WELCOME

The Island Sandbox is a member of the Nova Scotia Sandbox community. We provide space for various student groups from Cape Breton University to experiment with new technologies, entrepreneurial ideas and access business mentors and other support. We deliver unique hands-on programming and workshops to assist in professional and personal development. On behalf of myself and the staff of the Island Sandbox, I invite you to join us.

Lunchtime Business Lunch-n-Learn

Get involved with the student business community, expand your business tool chest, meet other driven students and learn about other exciting opportunities in the Shanon School of Business. Feed your body and your mind in our lunchtime sessions. Open to all CBU SSOB students. Please RSVP.

Building on the success of the inaugural summit in 2024, St. Francis Xavier University is hosting once again the Impact X: A Summit on Entrepreneurship & Social Change on November 20-21, 2026. With integral support from the Nova Scotia Department of Advanced Education, we are inviting 85 post-secondary and high school students from across Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland to attend.

We identified a gap in the Atlantic ecosystem: while students can pitch ideas in various fora, there is no integrated event for students in all stages of the entrepreneurial cycle to focus on social impact and change. Impact X is a regional event for blossoming student entrepreneurs to come together to learn from leading entrepreneurs, community organizations, and peer institutions.

SANDBOX NOW

Design Cube is an innovative community entrepreneurship and design project developed by the Island Sandbox in partnership with the Cape Breton Partnership and the Nova Scotia Department of Community…

Enactus is looking to build on its award-winning results and is looking for new team members to join our team. An opportunity for learning, travel, and competition await our next cohort as we build out our current award-winning project concept.

If you have a high potential start-up approaching investment readiness, we can help. Delivered virtually, Invest Nova Scotia Accelerate is a milestone-based program that helps Nova Scotia start-ups get investment-ready..

CBU TALKS: ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

Today’s guest, Professor Ray Bilodeau. CBU Talks: AI explores how artificial intelligence is influencing learning, work, and creativity through conversations with faculty, staff, students and special guests at CBU.

In this episode of CBU Talks, Todd Graham sits down with Maya Giorbelidze from the Shannon School of Business at Cape Breton University to discuss the rapid rise of artificial intelligence in academia and beyond.

We talk with Francis Sims, CBU alumnus, educator and frequent CBC guest commentator, for an in-depth discussion on artificial intelligence in higher education.

We sit down with James Gerrie, Professor of Philosophy and Religious Studies at CBU, to explore artificial intelligence through a philosophical lens and discuss how AI challenges our assumptions about intelligence, learning, and human uniqueness.

Professor Beriensteil offers a grounded perspective on what today’s “AI” really is, arguing that many systems are better understood as advanced algorithms rather than true intelligence. Our conversation tackles questions facing students today: How should AI be used in learning?

Today’s guest, Luke Wagner and Luke Mainwaring CBU Talks: AI explores how artificial intelligence is influencing learning, work, and creativity through conversations with faculty, staff, students and special guests at Cape Breton University.

We speak with Harsimran Kaur, Student Union President at Cape Breton University, about the rapid emergence of AI in academic settings from the student perspective. Harsimran shares her journey from AI skeptic to advocate, beginning in late 2022 when ChatGPT exploded among students.

With 76% of students already using ChatGPT, the question isn’t whether to allow AI in education, but how to prepare students with the ethical frameworks and critical thinking skills they’ll need. Our discussion with Gurmit Kaur offers practical strategies and actionable approaches for educators.

FEATURED VIDEO

PAST PROJECTS

October (17-18) Are you a non-technical, product-minded person with big ideas but not sure how to bring them to life? Meet VibeCoding, where brainstorming meets building, creativity meets code, and problems meet solutions. Presented in cooperation with Volta.

Wednesday November 20 is the day we see which team has the skills to erect the tallest spaghetti and marshmallow tower, take home the $200 prize, and bask in all the glory. Teams can pre-register online to secure their time slot, or sign up for an available time in the cafeteria on Wednesday morning.

Super-power the development of your idea with the power of AI. Learn about the newest AI tech, how to generate business ideas and implement the new AI inspired business model with rapid prototyping.

Artificial Intelligence is here and affecting our professional and private lives in meaningful ways. Come together with local experts in technology and AI to discuss the opportunities for Cape Breton business. June 25.

HEALTH INNOVATION 2024

Do you have a great idea for an innovation in the Health Industry? Students will have the opportunity to bring an innovative health related business idea forward for a chance to win prize money totaling $5000.

Cape Breton University, Dalhousie Innovates and CEED, are partnering with the Island Sandbox to bring the Collide program to Cape Breton the weekend of September 27. Check back on September 6th for further information on application and enrolment.

Are you an international student thinking about owning your own business? Review the live stream of our June workshop and learn about opportunities for investing in an established business. Learn how managing and buying an established business affects your PR application, and talk about the legal and financial issues involved in succession and investment.

Are you interested in learning more about the options available to you for funding or financing you startup or small business venture? Join us and our guest panel on Monday, October 23 to learn about financing and funding small business and startup ventures.

The Island Sandbox is celebrating the success of our prototype pop-up grocery store concept, a part of the Nova Nourishment project.

RESOURCES

Grow Now is a 100% virtual incubator specifically designed for women-led technology companies based in Canada.

Work placements are a win-win for employers and students. Through the Student Work Placement program, employers can apply for wage subsidies to help them hire post-secondary students across Canada

The Changing Perspectives Self-Assessment platform is a free tool that allows you to easily review and assess your technical skills while also exploring the top 5 high-demand IT roles across the tech sector in Nova Scotia.

Amazon Mechanical Turk (MTurk) is a crowdsourcing tool that can be used for anything from conducting simple data validation and research to more subjective tasks like survey participation, content moderation, and more.