“I want you to imagine someone living with diabetes or heart disease,” began Tanya Chanthakumar’s pitch.
“Most of us imagine adults, but that’s changing.”
Chanthakumar, a master’s student in McMaster’s Global Health program, won the top prize at the 2026 Societal Impact Pitch Competition. Her research focuses on improving early-life prevention of childhood obesity and other health conditions in South Asian communities.
As part of the competition, twelve McMaster graduate students presented three-minute pitches on their research, showcasing its real-world impact and potential to drive change.
Judges Rachelle Ihekwoaba, Manager of Community Strategies for the City of Hamilton; Sandra Lapointe, Professor of Philosophy; and Brenda Vrkljan, Professor of Rehabilitation Science evaluated the presentations and selected the top four pitches – with a grand prize of $1000 going to Chanthakumar.
Hosted by the Office of the Vice-President, Research, the event highlighted graduate students’ forward-thinking solutions to some of today’s most pressing challenges, says Martin Horn, McMaster’s deputy vice-president, research.
“I would like to congratulate our winners and participants on their impressive presentations. It’s exciting to see how their work is translating into real benefits for communities at home and around the world,” he says.
Here are the winning pitches.
Tanya Chanthakumar
How South Asian Mothers and Caregivers Understand Health Advice About Pregnancy and Young Children
Chanthakumar, a Global Health master’s student, took home the $1,000 first prize.
By working with South Asian families in the Peel Region, her research aims to understand how mothers and caregivers make early-life health decisions during pregnancy and the early years of their child’s life, with the goal of making prevention more realistic, accessible and culturally relevant.
Toli Amare
From “just surviving” to “I am a business owner”: How business training helps business owners
The $500 second prize went to Toli Amare, a Ph.D candidate in the DeGroote School of Business’ Management of Organizational Behaviour and Human Resources (MOBHR) program, for his pitch focused on building better support and training for global entrepreneurs.
“Entrepreneurship is not just about skills, it is about whether you can keep going when faced with difficulties,” he said in his pitch.
Amare’s research considers the kinds of support refugee women business owners need for their businesses to succeed. He conducted over 100 interviews with women in Nairobi, Kenya, identifying key support that helps them build sustainable businesses.
Alexandra Leone
Gastrointestinal Manifestations During the Menopause Transition
Alexandra Leone, a master’s student in Global Health, tied for the third-place, $250 prize for her research on clinical guidelines and the menopause transition.
Leone will conduct surveys in Hamilton to generate findings on gastrointestinal symptoms in menopause. She’ll then expand these surveys internationally at multiple clinical sites, with the goal of shaping better care for women globally.
“Let’s stop endless referrals. Let’s stop unnecessary testing. Let’s start building the clinical guidelines,” ended her pitch.
Katherine Ullrich
Fishing for a cure: Using a zebrafish model to advance therapeutic discovery for SETBP1-HD
Katherine Ullrich, a master’s student in Biology, also won third place.
“Did you know that one in twelve Canadians are affected by a rare disorder?” she asked the audience.
“90% of rare disorders have no treatments. This is a huge gap in the healthcare system, and something that my project works toward addressing.”
Ullrich’s research uses zebrafish to create a biomedical model that can be used to study treatments for SETBP1-HD – a rare genetic neurodevelopmental disorder.