Collaborating and innovating for evidence-based care
Collaboration | Health | Community
Hi there! We’re the SYNAPSE Collective
A group of dedicated academia and community members united to help mitigate the harms of the toxic drug crisis in our community
50 928 people have died to overdose in Canada since 2016
21+ people per day on average
Our Projects
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ODDBox
ODDBox monitors health data while keeping valuables secure in a familiar form factor
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KWMUnity
Bridging Gaps in Harm Reduction Through Community Based Mentorship
Bill 223 will significantly limit access to effective, evidence-based addiction services in Ontario starting March 31st 2025
The need for new solutions is dire to save lives!
Our Founding
SYNAPSE Collective started in an interdisciplinary capstone course at the University of Waterloo. Led by Larhya Miller, a former drug user turned neuroscientist, Larhya inspired 17 fellow students across 4 faculties (Engineering, Environment, Science & Arts) to join the collective and create evidence-based tools for overdose protection and recovery.
Since our start in September 2024, the team has rigorously researched, engineered and designed innovative new solutions in the protection of the most vulnerable in our community.
We have also met with numerous industry, academic and community partners, united in the cause of promoting effective, evidence-based tools to help support people who use drugs. This includes Dr Jeff Foote of CMC : Foundation for change, Sanguen Health Centre, Dr. Geoff Bardwell and Dr. James Danckert, both from the University of Waterloo. We’re eager to connect with more likeminded individuals so please get in touch below to fight for effective solutions to the toxic drug crisis.
All of this work would not have been possible without the assistance of the Future Cities Institute Founded By Caivan, and our instructional team: Derek Rayside, Ben Graham, Michael Wood, Rob Mclean and Anas Mahdi.
Larhya Miller, Our Founder
SYNAPSE Collective serves as the link between Canada’s most innovative university and our most vulnerable friends and neighbours
Meet the Teams
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ODDBox Team
Larhya Miller, Patrick Kim, Julia Cosma, Jennifer Tsai, Bruce Wang
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KWMUnity Team
Zarah Kamran, Simran Bansari, Alisha Dey, Chelsea Gagnon, Andrew Yang
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CAHRE Coalition (DAC 400)
Emma Danesh, Hayden Moon, Liz Wingate, Andrew Yang, Angela Zhou
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SynTHESIS
Drew McFayden, Francois Long Wang Caron
Not Pictured: Sukhmeet Deol, Nathaniel Sinanan, Andrew Yang
