Move over, David Cronenberg, Anne Murray, Bobby Orr and you other occupants of Canucks’ Corner, and make room for the likes of F.C.P. Henroteau and Edward Samuels Rogers. The little-known inventors of the TV camera and the AC radio tube, respectively, are potential candidates for a piece of real estate on a new strip called the Canadian Technology Walk of Fame.

The CTWOF, a joint venture of not-for-profit tech organization GigaThon, York Heritage Properties and the City of Toronto, will announce its first 10 inductees at a public ceremony in September in tech-heavy Liberty Village (Liberty St. between Fraser St. and Jefferson St.). Each September another 10 notables will be selected, and the Walk will extend into other industry centres in Toronto and across Canada. To add an apropos high-tech feel, the sidewalk displays will feature a glass-etched plaque illuminated by fiber optic lighting.

‘We’re trying to create something [whereby] people will look at the award as an innovation on its own,’ says GigaThon founder Julian Wharton, who devised the CTWOF concept.

Of course, many of Canada’s greatest inventors are long gone and can’t personally be on hand.

‘We will try to track down a relative,’ Wharton explains. ‘It may be that that technology was taken into the hands of a larger corporation over time, so we will find the best representative to accept the award.’

Following an announcement at GigaThon’s annual fundraising party June 28, the Canadian public will be asked to cast their votes at www.ctwof.ca for whomever of our native sons and daughters they believe has made the biggest impact in the world of technology. Then, a panel of 100 industry members from across Canada will choose the finalists from the pool of nominees.

There will be one representative selected from each of the following categories: communication, transportation, education, health, productivity, leisure, hardware/software, lifetime achievement, innovation of the decade and innovation of the year.

Most Canadians are probably not familiar with the names Henroteau and Rogers, so Wharton is contemplating a database on the site that will highlight Canadian inventors, not limited to those in the tech sector. The CTWOF has also partnered with www.inventivewomen.com to provide information on noteworthy female candidates.

With technology changing by the moment, the CTWOF can provide some much-needed perspective.

‘The industry [is] in a bit of turmoil right now, but if you look back, the technology industry has always been there and it’s always been very strong,’ Wharton points out. ‘So if we can build a great platform for kids and adults [we can] say, ‘You can do anything if you want to – you just have to have a dream and translate that into a business.’ ‘

GigaThon’s mandates are to showcase Canadian innovation and its inherent challenges and to support reBOOT Canada, an organization that supplies used computers to charitable agencies and schools. Funding for the company comes from various sponsors and from Wharton, who was recently named volunteer of the year at the Canadian New Media Awards. *

-www.gigathon.com