A University of Alberta associate professor, Rafiq Ahmad, has developed a spinoff company called Waste Parrot, which is set to compete in NASA's global $3 million LunaRecycle Challenge.
Waste Parrot, an Edmonton-based firm, entered the second phase of the competition in August 2025, and is the only Canadian team to make it to the finals, competing against more than 1,200 applicants.
“We’re happy that we’re the one and only Canadian company selected among the 17 winners in the phase one. No matter what the outcomes are for the phase two, we are equally proud … [to have] accepted this challenge,”
said Ahmad, highlighting the company's achievement in being identified as one of the top 17 projects in the world.
Author's summary: U of A spinoff company competes in NASA challenge.