Project Mentor: Khanjan Mehta, Creative Inquiry
2024 Impact Fellows:
Mahir Ashab Enan '27
Ibtihal Gassem '27
Vini Jaiswal '27
Diya Pandey '27
Project Description:
How might we better prepare college students in India to leverage science, technology, and innovation to build sustainable futures?
The Humanitarian Design and Social Enterprise (HDSE) School is a transformative educational platform designed for college students in India and beyond, empowering them to cultivate the skills, mindsets, and toolkits necessary to harness their education for sustainable social impact. This hands-on, hearts-on learning journey is anchored in the principles of creative inquiry and the practice of humanitarian design and social entrepreneurship. The goal is to engage students in authentic, real-world projects where they collaboratively develop sustainable solutions that address the needs of vulnerable populations worldwide.
The HDSE team employs a two-pronged approach:
- The HDSE Virtual Academy offers a comprehensive online curriculum (on Honor Education) featuring over 50 just-in-time learning modules that guide both students and educators through the social innovation journey. From identifying actionable opportunities and co-designing innovative solutions to testing sustainable business models and articulating the human impact of their work through evidence-based storytelling, this academy prepares participants for real-world challenges. In the coming year, the team will refine the curriculum, piloting it in India through the Anveshana competition framework and in the Philippines via the National Service Training Program, while conducting rigorous, IRB-approved research to further enhance and scale the virtual academy.
- The HDSE Summer School provides an immersive in-person experience on Agastya’s Innovation Campus in Kuppam, India, coinciding with GSIF fieldwork in May and June 2024. This program will unite nonprofit leaders and students from across Southern India for a week of inspiration, collaboration, and social innovation. Crafted by GSIF students for their peers, the Summer School will cultivate a community of change-makers and social entrepreneurs equipped to confront the challenges of tomorrow with creativity and resilience.
All majors are encouraged to apply. We are particularly seeking students who are passionate about sustainable development, social innovation, transformative education, and curricular design.
