Blum Center for Developing Economies
Big Ideas
News

Big Ideas Innovation Ambassadors Nurturing Ideas into Enterprises

Since its founding in 2005 at UC Berkeley, Big Ideas has grown into one of the nation’s largest and most diverse student innovation competitions. Supporting early-stage social entrepreneurship, the contest offers mentorship, training, and resources. In 2017, Big Ideas launched the Innovation Ambassador program to expand accessibility across all ten UC campuses.
Lisa Bauer
February 1, 2019
1 min

Founded in 2005 at UC Berkeley, Big Ideas has become one of the largest and most diverse student innovation competitions in the country. The contest supports the next generation of social entrepreneurs–providing mentorship, training, and the diverse resources required to support big ideas from their earliest stages. In 2017, to ensure the contest remains accessible to the widest number of students across UC’s ten campuses, the Big Ideas team designed an Innovation Ambassador program.

Related Articles

A lively networking event where people are engaged in conversations.
Big Ideas
News
Student Entrepreneurs Find Collaborators, Inspiration, and Opportunities at Innovators@Cal
Innovators@Cal — UC Berkeley’s annual flagship entrepreneurship event, which brought together aspiring student innovators, students curious about joining early-stage ventures, and an inspirational keynote speaker tackling the “world’s dumbest problem.” 
Sam Goldman
November 25, 2023
6 mins
A group of eight individuals, wearing green and blue work jackets, proudly display sheets of recycled material. They are standing outside a recycling facility, with bags of sorted plastic bottles visible in the background. The diverse group, consisting of both men and women, smiles at the camera.
Big Ideas
News
UC Berkeley’s Big Ideas Contest Builds Student-Led Social Innovations
Paige Balcom, the co-founder, co-CEO and CTO of Takataka Plastics, is changing Uganda — one plastic bottle at a time.
K.J. Bannan
September 28, 2023
2 mins
Map of the world with Mexico, Ukraine and Philippines highlighted and their respective landscape changes shown next to them.
Big Ideas
Development Engineering
Digital Transformation of Development
News
In the AI Era, Blum Center Students and Alumni Find Ways to Apply the Technology for Social Good
Yet even before AI took center stage this past year, students and alumni of the Blum Center for Developing Economies were embracing the emerging technologies' potential, specifically for social good. From detecting “deepfake” videos to analyzing agriculture changes and building understanding across communities, Blum Center folks share their experiences, inspirations, and the impact of their AI-driven projects and ventures. 
Mengyuan Dong
September 5, 2023
9 mins

Host and Fellow Responsibilities

Host Organizations

  • Identify staff supervisor to manage I&E Climate Action Fellow
  • Submit fellowship description and tasks
  • Engage in the matching process
  • Mentor and advise students
  • Communicate with Berkeley program director and give feedback on the program.

Berkeley Program Director​

  • Communicate with host organizations, students, and other university departments to ensure smooth program operations

Student Fellows

  • Complete application and cohort activities
  • Communicate with staff and host organizations
  • Successfully complete assignments from host organization during summer practicum
  • Summarize and report summer experience activities post-fellowship