Charlottetown vies for $10M Smart Cities prize
Smart Cities Challenge has a $10M prize
!['We need to make sure that [social media] is contributing meaningfully to our lives,' says Horton.](https://i.cbc.ca/1.2551230.1689594799!/fileImage/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/16x9_1180/school-district-42-restricts-social-media-usage.jpg?im=Resize%3D780)
The City of Charlottetown is competing for a big prize in order to support the mental health of its youth.
The city is submitting an entry into the Smart Cities Challenge, a competition that encourages communities to improve lives through technology. The first step is for the city to identify a problem they would like to tackle.
Ramona Doyle, Charlottetown's sustainability officer, said technology could help with youth mental health in a variety of ways.
![](https://i.cbc.ca/1.4576142.1583952117!/fileImage/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/original_1180/ramona-doyle.jpg?im=)
"You could use technology in a way to connect people better to programming," said Doyle.
"It could be a way to use virtual support groups for youth, it could be data collection."
The prize is $10 million.
If Charlottetown is chosen as a finalist, it will receive $250,000 to further develop the proposal.