2023 ended on a high for Continest in Canada. After almost four (4) years of collaboration and development, Continest Technologies Plc.’s Canadian partner company and Innocorps-led Consortium called Circular City triumphed in the Canadian Department of National Defence’s (DND) Innovation for Defence Excellence and Security (IDEaS) program called “Pop-Up City.” We are talking to Stefania Szabo, director of Continest Canada, about this and other plans for the company in Canada.
Q: Congratulations on this achievement. Can you elaborate on why this is a big win for Continest’s innovative technologies?
The DND invited innovators to propose and develop solutions that provide integrated energy, water and waste management systems for the Canadian Armed Forces’ Relocatable Temporary Camps (RTCs) back in 2019. We applied in the Energy domain, and from an initial pool of about 150 companies, we advanced to round two, where we were tasked to create a consortium with companies in the water and waste management domains. We joined forces with Innocorps and Eco-Growth respectively to make the Circular City consortium, and this strategic alliance culminated in the final round at the Suffield military base in Alberta in August 2023
Q: This seems like a long time…
Oh yes. COVID hit us and the contest hard. We were all set for an in-person industry day in Toronto in mid-March 2020 when COVID-19 became a global pandemic, and everything shut down. We moved virtual and remained so for the next three (3) years. It was a challenge as our consortium was based in 5 locations: Hungary, Germany, Calgary, AB., Saskatoon, SK., and Toronto, ON. I only met with some of our team members at Suffield for the first time.
Q: Tell us more about the final round at Suffield and what it means.
At the Suffield military base, the final round of the Pop-Up City contest marked a significant milestone for Continest Canada and the Circular City Consortium. Here, our integrated energy, water, and waste management solutions were rigorously tested and thoroughly evaluated under real-world conditions through a week of operations. Three consortia made it to the Finals, and based on data collected during the tests, Circular City was announced as the winner of CAD 2 million in late October 2023.
Q: So, what’s next after Pop-Up City?
The government of Canada announced Camp Sustain’s public procurement for Deployable Camp Infrastructure and Utilities Systems, with a very similar target goal we have already achieved with Pop-Up City, so we will also submit our proposal to this event. We are also in touch with organizers of significant sports events taking place in Canada in the coming years, like the Canada Games 2025 in Newfoundland and the FIFA World Cup to be organized in North America, with one venue being in Toronto. Don’t forget that Continest started off in the events business – providing temporary infrastructure for music festivals, sports, or cultural events when there’s a need for extra infrastructure for a brief period. We continue to target these significant events in Canada and address the ever-increasing need for temporary homes for unhoused people. Our designs are much safer, more comfortable and economically viable than the current solutions.
Q: How did you get involved with Continest? What is your background?
I started to work with Continest in the summer of 2019 after finishing my career as a Hungarian diplomat. I worked for 23 years for the Hungarian government in different positions, served as trade commissioner in Tel Aviv, Israel, at the Hungarian Embassy and as Consul General of Hungary in Toronto, Canada. My children fell in love with Canada and its education system and wanted to stay in Toronto. As a result, I decided to make that happen by changing careers. It’s not something I ever contemplated doing at that stage of my professional life, but it worked out well in the end.
