Impact Acceleration Lab

Catalog description

Entrepreneurial ventures have a unique role to play in addressing major challenges like climate change because their ability to attract capital and rapidly scale creates the potential for impact at a scale that cannot be easily matched by governments and non-profit sector organizations. This class offers students the chance to contribute directly to such efforts by working on focused projects with real early-stage startups. To this end, the class brings together three distinct communities: Startup founders; students, and; professional mentors (senior industry, investing, and content area specialists) to collaborate in ways that have the potential to advance real change. NOTE: The lab in Fall 2026 will focus on ventures that are working in various industries, but with a shared focus on developing innovative approaches to address climate change and environmental sustainability. You do not need to have a background in climate or sustainability, just an interest in learning in these domains. Projects will be defined by the startup founder(s) in collaboration with the course instructor.