Globe’s best and brightest sought for scientific prize

London, Ontario, October 2, 2006 – The Stiller Centre, Ontario’s largest life sciences commercialization facility, is launching The Stiller Centre Prize a unique annual award offering the best and brightest young science graduates from around the world with the opportunity to develop their ideas towards viable businesses.

The Stiller Centre Prize is the most far-reaching award of its kind and the brainchild of Peter Bruijns, president of The Stiller Centre. Renowned Canadian medical scientist and pioneer, Dr. Calvin Stiller, also helped develop the prize and provided input.

“We’re thrilled to launch this initiative, which is about fostering entrepreneurship, supporting and growing our scientific and business communities and ultimately stimulating our economy on a regional, provincial and national level,” says Peter Bruijns, president of The Stiller Centre. “Our centre will surround the winners with what they need to successfully drive their ideas forward and help assure the best probability that each of them will succeed in developing their idea towards the marketplace.”

The award is open to anyone who has received a science degree, bachelor to doctorate, in the past two years and who has an idea they would like to research and develop.

Three to five winners will receive a prize package valued at over $80,000 each, which includes $20,000 in relocation and living expenses, access to The Stiller Centre’s state-of-the-art Convergence Laboratory facilities, consumables as well as the scientific mentoring and business support they need to develop their ideas towards commercialization.

“Canada produces some of the world’s most talented scientific minds, however these gifted individuals are frequently exported to other countries, who better foster scientific research and development, and who provide better capital to scientists wishing to develop their ideas,” says Dr. Stiller, professor emeritus at the University of Western Ontario and chair of Genome Canada. “The Stiller Centre Prize is a step towards reversing this trend, to attracting the world’s top young scientific talent and keeping them in Canada.”

Entrants are invited to submit their applications online at www.bigbangidea.com until December 15, 2006. Candidates and their ideas can come from any area of science including, chemistry, plant sciences, nutraceuticals, diagnostics, therapeutics, biology, alternate fuels, processes, biomaterials, medical devices, nanotechnology or any other science area requiring wet lab facilities and advanced research support. Each entrant will be asked to explain their idea and the marketing opportunity in detail.

Once the prize has closed, a world-class selection committee will evaluate each submission, ranking them based on the quality of the science, research needs, market opportunity and the personal qualities of the entrant. The committee acts independently of The Stiller Centre management in order to ensure an independent appraisal of each candidate is performed.

Winners will be announced at an event in February 2007, hosted by The Stiller Centre in London, Ontario.

While The Stiller Centre Prize is a serious science prize, it is being marketed with a not so serious multimedia marketing campaign developed by GJP Advertising, one of Canada’s leading marketing communications agencies. The campaign includes posters, a website and a viral video that are atypical of those normally used to promote scientific endeavours.

The executions use playful and surreal creative executions to grab attention and create interest with the ultimate goal of raising awareness and generating entries.

The posters will be distributed to universities across Canada, the U.S. as well as the United Kingdom and Australia. The viral video can be seen on YouTube.com
The Stiller Centre Prize is supported financially by the University of Western Ontario, Fisher Scientific, rTraction Canada, Price Waterhouse Coopers, GJP Advertising, Harrison-Pensa Law Firm, Growthworks, Stevenson-Hunt Insurance, Perkin-Elmer and many individual donations.
For more information visit www.bigbangidea.com
About The Stiller Centre

Founded in 2002, The Stiller Centre is Ontario’s largest commercialization centre focused on life sciences. The 55,000 square feet, state-of-the-art facility is located in London, Ontario and offers start-up and small companies with the physical space and business management needed to develop their research into marketable ideas. Tenants have access to the Centre’s Convergence Laboratory, a multi-use laboratory with specialized biotechnology and scientific equipment, as well as valuable services including business planning support, market research and financial analysis. The Centre is governed by Robarts Research, the University of Western Ontario, Lawson Health Research Institute and the City of London and was funded by major grants provided by the City of London and the Province of Ontario. The centre currently houses 15 technology-based companies with over 85 employees. It has an association with MaRS Ontario.

About GJP Advertising

Founded in 1991, by Alan Gee and Peter Jeffery, GJP Advertising is an independent creative agency that boasts strategic planning, branding and design, print and broadcast advertising and media analysis. The agency has garnered international award-winning work that has brought home Clios, Cannes Lions, London International and Marketing awards. With more than 70 people, GJP has offices in Toronto, Cincinnati and San Francisco. The agency has been named one of Canada’s 50 Best Managed Companies for three consecutive years.

Interviews, high-resolution images of the marketing campaign and further information is available by contacting:

Karin Campbell
GJP Advertising
416-979-2122 ext. 244
kcampbell@gjpadvertising.com