At California Innovation, we believe that the space surrounding our actions holds great value. This idea is best expressed through the latin term genius loci, the spirit of a place that results from the land’s tangible and intangible elements. Looking at northern California, it’s what arises from a history marked by periods like the gold rush, the hippie movement, and the dot-com bubble. It comes from the rolling landscape, top universities, the Golden Gate Bridge, the big tech companies, the innovators working in their garages, and venture capital culture. These elements have created a powerful ecosystem, one with a progressive spirit that encourages ingenuity.

Transformed ourselves by this environment’s energy, we want our forward-thinking peers from around the world to experience it in a profound way. The California Innovation Program is a way to open up this dynamic and innovative world to those who want to design better futures. As methodology, we think that when people are immersed in an environment that fosters entrepreneurship and stimulates creativity, they feel empowered and commit to achieving big goals. By meeting the land’s entrepreneurs and witnessing the manufacturing, students will have the opportunity to absorb this spirit of place, to be contaminated with both the desire and the freedom to construct new possibilities for industries.

It is especially important as the State is experiencing a manufacturing renaissance that focuses on faster and less environmentally harmful manufacturing processes. It’s not just the land that gave birth to the tech giants like Apple and Google, but it is also the home to America’s wine industry, trailblazing clothing manufacturers, and radical food companies. We will explore how in this ecosystem the small producers have been able to challenge and influence the large manufacturers.

For today’s youth looking to make a positive impact around the world, the California genius loci offers great value. It is the place where they can be empowered to design the future of human-centered industries. After gaining an understanding of the ecosystem, we will then together discover new opportunities, guide project development, then launch new ventures in California and beyond. Because, it is only together that we can create a better way of doing business around the world.

Want to explore California with us this summer? Apply now!