July 6, 2026
Swello Team Advances New Low-Cost Design for Dysphagia Monitoring in Kazakhstan
For people with dysphagia, a sip of water or a bite of food can carry risks most people never think about. The swallowing disorder, often associated with stroke, neurological conditions, or age, can make eating and drinking difficult and create a need for ongoing monitoring and care. Swello, a Global Social Impact Fellowship project at Lehigh University, is working to improve dysphagia care in Kazakhstan through a new design rooted in local resources and clinical...
July 2, 2026
2026 GSIF Kazakhstan Fieldwork Advances Research, Partnerships and Social Impact
Six Global Social Impact Fellowship teams, plus one Sustainable Futures Fellowship team, traveled to Almaty, Kazakhstan from May 16–30 to advance projects focused on a wide range of social sectors including education, health, sustainability, research capacity and technology-driven social impact. With 30 students and four faculty mentors, Khanjan Mehta, Dhruv Seshadri, Steven McIntosh and Joseph Menicucci, this year’s Kazakhstan fieldwork represented the largest single travel group in the history of Lehigh’s Global Social Impact Fellowship...
June 29, 2026
Mindful Steps Launches Online Platform to Help Lehigh Community Find Restorative Walking Routes
Finding time to step away during a busy day can be difficult. On Lehigh’s hilly, sprawling campus, even a short walk can feel easier to skip than to plan. A Campus Social Impact Fellowship project is helping make that choice simpler. Mindful Steps into the Forest recently launched “Mindful Steps,” an online platform ( https://forestmood-walking.vercel.app/) that helps students, faculty and staff find safe, accessible, and healthy walking routes across Lehigh’s large, sprawling campus. The platform...
June 23, 2026
Lehigh Teams Explore the Human Side of Innovation in the Bay Area
At the center of today’s technology transformations are human questions about work, access, well-being and opportunity. This summer, 18 Lehigh University Impact Fellows traveled to the San Francisco Bay Area for two weeks to explore those questions through their Silicon Valley Social Impact Fellowship fieldwork. The five projects, Bay Area Food Connect, The Human Edge, Harmony in the Hustle, Fostering New Futures, and The Ethics of the New AI Workforce, worked with partners across the...
June 15, 2026
Lehigh’s GSIF Fellows Invent Wearable Device to Track Parkinson’s Tremors
For patients with Parkinson’s disease, tremors can change throughout the day. A short visit with a clinician may capture only a small part of what a patient experiences, leaving doctors to rely on patient recollection, brief physical tests and subjective reports when making decisions about medication and care. TremorTrack, a Global Social Impact Fellowship project at Lehigh University mentored by Dhruv R. Seshadri, assistant professor of bioengineering, is developing a low-cost wearable device and digital...
June 9, 2026
HDSE Leadership Intensive Expands to Kazakhstan Through Lehigh-AlmaU Partnership
Lehigh University and Almaty Management University partnered to host the Humanitarian Design and Social Enterprise (HDSE) Leadership Intensive in Almaty, Kazakhstan, bringing together students, faculty and emerging changemakers for an immersive, hands-on experience in entrepreneurial leadership, innovation and social impact. The program took place in May 2026 in two cohorts. The first cohort convened from May 19–23, followed by a second cohort from May 25–29. Collectively, the cohorts brought together 53 undergraduate and graduate students...
May 12, 2026
Lehigh Students Build Portable Space for Political Dialogue
Beyond Words, A Campus Social Impact Fellowship team is using art, design and portable furniture to create new spaces for dialogue across political differences. Political dialogue on a college campus does not always have to start with a microphone, a debate stage or a formal discussion. Through Beyond Words: Making Space for Political Dialogue, a Campus Social Impact Fellowship project which started in January 2026, Lehigh students and faculty are exploring how art, architecture, civic...
May 5, 2026
What are Impact Fellows most excited about for 2026 fieldwork?
Creative Inquiry hosted its 2026 Fieldwork Prep Retreat this past Sunday, bringing Impact Fellows together as they prepare to advance real-world projects and create meaningful impact this summer. This summer, 115 Impact Fellows will conduct fieldwork across five locations: Sierra Leone, Kazakhstan, the Philippines, India and Silicon Valley. They will work alongside community partners, faculty mentors and peers to advance impact-focused projects across global health, sustainability, education, technology and social innovation. Before they head into...
April 7, 2026
Predicting the Flu Like the Weather: Lehigh Students Build FluCast
When flu and other respiratory illnesses spread across a college campus, the impact is immediate. Students miss class, fall behind on assignments and, in some cases, face greater health risks. Yet many campuses lack a timely, accessible way to communicate what is happening and what students should do next. A Campus Social Impact Fellowship project, From Weathercasts to Healthcasts: A Campus Framework for Influenza Communication (FluCast), is working to close that gap at Lehigh University...
April 2, 2026
Lehigh launches new entrepreneurial leadership program in Brazil
Lehigh University launched a new entrepreneurial leadership program in Brazil, convening students, faculty, and professionals from across the country for an intensive, hands-on experience in innovation and social impact. The initiative was made possible through support from Fulbright Brazil and its Modernization of Undergraduate Education (PMG) program, which advances experiential and globally engaged learning across Brazilian universities. One of Brazil’s premier higher education institutions, the Universidade do Vale do Rio dos Sinos (UNISINOS) in São...
March 19, 2026
Faculty Spotlight: Dhruv Seshadri, assistant professor of bioengineering
Faculty Spotlight: Dhruv Seshadri, assistant professor of bioengineering Engineering with Purpose Why did you choose to lead Global Social Impact Fellowship projects? Dhruv Seshadri leads two Global Social Impact Fellowship projects in Kazakhstan, TremorTrack and Swello, focused on wearable monitoring systems for Parkinson’s disease and post-stroke dysphagia. The work aligns with his research and his belief that meaningful global engagement begins with humility and long-term partnership, which is central to Lehigh’s Creative Inquiry approach. Seshadri...
March 5, 2026
Almaty Management University Delegation Visit Advances Strategic Partnership with Lehigh University
Lehigh University recently welcomed a delegation from Almaty Management University (AlmaU), a leading higher education institution in Almaty, Kazakhstan, for a three-day visit to advance a new phase of collaboration between the two universities. The AlmaU delegation included Dr. Sholpan Tazabek, vice-rector for global partnerships; Arman Komekbayev, dean of the School of Digital Technologies and Economics; Dr. Zhaniya Khaibullina, director of the Sustainable Development Center; and Dr. Meruyert Seidumanova, research assistant professor in the School...
February 27, 2026
Southern Lehigh Middle School STEAM Expo Connects Students with Innovation and Community
More than 300 students, families and community members filled Southern Lehigh Middle School on Thursday evening for the school’s fourth annual STEAM Expo, a growing showcase of science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics in action. What began as a response to families’ desire for deeper connections to STEM fields has evolved into a vibrant, multidisciplinary event that bridges classrooms with colleges, industry and community partners. “The STEAM Expo was initially sparked by listening to our...
February 10, 2026
Lehigh Students Step Into Global Leadership at Entrepreneurial Intensive
Lehigh Students Step Into Global Leadership at Entrepreneurial Intensive Impact Fellows and Sustainable Futures Fellows reflect on leadership, complexity, and responsibility Leadership takes shape through experience and reflection. For nearly 200 Lehigh University students, it became immediate and personal during the Global Entrepreneurial Leadership (GEL) Retreat, a three-day experience that challenged them to reflect on how leadership shapes decisions, responsibility, and long-term impact. Co-hosted by the Lee Iacocca Institute for Global Leadership and Creative Inquiry...
January 15, 2026
Impact Fellows are using storytelling to build stronger school communities
Socioemotional learning is gaining traction in schools as a response to growing concerns about student behavioral challenges and their wellbeing and flourishing. In the Bethlehem Area School District, the Beyond Books team, a Lehigh Valley Social Impact Fellowship project, is bringing this approach into classrooms at both Donegan Elementary School and Broughal Middle School. The team works with fifth graders at Donegan and sixth graders at Broughal, using storytelling as a framework for change to...
December 16, 2025
Can You Recycle Metal Without Melting It? Lehigh Students Are Finding Out
Every day, tons of aluminum are discarded as waste. Metal that could be reused is often recycled only through energy-intensive processes that come with a heavy environmental cost. A team of Lehigh students is asking a bold question: What if we didn’t need to melt metal down to recycle it? That question is at the center of MetalMatter, a student-led Global Social Impact Fellowship team supported by the Office of Creative Inquiry. Focused on the...
December 12, 2025
How Lehigh Students are Building Career-Ready Skills for Disconnected Youth in the Bay Area
The Human Edge How Lehigh Students are Building Career-Ready Skills for Disconnected Youth in the Bay Area The Human Edge, a Silicon Valley Social Impact Fellowship project, begins with a clear question: How can entrepreneurial education equip underserved youth with the human-centered skills that AI cannot replace? One answer is a workshop that builds an entrepreneurial mindset and the essential skills needed to succeed in an AI-shaped economy. “We named the workshop the Global Entrepreneurial...
November 20, 2025
Lehigh Launches Inaugural Future Makers Convocation
November 7, 2025
IEEE Global Humanitarian Technology Conference (GHTC) 2025 Conference Recap
Seventeen Global Social Impact Fellows, representing every undergraduate college at Lehigh, joined faculty at the IEEE Global Humanitarian Technology Conference (GHTC) 2025 at the Colorado School of Mines from Oct. 22 - 25. They presented 12 peer-reviewed papers that reflect the collective work of 56 Impact Fellows, faculty mentors, and two collaborators from Almaty Management University. Read below for student reflections on the conference, and visit our Instagram ( @lehighcreativeinquiry) for more photos. Angelina Penza...
October 23, 2025
Creative Inquiry and Iacocca Institute Launch Sustainable Futures Fellowship
Lehigh University is taking its Impact Fellowship program to the next level—transforming students from problem-solvers into global entrepreneurial leaders who create more leaders. The new Sustainable Futures Fellowship, launching in January 2026, empowers graduates of the Impact Fellowships to become teachers, mentors, and catalysts for change. Through immersive global experiences, fellows will guide peers around the world in designing their own social innovation ventures—cultivating a generation of changemakers who multiply impact, leadership, and learning across...