Yu Han (Helen) Li [李雨函]
Lisgar C.I., Ottawa, ON
University of Toronto Scarborough Academic Award
As part of the Technovation challenge, Helen led a team of five students in the creation of Mytunity, a mobile app that assists students find work and volunteer opportunities. She also collaborated on the design of Medicpad, a health platform that facilitates the exchange of information between doctors and patients, which won third place in the Queen’s School of Computing Programming Challenge. While participating in the US National Youth Science Camp, she was inspired to combine her passion for biology and computer science. She enrolled in a university-level research program and was chosen as the team leader. She sole-authored a paper on adaptive deep-brain stimulation for Parkinson’s Disease (PD), which was accepted by the 2022 Third International Conference on Medical Imaging, Sanitation, and Biological Pharmacy (MISBP 2022). She collaborated with the neuroscience department team at Carleton University to develop a screening method for PD and is the second author for a paper being considered for publication at the IEEE Sensors Applications Symposium 2023 conference. Helen’s ultimate goal is to establish a biotech company dedicated to leveraging artificial intelligence to the healthcare industry to improve people’s lives.
Helen is enrolled at Waterloo University in Software Engineering.
Rachel Sun [孙涵兮]
Father Bressani Catholic High School, Woodbridge, ON
University of Toronto Scarborough Entrance Award
As the President of Interact Council, Rachel ran council meetings and acted as the liaison between the council, teacher advisors, administration, and their partner organization, Rotary Woodbridge, to run events within the school and neighborhood community. She worked on creating, submitting and obtaining approval for event proposals and ensuring that events ran smoothly. Her council raised over $450 for the Malala Fund in 2 days! As the Director of Student Communications for Coming2gether, she worked closely with their founder to maintain efficiency with sending out letters to partner senior homes, reviewing and verifying them and sending our volunteer hours to students. Furthermore, as the Head of Layout design for the newspaper, she ensured consistency and showcased her creativity and attention to detail while meeting deadlines. She was an active member of DECA, earning an MC finalist award in her category.
Rachel is enrolled at the University of Toronto Scarborough’s Management and International Business Co-Op.
Danae Kong [江孟莉]
Christian Homelearners eStreams, Victoria, BC
Chung-Kotcheff Family Arts Award
(Watch Danae Kong’s video speech.)
At the age 8, Danae gave the first public performance of her compositions at the Greater Victoria Performing Arts Festival, where she was invited to perform in the honours concert. Later, she came across the 18th century Italian method of teaching counterpoint and composition called Partimento, used to teach Beethoven and Haydn up until the Impressionist period. Then she discovered Furno’s 1817 Partimento textbook on the website of Professor Robert Gjerdingen. He offered to refer her to renowned Partimento master, Tobias Cramm, from Switzerland, who accepted her as his student. The European American Musical Alliance also awarded her a scholarship to study composition at their Summer Institute in Paris. This January, she started a small studio teaching music by integrating the Partimento Method with the Royal Conservatory method. She hopes to revolutionise music by reviving the Partimento Method and connect her community by composing music that speaks to the heart.
Danae is studying Music Composition at Prairie College, Three Hills, AB.
Grace Anyu Sun [孙安羽]
Cardinal Carter Academy for the Arts, Toronto, ON
Dorothy Lu and Jung Shao Lu Community Services Award
During COVID-19, Grace worked as a team leader at the BIGproject, sponsored by the Canadian government and the Canadian Red Cross, to reduce the impact of quarantine on Chinese seniors’ lives. She established three student clubs at school to strengthen students’ connections. She worked as a student leader at the TCDSB Student Mental Health Advisory Council and as an MC at health fairs to spread mental health knowledge. She has participated in the operation of four products focusing on improving adolescents’ mental health through the JACO Company Program and worked as a leader. These products are part of our efforts and attempts to help the 1.2 million Canadian adolescents who are struggling with mental health issues during and after COVID-19. In 2021, she set up a Youth Committee at the North York Historical Society to promote local history to youth, a brand-new organization which has successfully explored a new operating model.
Grace is enrolled in Computer Sciences at Queen’s University.
Michelle Deng [邓斐雪]
Ross Sheppard High School, Edmonton, AB
Murphy & Chung Chartered Accountants Athletics Award
(Watch Michelle Deng’s video speech.)
Michelle is the 2022 Junior Bronze Medalist of the peak national figure skating championships, and she is a member of the national figure skating NextGen Team. She competed in Skate Canada Challenge Championships in 2022, finishing 8th at the junior level, was Alberta’s Junior Champion of 2021, and was the Junior Silver Medalist at the Fall Competitive Invitational. She competed at Alberta Winter Games in 2018 and 2020 and Canada Winter Games and was the champion each time. Michelle volunteered as an announcer at the STAR Performance Opportunity, at the Ice Palace as a CanSkate Coach Assistant, as a judge at the Ice Palace Junior Academy Competition, and at local competitions fulfilling a variety of roles such as registration, ice captain, ice patcher, music player, and runner. She has been decorated with many awards such as the Kurt Browning Award, the Kaetlyn Osmond Award, the Dennis McFarlane Bursary, the Sectional Legacy Award, the Competitive Skate Athlete Award, and multiple Leading Edge Series titles.
Michelle is pursuing a Science Honour Degree with a Computing Science Major at the University of Alberta.
Christina Wang [王彩霖 ]
Sacred Heart Catholic High School, Newmarket, ON
Choi King and John C. Mah Memorial Innovation Award
After the pandemic, Christina developed an innovative solution in response to an increase in the demand for volunteer opportunities, resulting in in-person volunteering declining rapidly. Volunreach is an app that connects high school students with organizations. The app has empowered students to actively contribute to their communities through virtual volunteering initiatives such as creating cards for seniors in senior homes or proofreading ebooks to support public libraries. They have developed a global network of 100,000 students across 7 school boards and over 14 national and international organizations. The success of Volunreach was recognized at the 2021 TYE Young Entrepreneurs Vancouver and was a semi-finalist in the global competitions, outcompeting over 185 startups from 27 locations around the world. After the international business competition, Volunreach was acquired by Moonpreneur’s Moonshot Jr., an organization that empowers young entrepreneurs to bring innovative startups to market.
Christina is enrolled at Western University in DAN Management & Organization Studies with Ivey AEO.
Michelle Wan [万小米]
Markville Secondary School, Markham, ON
Dignity of Life Award
For Michelle, dignity of life means building a world of compassion, acceptance, and understanding for all. She protects and advocates for vulnerable individuals through her involvement in HOSA preventing youth suicide, volunteering for Chinese seniors at Yee Hong Geriatric Care Center, and fighting for LGBTQ+ Rights through Pride Club. Her goal is to destigmatize mental illness and create safe spaces for students to share their feelings and support each other. By fostering meaningful relationships, she aims to alleviate loneliness and ensure that senior voices are heard. She started Pride Club to create a safe and inclusive space, determined to provide support and validation to marginalized groups, a testament to her unwavering commitment to challenging discrimination and fostering inclusivity. Michelle has sought to uplift others, overcome adversity, and create a society where everyone, irrespective of their age, ability, or identity, can experience full incorporation into our community.
Michelle is enrolled in Health Sciences at McMaster University.
Weiqi Xu [徐炜绮]
Twin Lakes Secondary School, Washago, ON
Fay and John Wong Defence of the Environment Award
(Watch Weiqi Xu’s video speech.)
As a student trustee for the Simcoe County District School Board, Weiqi consistently demonstrated his ability to encourage others to reduce their impact on the environment. Through his advocacy for student wellness and sustainability, he fostered a culture of environmental consciousness among his peers. Weiqi showed leadership, working to raise awareness about the importance of protecting the environment and actively engaging others in these critical conversations. Weiqi’s involvement in the Sustainable Orillia Youth Council further exemplified his commitment to environmental protection and his ability to foster innovation in this field. In his role as the manager of the council’s IT aspects, he has led a small team in coding projects that promote sustainability. His contributions to the Climate Change Summit at Lakehead University, where he not only coded the registration and event website but also played a key role in event planning and hosting, demonstrate his ability to achieve tangible results in challenging circumstances. His involvement with the Simcoe County Greenbelt Coalition as a summer student is a testament to his commitment to protecting and preserving natural spaces for the well-being of both the community and future generations.
Weiji is enrolled at the University of Waterloo to study Geomatics.
Jiayu Li [李珈瑜]
Harrison Trimble High School, Moncton, NB
Foon Hay Lum Commemorative Award for the Centenary of the Chinese Exclusion Act
During the lockdowns of COVID-19, the idea for The Chronicles came to Jiayu – a published chronicle of COVID stories from Canadian teenagers dedicated to victims of Sinophobia. She gathered a group of nine Asian peers to publish over 200 copies documenting and giving a voice to hundreds of youths from New Brunswick to British Columbia. Since grade 10, she has been hosting her school’s math club to support her fellow students and teachers. She also designed, produced and distributed pronoun pins during Pride Month. She assisted in hosting school assemblies and football games to lift school spirit and developed a course selection website for the school that addressed different accessibility needs. It is not her proudest project because of how much time she spent, but rather the moment when a friend with dyslexia told her it was the first time she had ever felt her issue being considered. Jiayu in the cycle of kindness – the more you receive, the more you should give back.
Jiayu is studying Engineering Science at the University of Toronto.