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Miami-Dade County is experiencing an economic shift as it transforms into a burgeoning technology hub. Our community has recently become a magnet for tech founders and venture capitalists, with Forbes even ranking Miami ahead of traditional tech hubs like New York and Austin, Texas. This change is fueled by an influx of global technology, financial companies, and investors, making the county a frontrunner in innovative job growth.
For this change to be sustained, we must ensure that our future workforce is ready to support technology and paradigm-shifting ideas to handle the changes that may come with it. Through its Innovation Fund and other funding initiatives, The Children’s Trust is sowing the seeds for Miami-Dade County’s future as a technology and innovation leader. The next round of Innovation Fund applications, opening February 8, will make more than $1 million in grant funds available for multiple innovative projects. In part, these funds are expected to catalyze technology-based initiatives that benefit children and families and explore solutions that align with Miami-Dade’s forward-thinking trajectory.
The Children’s Trust is dedicated to investing in evidence-based programs and services that positively impact the well-being of children and families in Miami-Dade. The Trust established the Innovation Fund to nurture innovative ideas and program designs that address new or existing community needs. The grant program supports piloting ideas, strategies, methods, and partnerships not previously tried in Miami-Dade’s diverse community. Its goal is to promote effective and equitable opportunities for children to thrive.
In October 2022, the previous innovation cycle yielded 17 funded projects, including multiple initiatives that bring technology to the forefront. Many of those projects are already thriving. ICUBaby, for example, uses technology to help guide parents whose newborns are in neonatal intensive care units (NICU) through uncertain and challenging circumstances. The organization developed a mobile app for use by parents that helps educate and inform parents about what can be a traumatic experience while also keeping them more connected to their newborn and to essential support. Initially started at one hospital, the project plans to expand to several others.
Another Innovation Fund project developed by the University of Miami/Nova Southeastern University Center for Autism and Related Disabilities uses virtual reality as exposure therapy for youth with phobias or social anxieties, with promising initial results. University of Miami’s Mailman Center for Child Development is also developing a Virtual Reality simulation to help children with anxiety and fears deal with those issues in a virtual setting as a safe and protected way of confronting issues before tackling them in real life.
Other innovative projects include a Science Alliance subscription box that helps educators promote science-related educational materials to underserved preschool youth, the building of an aquaculture facility in an urban setting that can harvest fish, vegetables, and even pearls, and in-depth high school investing program where students can manage a portion of funds while receiving guidance from financial professionals.
Not all Innovation Fund projects will be successful or enduring, but even those that aren’t still use creativity, imagination, and ingenuity that will ultimately move our community forward. The Trust also invests in funder collaborations that support projects like Fab Lab Miami, which brings STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts, and Mathematics) education to children and youth from underserved communities – currently in Liberty City and Homestead and seeking to expand locations.
The upcoming Innovation Fund grant round promises to further propel Miami into the forefront of the global tech landscape. Nurturing the greatness of every child gives them a chance to thrive and is imperative to the success of Miami-Dade – both now and in the future. To learn more about the Innovation Fund and other funding opportunities, visit TheChildrensTrust.org/grants.
