The Institute for Innovation & Entrepreneurship at Mount Royal University

Meet Rafay, founder of Amanah Analytics and competitor in the 2026 JMH LaunchPad Pitch Competition. Amanah Analytics helps Muslim professionals ensure that their investment portfolios align with their values through automated Sharia-compliance screening. By simplifying a process that currently requires manual research and religious expertise, Amanah Analytics brings faith-aligned investing within reach for everyday Canadian investors.

Catch Rafay at the pitch competition on April 1st. Tickets running out fast! Link in bio.

Meet Toby and Jared, founders of Navdex and competitors in the 2026 JMH LaunchPad Pitch Competition. Navdex is building the world’s first comprehensive database of lithium-ion battery pack layouts to help firefighters respond safely and effectively to electric vehicle fires. As EVs become ubiquitous on North American roads, Navdex gives fire departments the real-time intelligence they need to protect lives, including their own.

Catch Toby and Jared at the pitch competition on April 1st. Tickets running out fast! Link in bio.

Meet Janine, founder of Echelon Fragrances and competitor in the 2026 JMH LaunchPad Pitch Competition.

Echelon Fragrances creates refined, wearable perfumes designed for everyday life, not just special occasions. Each scent is developed through direct feedback from hundreds of customers, resulting in fragrances that feel personal, intentional, and distinctly Canadian.

Watch Janine pitch live on April 1st! Get your tickets now. Link in bio.

🥁🥁🥁 Meet the 2026 JMH LaunchPad Pitch Competition Finalists!

Kaydan Pring, Capture Plan
Tobias Wondwossen & Jared Cappon, Current Fire
Janine de Castro, Echelon Fragrances
Mohamad Allaq, Prince Tires Intelligence
Rafay Javaid, Amanah Analytics
Caitlin McCarthy, Succora

Grab your tickets to cheer them on. Link in bio.

It’s a wrap! We recently concluded the Winter 2026 cohort of our Ideas Lab program. These amazing student entrepreneurs spent 8 weeks taking their business idea to the next step. Thank you Caitlin, Eliza, Jeremy, and Nate for all your hard work! And thank you to our donors, the RBC Foundation and the Cathy & Bruce Williams Fund for their support in providing career-defining opportunities to our students!

PS: Tickets for the 14th edition of the JMH LaunchPad Pitch Competion are live! Watch MRU’s best student entrepreneurs pitch their businesses and compete for over $70000 in awards. Link in bio!

Congratulations to our Side-Hustle Expo Winners! 👏

🏆 Best Overall – | $500 Award
🎨 Most Creative – | $50 Award
⭐ Audience Choice – | $50 Award

Thank you to all of the side-hustlers who came out to share their entrepreneurial endeavours with the rest of the student community, and thank you to all those who voted!

On the first slide:

Top left - .canada
Top right - .beauty.lashes
Bottom left -
Bottom right - .creations.yyc

We’re so excited to celebrate the graduation of our Winter 2026 Innovation Sprint cohort. Swipe right to see these amazing student teams! Over the course of 5 weeks, students worked on customer discover, problem validation, and solution ideation for 4 local Calgary businesses.

A huge thank you to our mentors:
Daniel & Hooman with
Delia & Brad with
Mark with .micd.up
Justin with

A huge thank you to our sponsors, RBC Foundation and Cathy and Bruce Williams Fund for Innovation and Entrepreneurship for making this program possible!

Enjoy some toasty warm hot chocolate with us as we visit three different YYC Hot Chocolate Fest cafès!

For our February Rise Galentine’s Event, the Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship is hosting a Hot Chocolate Crawl along 17th Ave, featuring several YYC Hot Chocolate Fest participants!

The crawl begins at Element Café. From there, you are welcome to head west down the 17th Ave strip to visit other participating spots, such as Ollia Macarons & Tea, Analog Coffee, and Deville Coffee!

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Rise is a female and gender diverse community dedicated to supporting and empowering student and recent graduate innovators and entrepreneurs to make bigger and bolder decisions in their career and lives. Whether you are a seasoned innovator or entrepreneur or just starting out, this community is here for you.

Here’s two vendors you’ll meet at the Side Hustle Expo tomorrow!

🗓️ Feb 4th, 11AM to 2PM
📍 Wyckham House

Here’s a sneak peek of two vendors you’ll meet at the Side Hustle Expo tomorrow!

🗓️ Feb 4th, 11AM to 2PM
📍Wyckham House