Presented by

WEST KOOTENAY
​
“Spark" Mentorships & Grants Program

2021 West Kootenay "Spark" Program Winners:

Phil Loosley
TOURISM IDEA: BC Alpine Improv Retreat
Mentor: Howard Jang, Executive Director, BC Alliance for Arts and Culture

Krista Humphrey
TOURISM IDEA: West Kootenay Craft Gear Trail
Mentor: Paul Kamon, Tourism Recovery Specialist at Sunshine Coast Tourism and co-founder of the BC Ale Trail

Gillian Kemle
TOURISM IDEA: Creston Valley Tours and Rentals
Mentor: Tod Caton, Founder of Simply Kimberley

Each will receive $3000, mentorship, and additional partner support to help them take their tourism initiatives to the next level. 
Stay tuned to our social media channels for updates on their progress.

    To join our Tourism Innovation "Spark" Community, please enter your contact information below to receive program updates from the Tourism Innovation Lab by email:

​Learn more about the Tourism Innovation Lab

​- Home Base - 
Tourism Innovation Lab
c/o University of Windsor - EPICentre
​2455 Wyandotte St W, Windsor, ON, Canada N9B 3B3
​​​[email protected]
1-844-455-0325 toll-free / 416-712-8819

​We respectfully acknowledge that our home base at the University of Windsor sits on the traditional territory of the Three Fires Confederacy of First Nations, which includes the Ojibwa, the Odawa, and the Potawatomi Peoples. We will honour that by collaborating with Indigenous-led organizations and businesses to support the advancement of Indigenous tourism in the region and across Canada.
Terms & Conditions
Code of Conduct
Privacy Policy

The Tourism Innovation Lab is a program of Hackforge
Copyright @ 2025 Hackforge

Central Canada Home Base 
Tourism Innovation Lab
c/o Hackforge
300 Ouellette Ave, Suite 210, Windsor, ON N9A 7B4
​​​[email protected]
647-948-5651 x 1
1-844-455-0325 x 1

​Western Canada Home Base
Tourism Innovation Lab
c/o The Common
38016 Cleveland Ave, Squamish, BC V8B 0A1
[email protected]
647-948-5651 x 2
​1-844-455-0325 x 2


We respectfully acknowledge that our home base in Windsor-Essex sits on the traditional territory of the Three Fires Confederacy of First Nations, which is comprised of the Ojibwa, the Odawa, and the Potawatomi Peoples. We also respectfully acknowledge that our home base in Squamish sits on the traditional, ancestral and unceded territory of the Coast Salish peoples: Squamish, Tsleil-Waututh and Musqueam First Nations. We will honour this by collaborating with Indigenous-led organizations and businesses to support the advancement of Indigenous tourism in those regions and across Canada.​