SDSU Social Venture Challenge
2025 SDSU Social Venture Challenge Topic:
Food Insecurity: Access, Availability, Affordability, Impacting our College Students, Military, Unsheltered, and Beyond
What is the SDSU Social Venture Challenge?
- A pitch competition held annually at SDSU
- Open to SDSU undergraduate students and graduate students AND other Southern California colleges and universities by invitation
- The pitch is based on identifying a significant problem related to the impact of food insecurity in our region and presenting an innovative solution resulting in a social venture
- $15,000 Grand Prize
- Teams will compete for over $35,000 in cash prizes
What is a Social Venture?
The distinguishing characteristic of the social venture versus the commercial venture is the primacy of their objective to solve social problems and provide social benefits. The social venture may generate profits, but that is not its focus. Rather, profits are a possible means to achieve sustainability in providing a social benefit. The entity can be for-profit, non-profit or a hybrid. The problems addressed by social ventures cover a range of social issues, including poverty, inequality, education, the environment, and economic development. In the case of this challenge, we are seeking issues related to the impact of food insecurity on our region and beyond.
What Are the Requirements for SDSU Applicants?
- Must be an active SDSU undergraduate or graduate student during the Fall 2024 and Spring 2025 semesters
- Must have a minimum of two students (see above) and a maximum of four students on a team
- Must have at least 2 students on the team available to participate in a live competition at SDSU on March 21, 2025 from 3-6 PM
- We welcome ideas, not companies (startups with any revenue to date from product/services sales are not eligible to compete)
- All majors are welcome!
The SDSU Social Venture Challenge is a Southern California collegiate pitch competition, by invitation only. Work with your university to find out if your are eligible to compete!
What Are the Requirements of Nominated Teams?
- Must be an active undergraduate or graduate student during the Fall 2024 and Spring 2025 semesters
- Team must be available to participate in a live competition at SDSU on March 21, 2025 from 3-6 PM
- We welcome ideas, not companies (startups with any revenue to date from product/services sales are not eligible to compete)
- All majors are welcome!
How Are Teams Nominated?
- The participating school’s representative will submit a Google Form with the nominated
teams’ names and contact information.
- We’re here to help!
- Have questions? Send us an email!
- Contact us at [email protected]
Prize Money:
- Teams will have the opportunity to compete for $35,000 in cash prizes with a grand prize of $15,000.
- Prize money won by students from invited Universities/Colleges will be distributed to the winner's home campus and awarded to the individual/team by their campus's payment department. The awards must be split evenly amongst team members.
- Campuses must be prepared to work with the SDSU Research Foundation for payment processing.
Resources
Online Resources:
- United States Department of Agriculture
- World Health Organization
- Economic Research Service
- United Nations Sustainable Development Goals
- North Carolina Local Food Council
- United Nations
- Example Solution- One Restaurant Has a Way to Fight Food Waste: Making Food Out of 'Trash'
Need help with your application? Check out the document below for resources to get you started!
How is prize money distributed?
- Prize money won by students from invited Universities/Colleges will be distributed to the winner's home campus and awarded to the individual/team by their campus's payment department. The awards must be split evenly amongst team members.
- Campuses must be prepared to work with the SDSU Research Foundation for payment processing.
SDSU Application Cycle
September 1, 2024 - December 11, 2024