PIF names Flowing Futures’ winners
CONNOR LUCZKA, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
According to Jazlyn Burrell, a Flowing Futures entrant and recently announced winner, the Provocation Ideas Festival (PIF)’s recent contest on the Avon River has changed how she thinks about the iconic river cutting through the heart of the Festival City.
“I think about my renewed hope, restoration and the beautiful consequence of the butterfly effect,” said Burrell during the contest’s awards night on Oct. 17. “If there's anything that we take away here from tonight, I pray that it's a place of hope and some excitement for what is to come.”
Burrell was one of seven announced winners of the Flowing Futures: Avon River Design Challenge, a contest which invited citizens to tap into their imagination, do the research, and think of their collective environmental responsibility when it comes to the river.
Flowing Futures invited artists, students, environmental thinkers, designers, community organizations and residents to imagine what the river could become. The initiative generated 37 completed submissions, along with additional statements of interest, spanning ecological restoration, water quality, accessibility, active transportation, recreation, public art, storytelling, digital experiences, youth engagement and new community gathering spaces.
The independent expert jury faced difficult choices because of the quality, originality and range of the submissions. Seven juried awards were presented at the Flowing Futures Awards Celebration at Copperlight. A separate People’s Choice Award reflects the proposal selected as most compelling by visitors to the exhibition.
“Flowing Futures began with a simple question: what could Stratford’s Avon River become in the years ahead?” said Mark Rosenfeld, PIF founding director, in a media release. “The response revealed an extraordinary depth of creativity, knowledge and commitment within our community. These awards celebrate outstanding proposals, but they also recognize every person who took the time to share an idea, a concern or a possibility for the river’s future.”
PIF sincerely thanks the Flowing Futures jury for the time, expertise and thoughtful attention they brought to reviewing the submissions: Theresa Douthwright and Karen Winfield of the Upper Thames River Conservation Authority; Christina Phillips of Destination Stratford; Hanna Domagala of the BMI Group; Shabnam Tashakour of Nancy Campbell Academy; Jack Nahrgang, an artist and former teacher; and Rachelle Mingail, an artist and musician.
The award night and prizes were funded by MTE Consultants. In addition to this support, MTE contributed environmental expertise through the Flowing Futures River Clinic and offered free consultations to participants as they developed their proposals.
Flowing Futures was launched by PIF as a collaborative undertaking with the BMI Group, Our Stōr(y), Pathways to Poetry Festival, Stratford Public Library, The Boathouse Stratford, MTE Consultants and the Upper Thames River Conservation Authority. The initiative was made possible in part through financial support from the Destination Stratford Development Fund and RTO4 Tourism, along with financial and organizational support from the BMI Group. StratfordToday.ca provided in-kind advertising support.
PIF extends its deepest appreciation to everyone who submitted a completed proposal or statement of interest.
To view all of the entrants, visit tinyurl.com/27faz5ru. The award winners are:
Flowing Futures Grand Prize – $600
Flowing Features – Jordan Cook. A science-based and practical restoration framework that addresses water-quality throughout the Avon River watershed and Lake Victoria. Rather than responding only to the visible symptoms of pollution, the proposal addresses agricultural runoff, sediment and nutrient loading, and disrupted natural flows, creating healthier aquatic habitats and long-term municipal benefits.
Transformative Vision Award – $150
Lakeside Reimagined – Anu S Kumar. A bold plan to transform the Lake Victoria waterfront into a continuous, accessible civic landscape integrating native shoreline restoration, sensory gardens, cultural programming, year-round activity and community gathering spaces.
Ecology and Climate Resilience Award – $150
Stratford Floating Wildflower Islands – Jazlyn Burrell. A scalable pilot using floating platforms planted with native wetland species to absorb excess nutrients, improve habitat for fish and pollinators and create an outdoor classroom for community-based ecological learning.
Community Connection and Accessibility Award – $150
Forest Playground – Denise Iszczuk. A secure, nature-based riverfront play space for young children, using natural fencing and reclaimed wood to support imaginative outdoor learning, family access and intergenerational community participation.
Arts, Culture and Placemaking Award – $150
ARTxTERRA Land Art Festival – Kevin September. A multi-site autumn festival of live-built, site-specific installations made from natural, locally sourced and biodegradable materials, designed to deepen environmental connection while extending Stratford’s cultural and tourism season.
Postsecondary Innovation Award – $150
Avon River Way Framework – Andra Popp, Sam Ma, Lulit Meraf, Sydney Robb, Khalil Heron and Victor Constantinescu. A University of Waterloo capstone project presenting a corridor-scale planning framework that connects ecological restoration, universal accessibility, active transportation, public art and Indigenous placemaking through a phased, evidence-based implementation strategy.
Intermediate School Vision Award – $150
Avon River Fishing and Clean-Up Video Game – Cameron Fuhr, Zach Moses and Dominic Morris. An interactive educational game that links fishing, litter removal and improved water quality, using creative coding to help younger audiences understand pollution, native aquatic species and river stewardship.
People’s Choice Award
ARTxTERRA Land Art Festival – Kevin September. A multi-site autumn festival of live-built, site-specific installations made from natural, locally sourced and biodegradable materials, designed to deepen environmental connection while extending Stratford’s cultural and tourism season. Selected through public voting by visitors to the Flowing Futures exhibition.
Comments