Do you have an idea for a business hidden somewhere in your notes app? Have you and a friend plotted out the next big startup but find yourself stuck on what to do next?
Start here to turn that idea into a reality.
The LaunchPad Ideas Competition could give you the funding and support you need to see if you really might be onto something.
The competition is completely virtual, hosted now through October 21st, where you apply to compete in one of 4 tracks: Social and Climate Impact: sustainability, education, human rights, poverty alleviation, racial and social justice, etc. Health & Life Sciences: biotech, health & medical science, healthcare Consumer Products & Services General
UB’s Blackstone LaunchPad has been granted $4,000 to award to students as part of the LaunchPad Ideas Competition.
The competition is completely virtual,hosted now through October 21st, where students apply to compete in one of 4 tracks:
Social and Climate Impact: sustainability, education, human rights, poverty alleviation, racial and social justice, etc.
Health & Life Sciences: biotech, health & medical science, healthcare
Consumer Products & Services
General
The winners from each of the 4 tracks will received $1,000 and invitation to represent UB in the network round where they have an opportunity to compete for $10,000 in the various tracks.
I’m reaching out to invite your team to support this initiative by:
Leveraging your listserves, newsletters, and social media to amplify this opportunity for students; and
Make available any opportunities to engage with students through pop-up events, tabling, and/or passive digital/static signage.
This is a great opportunity to provide our students an avenue to impact change. Bonus – if UB recruits the greatest number of ideas submitted, we’ll win $10,000 for our campus and most importantly bragging rights.
We’re competing with schools in the following bracket:
University of Central Florida
Texas A&M University
New York University UT Austin
USC UCLA
College of Southern Nevada
UT Arlington
UC Berkeley
Temple University
UC Davis
UC San Diego
UC Irvine
University at Buffalo
UT San Antonio
UT Dallas
Thanks much for your consideration and I welcome your ideas to partner with UB’s LaunchPad in hosting this program. Please contact me to coordinate efforts.
The University at Buffalo is taking bold steps to enact climate action across our university and region. Our award winning and nationally recognized Climate Action Plan sets for an innovative framework to advance this work and at its heart it calls on students to play an active role in helping us develop solutions. In a few short weeks teams of students will be working to build innovative solutions within UB’s 10-in-10 framework and then pitch those ideas in mid-June. During this sprint, they will meet virtually daily from Monday through Friday at 4-5 pm ET where they will hear from experts on numerous topics.
I have attached promotional materials for digital signage and social media. Please let me know if you have any questions. More information on the challenge can be found here: 10 in 10 Design Challenge.
Deadline for students to is May 31st. This opportunity is sponsored by the Making it Happen Committee of UB’s Climate Action Plan, and hosted by Blackstone LaunchPad and UB Sustainability. There are prizes awarded for 1st, 2nd and 3rd place at the end of the program.
Content to share with your students included below – copy & paste, forward:
Engage in UB’s 10 in 10 Climate Action Design Challenge: June 1st – 18th
The University at Buffalo is taking bold steps to enact climate action across our university and region. Our award winning and nationally recognized Climate Action Plan sets for an innovative framework to advance this work and at its heart it calls on students to play an active role in helping us develop solutions.
In this 3-week program, students will work to build innovative solutions within UB’s 10-in-10 framework to advance an idea through learning sessions, workshops, coaching and a pitch presentation to compete for prizes. A virtual high-impact experience that will meet daily from Monday through Friday at 4-5 pm ET.
Are you interested in applying your entrepreneurial interest and skills to the world of Esports? Check out the Esports Design Challenge!Program Start Date: April 3rd at 4pm via zoom
Set your ideas in motion with Blackstone LaunchPad powered by Techstars
Join us for upcoming workshops and find us on Facebook for workshop details. Looking for a teammate to help with your venture? In the past, students have often scrambled last minute for teammates that would add value or fill a need. We have developed a Blackstone LaunchPad Match Board to help match students with teams. This can also be used for students that want to participate on a team, but do not have an idea of their own.You can also sign up for a venture coaching appointment to talk about and get help with your idea. Our venture coaches do not take any ownership of your idea and everything you say is 100% confidential. Call 716-645-8111 or stop in to 220 Student Union any time!
Blackstone LaunchPad powered by Techstars entrepreneurship program helps University at Buffalo students succeed.Find us on Facebook! 220 Student Union Buffalo, New York 14260 United States (716) 645-8111 If you no longer wish to receive our emails, click here: Unsubscribe
UnsubscribeBlackstone LaunchPad at UB 220 Student Union Buffalo, New York 14260 United States (716) 645-8111
I’m writing to inform you of an exciting opportunity for your students at LaunchPad called Innovation Sprint! This program is a competition that allows students to apply the skills they are learning to help a real-world problem.
This semester we are challenging students to work with locally-based company IIMAK to come up with innovative customer experience to yield customer loyalty and overall increase in sales. This is an opportunity to work with industry professionals on solutions that can be applied in real-time.
Not only is this a great opportunity for students to apply what they’re learning in class to tangible situations, it also gives students access to professional contacts, networking. This is a resume building experience and has the potential to turn into an internship or job with this company. The winning student/team will also win a cash prize!
The company is looking for smart, driven, passionate students to bring innovative ideas and solutions to help differentiate them in a competitive market. We would greatly appreciate if you could kindly share this opportunity’s information to your students!
Any questions, please reach out to launchpadub@buffalo.edu or follow our social media channels for more information.
Sprint to this opportunity, join the sprint kick-off meeting with IIMAK!
IIMAK is looking for smart, driven, passionate students to bring innovative ideas and solutions to help differentiate them in a competitive market. This is an opportunity to work with industry professionals on solutions that can be applied in real-time. All UG/Grad students from all academic disciplines are encouraged to participate.
I write to you in your capacity as the Carnegie Mellon Honors Program coordinator at the University of Buffalo to invite your students to compete at our Spring Novice Collegiate Quizbowl Tournament, which will be hosted online by Carnegie Mellon University on Saturday, March 27. This tournament will feature both morning and afternoon rounds of competition between teams of students from local universities and will be conducted entirely online.
Quizbowl is a bit like a team version of the TV show Jeopardy! (most big winners on the show have been quizbowl players) with more academically rigorous questions. Teams of students from colleges around the world compete to buzz-in to answer tossup questions and then collaborate to answer bonus questions across a wide variety of topics, from Literature and History to Science and the Fine Arts. You can see a sample round of questions here.
Any intellectually curious students or trivia fans would likely enjoy playing quizbowl (many may have played similar competitions in high school) and the collegiate quizbowl community would love to welcome new teams and players. Please let me know if you think there might be interest at University of Buffalo to send a team or two to our event or if you have any questions about quizbowl!
Feel free to forward this email on to anyone that you think might be interested, including students interested in competing or a faculty/staff member interested in helping to organize a team.
Do you love trivia? Join Student Engagement the third Tuesday of every month for a night of trivia and fun! Hosted by our Student Engagement Ambassadors, Trivia Tuesdays will focus on a new theme each month! Grab your popcorn, roommates, and friends and test your knowledge! Register on UBLinked
The 10th Annual Honors College “LIFE RAFT DEBATE” will be on Wednesday, March 3rd at 6:15 pm live on Zoom! Join us for this annual tradition as some of your favorite Professors comically debate for your vote to “rebuild” society!
What is a Life Raft Debate you ask? A fictitious nuclear event has occurred and we the audience are on a life raft preparing to float away to safety but we have room for one more person…an academic! Watch as faculty from multiple disciplines argue in intense and sometimes hilarious, fashion for your vote.
Whether it’s an app, website or software that makes life a little easier- A medical device or technology that could save lives- Or a sustainable, scalable social innovation for the good of the community…
We want you to pitch it!
What will you win? All applicants will gain valuable entrepreneurial skills, networking opportunities and compete for one of two prizes:
First Place – $52,000total value $25,000 seed funding plus in-kind services (accounting, legal, office space, business development and human resource services) valued at more than $27,000
How do I apply? 1. Fill out our online application by 11:59 p.m., Sunday, February 7, 2021 2. Get help by signing up for a confidential venture coaching appointment to perfect your pitch! Venture coaches available at calendly.com/launchpadcoaching 3. Applicants will be invited to sign up for a pitch time on Thursday, February 11 or Friday, February 12. 4. Pitch deck template available at mgt.buffalo.edu/panasci Eligibility: Panasci is open to teams led by undergrad or graduate students, PhDs or post-docs from any department at UB. Additional team members need not be UB affiliated. No prototype required to apply. Find the full rules here. Email Alex at eacleary@buffalo.edu with any questions.
Do you have the leadership skills to outsmart the imposter? Prove you have what it takes by working together with your crewmates in this virtual escape room!
