Columbia Entrepreneurship

NYC Real Estate Tech Week 2019
2019-11-11 - 2019-11-15
” The investors, strategics, entrepreneurs, and industry leaders are so engaged in all of the events. It’s like the Davos of Real Estate Tech. ”

― Zach Aarons, Co-Founder And Partner At MetaProp
Learn more here.

Application Deadline: Columbia-IBM Blockchain LAUNCH Accelerator
2019-11-11
Open to early-stage, NY university-affiliated startups
Apply here.

Overview:
The Columbia | IBM Blockchain LAUNCH Accelerator is a non-dilutive program for building and scaling successful companies utilizing blockchain and data transparency. The goal of the program is to help the best emerging companies succeed through education, mentorship, and business model design. As a pillar of the Columbia IBM Center for Blockchain and Data Transparency, IBM and Columbia University are partnering to offer top blockchain companies from around the world a customized program with education from industry and academic research experts, hands-on value-added workshops, active mentoring and curated customer meetings.
To Lean More:
Please join one of the following info sessions:

Oct. 8, 2-3PM: Virtual Session
Oct. 9, 12-1PM: NYU Tandon, 370 Jay Street, Room 324
Oct. 16, 12:30-1:30PM: NYU Leslie ELab, NYU Entrepreneurial Institute (Leslie eLab), 16 Washington Place
Oct. 17, 11:30AM-12:30PM: CUIMC, Roy and Diana Vagelos Education Center, 104 Haven Ave.

Application Deadline: D-Prize Global Competition
2019-11-10
Eligibility information below.
Apply here.

The D-Prize Global Competition is live and seeking new social entrepreneurs! D-Prize challenges bold new leaders to tackle extreme poverty. This year, as many as 30 teams will be awarded with up to $20,000 each to launch nonprofits or social ventures that can distribute proven poverty interventions to thousands, maybe even millions, of people. Applications are due November 10th.
Who Should Apply? You should have enormous ambition, and can imagine yourself as a successful entrepreneur. You are ready to launch your new venture, and – if a pilot proves successful – you are excited to grow it into a world changing organization. If you are still a student or have an existing job, you should have a clear idea how to transition into a full-time founder. D-Prize is exclusively interested in ventures that will scale distribution of an already proven poverty intervention in the developing world. Read the D-Prize challenges and join the competition at www.d-prize.org.

Application Deadline: Cyber NYC
2019-11-09
Open to early stage companies.
Apply here.

Are you building a cyber security startup in New York City? Apply today for the Cyber NYC Inventors to Founders Startup Accelerator, a partnership between Columbia University and New York City Economic Development Corporation.
This is an early stage accelerator program to commercialize, launch, and scale cyber companies globally
BENEFITS:
• Capital (non-dilutive grants, convertible notes)
• Curriculum (Lean Launchpad, cyber-specific)
• Mentorship and guidance (technical, business support & access to CISOs and investor networks
• Access to entrepreneurial networks of 4 world-class universities and NY City Economic Development Corp
ELIGIBILITY & EXPECTATIONS:
• Early stage (ideation through seed), <$100k raised (equity)
• Affiliation with any NYC-based university (faculty, undergrad- grad- post-grad student, fellow, alumni)
• Passion for developing scalable cyber startups
• Ability to commit to program’s workload (~10 hours/week)
IMPORTANT DEADLINES:
APPLICATION DEADLINE: Nov 3
COHORTANNOUNCED: Dec-Jan
BOOTCAMP KICKOFF: Jan-Feb
DEMO DAY evaluation & interviews weekly bootcamp sessions: April

Big Questions for Startups - Part 1
2019-11-07 17:00 - 19:00 UTC
Open to founders and future founders.
Event Contact Information:
Kae Bara Kratcha
212-854-8813
kk3344@columbia.edu

Startups and their founders are famous for solving problems and creating innovations at breakneck speeds. Without taking the time to create a guiding ethos, startups risk moving too fast, burning out, and leaving things broken. This two-night series gives founders and future founders the opportunity to take a deep breath, slow down, and ask some big questions.
This will be held at the Columbia Entrepreneurship Design Studio, 645 W 120th Street, New York, NY 10027, Room 430.
The second installment of this series will be held on Nov 14, 5-7pm, also at the Design Studio.

Spark Workshop on Zea10: Disrupting Hunger
2019-11-06 18:00 - 19:30
Facilitated by Ian Mackay and Karl Greden
Wednesday, November 6, 2019
6–7:30 p.m.
Columbia Business School
Uris Hall, Room 307
3022 Broadway
New York, NY 10027
RSVP →
Refreshments included with RSVP
Zea10’s mission is to develop sustainable ecosystems using plant-based nutritional solutions to foster heathy, vibrant communities. There are over 4 million tons of brewers’ grains globally, which could provide 50 million people with their daily protein and fiber needs, without tilling an additional acre of land. However, this plant-based, nutritional resource is currently just discarded. Having identified this underutilized resource, Zea10 has created proprietary nutritious and delicious food ingredients to create healthy food products.
At its core, Zea10 is a B2B model aiming to disrupt the health and fitness food industry by providing these ingredients to CPG firms to create affordable, healthy, and sustainable products. As part of this model, Zea10 seeks to commit 10 percent of its core business to food-insecure populations, starting in New York City. Each year, an estimated 1.4 million NYC residents, and one in five children, rely on emergency food programs that already struggle to provide enough nutritious food.
In building out this support, Zea10 would like to understand how to best provide nutrition to three major groups (food-insecure children, food-insecure employed adults, and homeless people) using a pilot program. This workshop will be an opportunity to collaborate and ideate on developing an effective pilot strategy. Bring your experience and expertise to create an interdisciplinary session that helps move the needle on hunger!

About Spark Workshops
Spark provides social innovators with an opportunity to explore resources, connections, and potential solutions to help their social ventures. These workshops tap into the collective knowledge within Columbia University and the larger entrepreneurial and social impact community.
Spark is a platform for ventures to make valuable connections, as the audience is a self-selected group interested in the topic area. Ventures are also able to gather ideas through group brainstorming to help them address specific questions or problems within the business organization.
These workshops are free and open to all who are willing to bring their ideas, experience, and connections to help solve social and environmental challenges that social innovators aim to address.
If you are unable to attend this event but would like more information on Spark, please register for our mailing list.
If you would like to suggest a future Spark workshop, please contact: socialenterprise@gsb.columbia.edu.

Air Force Research Lab-Information Directorate (Small Business Matchmaking and Expo)
2019-11-06
Open to the public.
RSVP here.

All day event hosted at the Griffiss Institute, featuring resource presentations, a panel discussion, and a networking match making expo.

Health Tech Assembly Idea Lab Event
2019-11-04 18:00 - 20:00
Open to Columbia students
RSVP here.

Featuring guest speaker and current Columbia Cardiology Fellow Dr. Pierre Elias, HTA’s monthly “Idea Lab” provides an opportunity for students to pitch their projects/ideas so they can receive feedback and recruit new teammates.
When: Monday, November 4th from 6pm to 8pm. Food will be served at 6pm.
Where: Roy and Diana Vagelos Education Center, Room 1402/1403
**On CUIMC campus @ 104 Haven Ave, New York, NY 10032

Application Deadline: Clinton Initiative University
2019-11-04
Open to students.
Apply here.

The Clinton Global Initiative University is looking for students committed to impact to join its next cohort! CGI U is a year-round program that provides students with the tools needed to develop social impact projects through a rigorous curriculum, high-touch mentorship, and a range of funding opportunities.
In addition to year-long engagement opportunities, all accepted students will be invited to CGI U’s first-ever international meeting hosted by President Bill Clinton and Chelsea Clinton at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland from April 17-19, 2020. Students will hear from topic experts, form meaningful connections with one another, and learn how to turn their ideas into action.
Apply by November 4 to join CGI U’s global community of leaders: cgiu.org/apply

Application Deadline: The Columbia Life Science Accelerators
2019-11-04
Open to Columbia faculty.
Apply here.

The Columbia Life Science Accelerators: Lab-to-Market Programs are now accepting pre-proposal applications for their 2019-2020 awards cycle. APPLY HERE by Monday, November 4th at 5 PM.
These programs help translate cutting-edge faculty-led university research out of the lab through project funding, education, and support for interdisciplinary teams working to advance innovative ideas with the potential to positively impact health outcomes.
The three core accelerators are centered around:
Therapeutics/Drug Development

Accelerating Cancer Therapeutics | ACT

www.cancer.columbia.edu | act@cumc.columbia.edu

Translational Therapeutics Resource | TRx

www.irvinginstitute.columbia.edu | TRxResource@columbia.edu
Medical Devices/Technologies/Software

Biomedical Technology Accelerator | BiomedX (formerly Columbia-Coulter Program)

www.ColumbiaBioMedX.com | BiomedX@columbia.edu
To learn more, we invite you to REGISTER HERE for one of the following upcoming informational sessions hosted at various locations throughout Columbia.
Morningside:

Thurs 9/26 12-1pm: BME Conference Room, Engineering Terrace, Rm 353

CUIMC:

Thurs 10/3 10-11am: CUIMC Irving Institute Auditorium Room PH 10-204
Thurs 10/17 12-1pm: CUIMC Cancer Center Auditorium

Data Science Institute Data For Good Series: Professor Sunil K. Agrawal
2019-11-01 12:00 - 13:30
Free, open to the public, and does not require registration.

Friday, November 1, 2019

12:00 PM – 1:30 PM

Northwest Corner Building – Room 1406
550 West 120th Street, 14th Floor
New York, NY 10027

**REGISTRATION IS REQUIRED: PLEASE CLICK HERE TO REGISTER.**

Robotics to Characterize, Retrain, and Restore Human Movements

Neural disorders and old age limit the ability of humans to perform activities of daily living. Robotics can be used to probe the human neuromuscular system and create new pathways to characterize, relearn, or restore functional movements. Dr. Agrawal’s group at Columbia University Robotics and Rehabilitation (ROAR) Laboratory has designed innovative technologies and robots for this purpose. These technologies have been tested on subjects in a variety of studies to understand the human cognitive and neuro-muscular response. Human experiments have targeted patients with stroke, cerebral palsy, Parkinson’s disease, ALS, Vestibular disorders, elderly subjects and others. The talk will provide an overview of some of these technologies and scientific studies performed with them.
Speaker: Sunil K. Agrawal, Ph.D., Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering and Department of Rehabilitation and Regenerative Medicine, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027, USA. (Email: Sunil.Agrawal@columbia.edu, Web: https://roar.me.columbia.edu )
Speaker Biography: Sunil K. Agrawal received a Ph.D. degree in Mechanical Engineering from Stanford University in 1990. He is currently a Professor and Director of Robotics and Rehabilitation (ROAR) Laboratory at Columbia University, located both in engineering and medical campuses of Columbia University. Dr. Agrawal has published more than 500 journal and conference papers, three books, and 14 U.S. patents. He is a Fellow of the ASME and AIMBE. His honors include a NSF Presidential Faculty Fellowship from the White House in 1994, a Bessel Prize from Germany in 2003, and a Humboldt US Senior Scientist Award in 2007. He is a recipient of 2016 Machine Design Award from ASME for “seminal contributions to design of robotic exoskeletons for gait training of stroke patients” and 2016 Mechanisms and Robotics Award from the ASME for “cumulative contributions and being an international leading figure in mechanical design and robotics”. He is a recipient of several Best Paper awards in ASME and IEEE sponsored robotics conferences. He has also held international visiting positions that include Technical University of Stuttgart, Hanyang University in Korea, University of Ulster in Northern Ireland, Biorobotics Institute of SSSA in Pisa, Peking University in China. He has successfully directed 28 PhD student theses and currently supervises the research of 10 PhD students at ROAR laboratory. He is the founding Editor-in-Chief of the journal “Wearable Technologies” from Cambridge University Press.
Website: https://me.columbia.edu
Google Scholar Page:
https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=en&user=zavGyr4AAAAJ&view_op=list_works&sortby=pubdate

Deadline: Video Submissions for SEAS Fast Pitch Competition
2019-11-01
Open to Columbia students and alumni two years from their degree.

Do you have a startup idea? Would you like feedback from CU alumni? Enter the Fast Pitch competition and win money to support your idea. This is a great opportunity to practice and perfect a 60-second pitch of your business to a panel of judges that includes successful Columbia alumni and members of the NYC venture community. $5,000 is at stake! There will be a $2,000 prize pool solely for undergraduates and a $3,000 pool for the best overall pitches. Find out more details here.
Register Here
Event timeline:
Nov 1: Video pitches (drafts) due at midnight, no professional editing required, just a pitch!
Submit online – we will share with a select group of CU alumni.
*Optional, teams who submit videos given feedback and priority to live pitch event
Nov 12: Feedback on videos
Nov 21: Fast Pitch Competition, 5:30PM Davis Auditorium
Video submissions are due by November 1 at midnight; those who submit a video will be given priority to pitch. Please contact Ivy Schultz (ischultz@columbia.edu) with questions.

Application Deadline: Air Force Accelerator Powered by Techstars 2020
2019-10-31
Check out the Techstars website for information about the program and eligibility.
Apply here.

Techstars, the U.S. Air Force, and BAE Systems FAST Labs are proud to announce the opening of applications for the third class of the Air Force Accelerator Powered by Techstars. This year’s interest areas expand beyond previous year’s focus’ of autonomous technologies and AR/VR for training and education to include physical and cybersecurity of bases and installations.

Studio Hours at the Design Studio (Open Collaboration Time)
2019-10-29 16:00 - 19:00, 2019-10-22 04:00 - 19:00
OPEN TO ALL IN THE COLUMBIA COMMUNITY
Do you have an idea and want to get personal design thinking feedback from the Columbia Entrepreneurship Design Studio? During Studio Hours, teams or individuals are invited to discuss their projects or ideas one-on-one with human-centered designers in the Studio. Teams of Columbia affiliates are also welcome to use the studio space for working independently on their entrepreneurial projects.
The Design Studio is located at 645 W 120th Street, Room 430.

Fireside Chat on Mapping Data: How the largest tech firms use your data
2019-10-29 13:00 - 14:00
Open to the Columbia community.
RSVP here.

JOHN BATTELLE – Columbia’s School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA) Senior Research Scholar, Adjunct Professor, Co-Founder & CEO of Recount Media
in conversation with MERIT E. JANOW – Dean, Columbia’s School of International and Public Affairs
on Mapping Data Flows: How the largest technology companies collect, use, and share user information across the internet
Understanding how the largest technology companies collect, use, and share user information across the internet. We’ve transformed the “Big Four” (Apple, Google, Amazon, Facebook) terms of service and data policies — the thousands of lines of code that govern their use of your data — into a database powering an interactive visualization, an initial version of which we invite you to explore and critique.
Researchers associated with this event:
ZOE MARTIN – SIPA MPA
NATASHA BHUTA -SIPA MPA
MATTHEW ALBASSI – MS Data Journalism
VERONICA PENNEY – MS Data Journalism
Lunch will be served.

This event is co-sponsored by SIPA’s TMac, Management Specialization, Tech & Policy Initiative, Entrepreneurship & Public Policy Initiative, Brown Institute for Media Innovation

Columbia Nano Day
2019-10-29
Open to Columbia Faculty.
RSVP here.

Learn how you can use and leverage the Columbia Nano Labs! Columbia Nano Day is an unparalleled opportunity to hear about the innovative and high-impact research conducted by its faculty and industrial users, and learn of new opportunities for becoming engaged and involved. Register here.

Application Deadline: ERA Winter 2020 Accelerator
2019-10-28
Find eligibility criteria and program details here.
Apply here.

ERA invests $100K in seed funding with potential follow-on funding and gives entrepreneurs access to NYC’s largest mentor network of 500+ industry leaders and the strongest alumni network of 190+ companies.
Application Deadline: Oct 28, 2019
Program Start Date: Jan 13, 2020

FinTech Lecture Series - Where on Earth is AI Headed?
2019-10-25 14:00 - 15:30
Free, open to the public, and does not require registration.

Where on Earth is AI Headed?

Friday, October 25, 2019

2:00 PM – Lecture

3:00 PM – Reception

Schapiro CEPSR – Davis Auditorium

530 West 120th Street, 4th Floor
New York, NY 10027

Speaker: Tom M. Mitchell – Founders University Professor, School of Computer Science

Speaker Biography: Tom M. Mitchell is the Founders University Professor in the School of Computer Science at Carnegie Mellon University, where he created the world’s first academic Machine Learning Department. Mitchell’s research explores machine learning theory, algorithms and applications, as well as the impact of AI on society. He has testified to the U.S. Congress several times on AI impacts on society, and he co-chaired the 2017 U.S. National Academy study on “Information Technology, Automation, and the U.S. Workforce.” Mitchell advises a variety of young and old companies internationally on their AI product and business strategies, and his research has been featured in popular press from the New York Times, to CCTV (China’s national television network), to CBS’s 60 Minutes. He is a member of the U.S. National Academy of Engineering, a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and a Fellow and Past President of the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence (AAAI).

Application Deadline: 2019 Global PropTech Awards during NYC Real Estate Tech Week
2019-10-25
For more information on applications and eligibility here.

The Global PropTech Awards  recognize individuals, technologies and organizations that have gone above and beyond to positively impact next-generation #PropTech.
The nomination period opens today, September 26th and closes October 25th. Finalists will be announced November 6th and Award Winners will be presented at a ceremony during NYC Real Estate Tech Week’s flagship event, MIPIM PropTech NYC.
For more information about the Global PropTech Awards visit www.realestatetechweek.nyc.

Application Deadline: Verizon 5G Retail Prototyping Challenge, $5k award
2019-10-25
Explore the future of NYC retail with 5G technologies. The 5G Retail Prototyping Challenge is a 7-week prototyping sprint in partnership with NYC Media Lab and Verizon 5G Labs. The program is now recruiting two core participants:

Startup companies: $10,000 award. Apply to expand your knowledge of frontier tech and user test your products and services with a small business in NYC. Teams will receive access to co-working spaces and mentorship from Verizon 5G Labs engineers.

Faculty & Students: $5,000 award. If you focus on data, engineering, spatial computing, design, or other emerging technology areas on campus, this is an exciting opportunity to build and develop prototypes with Verizon’s 5G network. You’ll be paired a startup team and local retailer to support small business growth in NYC.

Application Deadline: Friday, October 25, 2019. Apply here and RSVP for info sessions.

Event with founder, President, and Chief Scientific Officer of Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, George Yancopoulos, MD, PhD
2019-10-23 17:00 - 19:00
Open to all Columbians.
Space is limited; RSVP here.

Please join the Biomedical Innovation club next Wednesday, October 23rd, 2019 at 5PM for a discussion with the founder, President, and Chief Scientific Officer of Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, George Yancopoulos, MD, PhD. Regeneron is a leading biotechnology company that has developed numerous technologies to help patients with eye disease, allergic and inflammatory diseases, cancer, cardiovascular and metabolic diseases, infectious diseases, pain and rare diseases, and is currently valued at over 30 billion USD (read more about Regeneron here). Dr. Yancopoulos will share details on his life and career as a physician, scientist, and entrepreneur and answer any questions you may have. Read more about him below and here! Pizza will be provided and space is limited so please register ASAP here!

Columbia Giving Day - Click to Support Columbia Entrepreneurs!
2019-10-23
Give to innovators changing the world today!

It’s our mission to help all innovators and entrepreneurs across Columbia with funding, programming, and pedagogy. That’s why we say that a gift to Columbia Entrepreneurship is a gift to all Columbia founders, regardless of the school they attend—including Barnard and Teachers College. Because it takes more than grit and brilliance to launch a new venture, we offer financial help though competitive grants, guidance at the Columbia Startup Lab, and fieldwork programs that help our founders use the tools of innovation in real-world settings, solving real-world problems in the markets they serve. Explore our areas of interest to learn how your gift makes an immediate difference to Columbia entrepreneurs. Give a hand up to Columbia startups on Columbia Giving Day!

Application Deadline: SBIR (Small Business Innovation Research) Funding
2019-10-23
The DOD SBIR 19.3 and STTR 19.C Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) topics are open until October 23.
AFWERX has open innovation topics, with (conditional) fund-matching for VCs. Opportunity to put your data science tech on the Joint Strike Fighter, largest defense program in global history.
Learn more here.

2019 Application Deadline: Design for Social Innovation
2019-10-18
The applications for DFSI 2019 have closed. Please join Columbia Entrepreneurship’s mailing list to learn when applications for 2020 are open!

Design for Social Innovation
A project-based initiative and course aimed at solving complex global problems through design
Design For Social Innovation (DFSI) is a project-based initiative where Columbia University students and faculty support social enterprises and nonprofit organizations to solve complex, ambiguous global problems through human-centered design. The initiative combines an interdisciplinary cohort of exceptional students, cutting edge research, design + passionate organizations to deliver a positive impact. The initiative is a collaboration between Columbia Entrepreneurship’s Design Studio and the Columbia School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA).

This a 3.0 credit course offered through SIPA and open to cross-registration from all Columbia Schools.
A total of 24 students will be selected via an application and interview process.
Students will apply for a specific project and will work in groups of four with their client.
The Course will be held in the Design Studio on Wednesdays from 11:00am-12:50pm in the Spring.

Clients (details below):

Aga Khan Foundation (Youth and Employment – Kyrgyzstan)
Computer Science for ALL (K12 Ed Tech – US)
General Assembly (Technology Training to Communities in Need – NYC)
Harlem Children’s Zone (Harlem Communities – NYC)
Mobdiun: Creative Youth (Youth and Deradicalization- Tunisia)
Witness (Human Rights and Media – Global)

(All airfare and lodging will be covered by Columbia for students accepted to international projects)

Spring 2020 Clients
Aga Khan Foundation (Youth and Employment – Kyrgyzstan)

Challenge: How Might We Better Connect Youth to E-Commerce Opportunities in Kyrgyzstan?
Since 2002, the Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN) has been supporting the establishment of institutions and programmes that help develop an economically dynamic, politically stable and intellectually and culturally vibrant Kyrgyz Republic. These include the main campus of the University of Central Asia in Naryn; the Osh School; the First MicroFinance Company; the Kyrgyz Investment Credit Bank; various initiatives supporting 310,000 people in the Osh and Naryn oblasts; and activities of the Aga Khan Music Initiative to support broad-based music and arts education.
Connect and retain talented Kyrgyz youth in the growing e-services sector. Columbia students will collaborate with the Aga Khan Foundation and the affiliated Mountain Societies Development Programme (MSDSP) to interview Kyrgyz youth and e-service leaders in Kyrgyzstan. Columbia students will also research current e-services trends in Kyrgyzstan and beyond. Based on the interviews and related research, Columbia students will articulate a number of challenges and opportunities. One primary goal will be to understand how students are or are not prepared for e-service jobs. Another major goal will be to understand how youth in Kyrgyzstan make decisions about what jobs they take and careers they pursue. Finally, Columbia students and their local partners will develop and test prototype solutions to these opportunities and challenges.
*
Computer Science for ALL (K12 Ed Tech -NYC)

Challenge: Scaling K-12 Education Technology and CS Programming Across US — how might we expand reach without sacrificing quality?
Computer Science for All (CSforALL)’s mission is to make high-quality computer science an integral part of the educational experience of all K-12 students and teachers in the US and to support student pathways to college and career success.
CSforALL has supported some 150 school districts across the United States — primarily in urban areas. This programming includes consulting with district and state level teams to create state level plans for integrating CS education into K-12, thinking about lens of equity and serving “all” and maintaining rigor and high quality in the process. This requires significant support on the team at CSforALL. There is significant demand from districts across the US and globally but CSforALL’s capacity for response is challenged. How might they scale and reach every district that needs them without reducing quality of programming?
More Information on CSForALL’s District Support Programming: SCRIPT — the Strategic CSforALL Resource & Implementation Planning Tool — is a framework to guide teams of district administrators, school leaders, and educators through a series of collaborative visioning, self-assessment and goal-setting exercises to create or expand upon a computer science education implementation plan for their students. School districts and other local education organizations are the unit of change toward creating rigorous, inclusive and sustainable K-12 computer science education. The SCRIPT supports systems-level change by addressing five key areas: (1) Leadership, (2) Teacher Capacity and Development, (3) Curriculum and Materials Selection and Refinement, (4) Partners, and (5) Community.
*
General Assembly (Technology Training to NYC Communities in Need)

Challenge: How might GA connect its most resource challenged students to public benefits and other resources that will support them on a trajectory towards job & economic security?
General Assembly (GA) is a technology company representing the future of work. It is a pioneer in education and career transformation, specializing in today’s most in-demand skills. GA has 20 offices in 6 countries and 35,000 alumni.
GA is launching a new program aimed at bridging the digital divide and ensuring that those left out of the digital revolution are fully integrated. Through an impact investment fund, GA will be able to provide access to its programming to communities in need — both those on public assistance and those coming out of the prison system (for non-violent offenses). GA is interested in working with a team of students to get real time feedback on how best to access and scale public benefits so they can reach exponentially more students and ensure that these students are able to successfully complete programs & be on a trajectory towards job and economic security.
*
Harlem Children’s Zone (Harlem Communities – NYC)

Challenge: How Might We Better Serve Harlem Families Who are Not Accessing HCZ’s Resources?
Harlem Children’s Zone (HCZ) is a pioneering nonprofit organization committed to ending generational poverty in Central Harlem.
Historically, HCZ has offered several opportunities for assessment, referral and in-person direct services (e.g., legal consultation, benefit screening, financial counseling, tax preparation, adult education courses) through various programs, including Community Pride and Single Stop. Over the years, these programs have faced various challenges such as discontinued funding, duplication of efforts, or leadership changes. It’s important for us to continue serving the adult population in Harlem, but we wish to define our priorities and align our resources to deliver services in the most effective and efficient manner.

Clarify the priorities for direct community services (by talking to the customer)
Design how we will deliver these services using existing resources
Create a financial model to demonstrate cost-effectiveness

*
Mobdiun: Creative Youth (Youth and Deradicalization- Tunisia)

Challenge: How Might We Create a Scalable and Sustainable Model for Youth Development across Tunisia?
Mobdiun – Creative Youth is a social impact organization founded in 2016. Mobdiun, meaning ‘creatives’ in Arabic, inspires young girls and boys, living in marginalized communities where the Tunisian Revolution was sparked and are today at risk of violent extremism, to become the peaceful and creative change leaders of their communities Mobdiun uses arts, sports and technology in order to help amplify their voices and to contribute to their social, economic and political inclusion.
In its short-term strategy, Mobdiun proposes to implement a comprehensive pilot project in Kram Ouest in order to serve the 9.000 teenagers aged 10 – 19 who live in the area. In its longer-term strategy, Mobdiun wants to scale to similar at-risk working-class neighborhoods and potentially impact 500.000 young people from the same age group.
Mobidun staff will be leading teens through a four-month Leadership Academy workshop where they will learn the basics of human centered design and will run a design challenge around youth and civic engagement. Youth teams will create civic action groups and will explore, reframe, generate and prototype solutions to problems that they encounter on a daily basis. By creating solutions for their after school programs at the Mobdiun Youth House, teens will actively participate in positive leadership and learn valuable skills around project management and creating deliverables.
Columbia students will work with Mobdiun from January-May 2020 on Youth oriented policy in marginalized neighborhoods, Creating a guiding framework and a “manual” procedure for the youth centers that formalizes and standardizes the best practices for the youth; ie, welcome procedure in the youth houses located in marginalized neighborhoods, services that should be offered depending on youth situations, the best practices and benchmarks of the policies and procedures of advanced countries. This will be a direct continuation of the Fall Leadership Academy project. One goal will be to convince the Ministry of Youth to endorse this project, supervise it, and commit to adopt it in a newly elected government. Students will create a prototype national public policy for youth in critically underserved areas.

*
Witness (Human Rights and Media – NYC)

Challenge: How might we enable more people around the world to harness the power of video effectively in their fight for human rights?
About WITNESS: WITNESS.org is a global human rights organization that has partnered with 420+ groups in over 130 countries since its founding in 1992. Specialized in the use of video for the defense and promotion of human rights, WITNESS has supported partners using video to expose war crimes, protect indigenous land rights, stop police violence, defend immigrants, fight hate speech, and many other issues. With staff based around the world, WITNESS is constantly learning about new tactics –and gaps– in the global field of video-for-change. Because WITNESS believes these learnings don’t belong to us –but rather to the movement– the organization sees sharing what we’re learning as an ethical obligation and a defining aspect of our ethos as an organization.
About the project:
Over the years, WITNESS has ramped up efforts to make what we’re learning more accessible to more people who could benefit from this knowledge (see, for example: the Video for Change book, published in 2005 and available online in six languages; and the Video Advocacy curriculum, launched in 2007 with 37 sessions covering everything from storytelling to interviewing survivors of abuse to creating an overarching strategy for advocacy with video.) We’ve done this by putting our curriculum online, creating social-media derivatives in several languages, responding to direct events like protests, hiring locally-based staff, organizing opportunties for activists to connect and swap tactics, working with partners to tailor and localize different bits of the guidance, and more. Today our online Library is home to over 180 training resources (including videos, guides, tipsheets) in more than 27 languages – all available for free. We’ve seen activists download, add to, remix and then share these materials with their own networks, a testament to their usefulness. Much progress has been made in ensuring more people access this guidance, but yet we’re only scratching the surface.
Based on this assumption, WITNESS recently created a new Learning & Sharing program to craft a long-term vision for how we could better learn and share. In the WITNESS context this could mean, for example, assessing which learnings from a local context (like protests in Rio, for example) could have global relevance when new protests erupt in Hong Kong or Mexico; or, in another scenario, how learnings about collecting visual evidence of illegal deforestation in the Amazon could be shared with indigenous communities and activists facing similar challenges in Malaysia. This work seeks not to copy-paste solutions, but to avoid duplication of mistakes and build on a global field of existing knowledge to help activists use video more effectively, strategically, ethically and safely.
For this partnership we’re looking to learn more about how organizations and movements learn. What are the best models, methodologies, workflows and practices for LEARNING in the human rights sector and beyond? We’ve identified 80+ entities – from corporations like the Cheesecake Factory to peers like New Tactics for Human Rights to Firefighter Trade Associations and more – and we’d like to scan their tactics, approaches to help us understand which of these strategies could benefit those using video for justice and human rights. Help us!

Third Thursday: Urban Works India Launch!
2019-10-17 17:30 - 19:00
Students and alumni 5 years from graduation.
RSVP here.

In partnership with the Columbia Global Center | Mumbai, SEAS Entrepreneurship is launching a new track in the Columbia Venture Competition, The Urban Works India Innovation Challenge! This year, we are seeking applications from innovators and entrepreneurs who are passionate about producing viable and interdisciplinary tech-based solutions for transforming 21st century cities in India into sustainable and safe work environments.
All ideas are welcome! You do not need to have previous startup experience to join. Alumni 5 years past graduation are welcome enter the competition.

Come join us on Oct 17 at 5:30 pm for the kickoff event.
You will hear from:
Faculty lead, Trish Culligan, Civil Engineer, Co-founder of Data Science Institute, advisor to many green infrastructure projects
Prof John Kymissis: Electrical Engineer, multiple startup founder and advisor
Last year’s winning team, BinIt! (current SEAS and CC students)
Register here.

Information Session: Columbia Life Science Accelerators
2019-10-17 12:00 - 13:00
Open to Columbia faculty.
Apply here.
This information session is being held on the CUIMC Campus.

The Columbia Life Science Accelerators: Lab-to-Market Programs are now accepting pre-proposal applications for their 2019-2020 awards cycle. APPLY HERE by Monday, November 4th at 5 PM.
These programs help translate cutting-edge faculty-led university research out of the lab through project funding, education, and support for interdisciplinary teams working to advance innovative ideas with the potential to positively impact health outcomes.
The three core accelerators are centered around:
Therapeutics/Drug Development

Accelerating Cancer Therapeutics | ACT

www.cancer.columbia.edu | act@cumc.columbia.edu

Translational Therapeutics Resource | TRx

www.irvinginstitute.columbia.edu | TRxResource@columbia.edu
Medical Devices/Technologies/Software

Biomedical Technology Accelerator | BiomedX (formerly Columbia-Coulter Program)

www.ColumbiaBioMedX.com | BiomedX@columbia.edu
To learn more, we invite you to REGISTER HERE for one of the following upcoming informational sessions hosted at various locations throughout Columbia.
Morningside:

Thurs 9/26 12-1pm: BME Conference Room, Engineering Terrace, Rm 353

CUIMC:

Thurs 10/3 10-11am: CUIMC Irving Institute Auditorium Room PH 10-204
Thurs 10/17 12-1pm: CUIMC Cancer Center Auditorium

Defense Innovation Meetup
2019-10-15 18:00 - 20:30
Open to the public
RSVP here

Army Applications Lab hosts Air Force Accelerator Powered by Techstars

Learn about the Air Force Accelerator Powered by Techstars and whether your company could be the right fit for this innovative program

About this Event

On October 15, the Army Applications Laboratory (AAL) will host Warren Katz, the Managing Director of the Air Force Accelerator Powered by Techstars.
The Air Force Accelerator Powered by Techstars recently opened applications for its third class, which will begin in 2020. Warren and his team are looking for new solutions from the commercial industry, including autonomous technologies, merged reality for training and education, and physical or cybersecurity capabilities.
Join us in Flatiron to learn more about the Air Force’s needs as well as how to apply to join the program.
This event is free and open to the public, but space is limited.
About the Army Applications Laboratory
The Army Applications Laboratory (AAL) was established in 2018, along with the stand-up of the Army Futures Command (AFC), to act as a concierge service across the Army’s Future Force Modernization Enterprise (FFME) and the broader commercial marketplace of ideas. AAL’s mission is to align innovative solutions and technologies with Army problems, resources, and programs to rapidly discover, validate, and transition technology applications in support of Army modernization. In other words, AAL exists to connect ideas from a broad range of solvers — startups, entrepreneurs, tech companies, VCs, universities, research labs, and more — with the right people and organizations within the Army to close capability gaps and field novel solutions.
About the Air Force Accelerator Powered by Techstars
Kicking off in 2018, the inaugural Techstars Autonomous Technology Accelerator with the U.S. Air Force, which renamed and expanded in 2019 to the Air Force Accelerator Powered by Techstars, was an experiment by the Air Force in establishing closer ties to innovative early-stage startups with commercially viable products and making it easier to do business with the Air Force. The 2018 and 2019 programs yielded 20 companies that have won more than $14M in non-dilutive contracts for prototypes and products and are on the verge of fielding state-of-the-art capabilities to warfighters.

FAQs:
Why should I register?
Though the event is free and open to the public, space is limited. So, be sure to save your spot!
Where is the event being held?
The event is being held at Army Application Laboratory’s New York office -155 5th Avenue on the 6th Floor. The entrance is to the left of The White Company.
How can I learn more about the host?
Visit aal.army or techstars.com to learn more.

Studio Hours at the Design Studio (Open Collaboration Time)
2019-10-15 16:00 - 19:00
OPEN TO ALL IN THE COLUMBIA COMMUNITY
Do you have an idea and want to get personal design thinking feedback from the Columbia Entrepreneurship Design Studio? During Studio Hours, teams or individuals are invited to discuss their projects or ideas one-on-one with human-centered designers in the Studio. Teams of Columbia affiliates are also welcome to use the studio space for working independently on their entrepreneurial projects.
If you want to sign up for a specific half-hour time slot, register here.
The Design Studio is located at 645 W 120th Street, Room 430.

The Rockefeller Foundation-Acumen Student Social Innovation Challenge
2019-10-15
Eligibility requirements and applications here.

Develop innovative solutions to problems associated with poverty and pitch for a chance to win up to $20,000 plus an invite to a community of experienced entrepreneurs and investors to help you turn your idea into an impactful enterprise.
