investor, contact changemakers@homerton.cam.ac.uk

The 2024 Changemakers Catalyst Fund Winning Teams

SynPixels
Lead Applicant: Ping Lin, Yeap, PhD Oncology (Year 1)

In conventional cancer radiotherapy, treatment plans are designed based on an initial computed tomography (CT) scan acquired after diagnosis, but they become less accurate as a patient’s anatomy changes over the course of treatment. Adaptive radiotherapy dynamically adjusts treatment strategies based on real-time changes in a patient’s anatomy. However, the biggest challenge is the lack of high-quality CT images during each fraction.

SynPixels aims to develop deep learning models designed to generate high-fidelity CT images conditioned using low-quality cone-beam CT scans. In practical terms, this product generates synthetic CT scans that reflect a patient’s daily anatomy. This allows for the daily evaluation of doses to the tumour and critical organs, ensuring precise delivery of radiation doses tailored to the patient.

Regenerate Bone Broth
Lead Applicant: Merlin Ohta, Natural Sciences (Year 1)

At Regenerate, the mission is to help people increase their nutritional intake with our bone broth – a nutritious liquid made by simmering bones and connective tissue, rich in protein, collagen, and minerals that promote gut health and overall wellness. The enterprise aims to bring a fresh and flavourful bone broth to the market.

The primary challenge lies in eliminating the need for shelf-life extending preservatives. This commitment is crucial because it ensures the bone broth remains a no-nonsense, nutrient-rich food that tastes as good as homemade bone broth.

“Gone are the days of being deterred by long simmering times. We are dedicated to helping as many people as possible embrace traditional wellness foods by providing them with access to high-quality products,” said Merlin.

SparkBots
Lead Applicant: Kate Lucas, Manufacturing Engineering (Year 3)

SparkBots aims to encourage students from underrepresented backgrounds to engage with STEM activities through the medium of physical computing. Young people interact more with technology than ever before but they do not have equal opportunities to understand and influence the future of technology. We are currently missing out on so many potential engineers and scientists, who are underserved by current offerings. With strong groundings in technology and engineering as well as understanding of the educational landscape, SparkBots designs kits that specifically cater to the needs of these groups.

The project aims to integrate young people’s thoughts and desires at every stage of the design and prototyping process, helping to build activities that are fun and engaging as well as educational.

Sustainakids
Lead Applicant: Tamsin Dodsworth, Veterinary Medicine (Year 4)

Its project provides seaweed cultivation kits for youngsters, combined with an educational app to raise awareness about the multiple uses of seaweed, creating a sustainable farming and consumption model.

The venture aims to teach and embed sustainable habits in the next generation through this interactive, engaging and fun learning experience, with the hope that they will go on to make a change in society, by inspiring others and sharing their newfound knowledge.

The catalyst funding will help Sustainakids develop and distribute more kits at a lower cost, enabling it to provide kits to a greater number of children, increasing the impact of the project. It will also be used to further develop the community platform on our app, to improve the ease at which eco-communities and support networks can form.

CulturaVerse
Lead Applicant: Jason Zhanfeng Si (recent alumna of Homerton College; Previous MBA student)

CulturaVerse is a platform that helps demystify the cultural barriers that a lot of people face while representing or understanding their different people’s identities throughout the globe.

Due to the current media, the portrayal of certain ethnic groups or cultures has been extremely villainised and has been a means to drive a certain narrative. This leaves a lot of common people to be villainised for a crime they never committed.

CulturaVerse provides a platform to celebrate the positive impact these people and their culture have and how it can be a means to learn more about them and celebrate the unity in diversity. CulturaVerse is a platform that leverages the use of the current generation of AI models to provide a quick and easy way to represent these cultures on a global scale.

Stayn
Lead Applicant: Minnat Allah, Mohammed, History and Politics (Year 1)

Success can feel as if it is enshrouded with secrets and mystery. Stayn reveals those secrets and propels any and every student toward success. ‘Disadvantaged’ students already possess unique abilities, perspectives, and talents. Sometimes, all they need is to know what to do in a networking event or an interview to turn these existing talents into success. No matter their aspirations or qualifications, it is really about the skills which mark their future with success, such as confidence, self-starting, and independence.

Every student is different and there is no one way to learn, so Stayn offers a variety of opportunities. The website will give students a choice from many online skills programmes, platform mutual mentoring, cultural enrichment, and other resources.

For schools and teachers, Stayn provides partnerships, teaching resources, and curriculum guidance. When these students eventually become their own changemakers, we will all benefit from a better world, says Stayn.

For more about Changemakers, see www.homerton.cam.ac.uk/homerton-changemakers