Fredericton-based Ignite has received a national award for a program that connects municipalities with startups to develop solutions to community challenges.

Ignite’s MERGE: Connecting Municipal Challenges with Startup Innovation Through Regional Collaboration received the 2026 Economic Developers Association of Canada Award for Regional and Community Collaboration. The award was presented Wednesday at the EDAC Conference in Moncton.

Delivered through Ignite’s Planet Hatch facility, MERGE gives municipalities an opportunity to identify challenges and work with startups developing potential solutions. For startups, the program provides access to municipal customers and opportunities to test and validate their products in real-world settings.

The first MERGE cohort resulted in five completed projects addressing accessible transportation, strategic land identification, recreation and tourism, water resources, and trail-based economic development.

MERGE 2.0 is now under way, with seven additional projects involving municipalities and startups.

The program is funded by the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency, with support from the New Brunswick Innovation Foundation.

Andrew Lockhart, Ignite’s director of entrepreneurial and economic growth, said the program depends on municipalities being willing to consider new approaches and startups being prepared to test their solutions in real-world settings.

“For a startup, that opportunity can mean a first customer and the chance to prove a product in the real world,” Lockhart said in a statement. “For a community, it can mean finding a new and better way to solve a problem.”

Ignite said it plans to continue working with municipalities and companies through MERGE to identify challenges, test solutions and create opportunities for business development across the Fredericton region.