The Rick Hansen Institute is providing emerging companies, seeking financing for an innovation related to accelerating progress to a cure for paralysis after spinal cord injury or innovations that will improve the lives of those living with SCI, the opportunity to pitch their company and innovation to the delegation at Interdependence 2012.

Five companies will be selected by an external panel and have the opportunity to present directly to various experts and key opinion leaders from across the continuum of spinal cord injury research and care, including investors with experience in the life sciences and healthcare sectors. Timing of the presentations with respect to the Interdependence 2012 program schedule will be determined at a later date.

Learn more about application criteria and important dates online.

He is presently the director of Simon Fraser University’s Innovation Office, President and Chairman of Greenangel Energy Corp, President of the Western Universities Technology Innovation Fund (WUTIF), and runs the Vancouver Angel Network (VANTEC).

And now Volker’s book titled Making the Business Case is available in e-book format and downloadable for free online.

Do you have an idea for a business? This book will help you to determine how to go about turning your idea into reality and cash. More importantly, though, as a first step it will help you determine if the idea is even worth pursuing in the first place. To get partners and investors, you must make a business case. This means having the answers to some tough questions, the most important question being: How will your idea make money? You will also learn how to best communicate your idea using an effective Executive Summary and a well-honed elevator pitch.

Roy Leahy – Building the sales and marketing machine from New Ventures BC on Vimeo.

Vineyard Networks Canada, a 2009 BCIC-New Ventures competition Top 10 finalist, is now reaping international kudos for its network intelligence and deep-packet inspection technologies.

In December 2011, Vineyard Networks was the only Canadian company to receive a Red Herring Global 100 award, which recognizes the year’s most promising private ventures from North America, Europe and Asia. Previous winners have included Google, Skype and YouTube.

The Global 100 list has become a mark of distinction for identifying promising companies and entrepreneurs. Companies were evaluated on criteria including financial performance, technological innovation, management quality, strategy, and market penetration.

In 2009, CEO Jason Richards was operating the five-employee company out of his basement in Kelowna. His product, a next-generation deep packet inspection engine for analyzing and identifying traffic flowing across the Internet, was still in development.

He joined the BCIC-NV competition for the networking, exposure and prize money.

“It was a great exercise,” he says now, “and we had a lot of fun doing it.” He appreciated the feedback from judges and says the networking was excellent. And while addressing the competition’s questions was an arduous process, he recommends it to other entrepreneurs.

“If you can’t answer the questions, then you should rethink the validity of your business plan,” he says.

Today, Vineyard’s 33 employees work out of a 15,000 square-foot office in downtown Kelowna. Last year, BC Business magazine named it among B.C.’s “Best Companies to Work for” in the “100 employees or fewer” category.

Vineyard has partnered with more than 30 leading network-infrastructure companies that are delivering solutions to over 100,000 end users in 200-plus countries.  In 2012 Vineyard will be releasing new versions of its core product, focused on the mobile telecom and lawful interception markets.

Richards says the company has been profitable since 2010 and started with the help of local angel investors. He expects to double revenues this year over last.

Hear from entrepreneurs who have been through the commercialization process as they share some of the challenges and opportunities they encountered while starting their business. Meet with individuals, businesses, and organizations working to put British Columbia at the forefront of innovation in Canada. Take part in the networking reception for the chance to discover opportunities for collaboration and partnerships.

The Keynote speaker is Roger Hardy, Founder and CEO of Clearly Contacts. Hardy started his small business in B.C. in the year 2000 and transformed it into the internet retail giant it is today.

Register online to attend.

The organizers have an incredible lineup of Technology Impact Award Winners & Finalists, as well as some startups who are just beginning to see their technology really take off.

Among the list of featured companies that will be highlighted at the event are current New Ventures competitors Mediacore and Pixton as well as last year’s 1st and 2nd place companies Polymer Research Technologies and RewardLoop.

So come experience cool new technologies, get introduced to cutting-edge entrepreneurs and innovators, make new business contacts and network with influential decision-makers.

This mega-mixer invites entrepreneurs, investors, professional service providers or anyone interested in technology companies to meet, talk, and make new connections in a casual setting.

Register online to attend.

Designed, but certainly not limited to women entrepreneurs who have launched or are looking to launch a new business. Everybody is welcome.

The 6 interactive workshops run from January to June and are 2.5 hours each. Each workshop is limited to 20-25 individuals per session (15 women entrepreneur members, 5 entrepreneurial-minded members;, and up to 5 non-members).

Sign up online today.  Questions? Please email ashlee@fwe.ca or call 604.682.8115.

The deadline to apply is January 20th and this time around they’re interested in your company if it falls into one of these categories – Platforms, Big Data, Developer Tools, Analytics/BI, Mobile, Enabling Tools, Infrastructure, Automation, and Performance Management.

On January 24th the Vancouver Enterprise Forum is hosting a panel of prominent members of BC’s Cleantech community where they’ll share their stories of the past year as well as discuss their expectations for the future, near and far.

Panelists will include:

• Paul Austin (Regional Director, Partnerships) – SDTC
• Peter Tyszewicz (COO) – Endurance Wind Power
• Donald McInnes (Exec. Vice Chairman – Alterra Power Corp.

The panel discussion will be moderated by Ian Heine of  PricewaterhouseCoopers. Register online to attend.

“The .CA Impact Awards is truly unique amongst awards programs,” says Byron Holland, President and CEO of the Canadian Internet Registration Authority (CIRA). “By celebrating .CA websites that make an impact, we are recognizing the Internet as a powerful agent of social change.”

CIRA is looking for people and organizations that use their .CA websites to make a positive difference in the lives of their users and those around them. Impact can be social, cultural, political, technological, or economic.

The Impact Awards is seeking entries in four categories: Public Sector and Not-for-Profit, eLearning, Small Business and Applications. Entries for the 2012 awards will be received until March 23rd.

Winners of the Impact Awards will receive $5,000 each and the added visibility which comes from winning a national award.