National Innovation Challenge
Create bold ideas rooted in culture, creativity, technology, and community. The National STEAM Innovation Challenge invites learners to explore real-world questions, build future-ready skills, and turn what they know, imagine, and care about into projects that create impact.
- Signature Event
- October 20, 2026 at 11:00 AM PST
Culture Is Currency Live Pitch Lab
Join us for the Culture Is Currency Live Pitch Lab—an engaging event where you’ll learn more about the Culture Is Currency National Challenge, watch students pitch their ideas and receive live coaching from special guests. Enjoy free food, giveaways, and more! Doors open at 11:00 AM. All ages welcome.
- Plaza del Sol Auditorium, CSU Northridge
A National STEAM Innovation Challenge
From Ideas To Impact
The Global HSI Equity Innovation Hub’s National HSI STEAM Innovation Challenge Series creates a national platform for learners to build future-ready skills by applying technology, creativity, and what they already bring—their culture, lived experience, talents, ideas, and community knowledge—to real-world challenges.
Action
The three-part challenge series is grounded in Challenge-Based Learning and the Hub’s cultural innovation framework, moving learners from technology users to creators, problem-solvers, and innovators
The series is organized around three national challenges:
- Open in 2026-2027: Culture Is Currency — Recognize the assets you already bring.
- Open in 2027: Culture and Create — Apply technology to meaningful problems.
- Open in 2028: Visionaries and Vibes — Create what comes next.
Application
The Challenges are designed to equip learners to thrive in the future of work by building creativity, technology fluency, problem-solving skills, confidence, and agency—while applying what they already bring through design, technology, and emerging tools to meaningful real-world challenges.
Outcome
Learners build future-ready skills, create tangible projects, and strengthen education-to-career pathways. By the end of each Challenge, participants produce something they can share—such as a pitch, prototype, digital story, media project, or community-centered solution. Selected projects may be eligible for national showcase opportunities, awards, technology, funding, and access to industry experts.
Partner With Us
Our Industry Partners
Collaboration expands what is possible. The Hub works with organizations and industry partners that bring knowledge, technology, mentorship, and new perspectives into educational experiences. Together, we can help learners explore emerging fields, strengthen career pathways, and create opportunities that connect classroom learning with the world beyond campus.
Foundational Partners
Our foundational partners provide the expertise, technology, and resources that help shape the Hub’s innovation ecosystem and expand what is possible for students, educators, and communities.
Partner Ecosystem
Our growing network of collaborators brings expertise, resources, and opportunities that strengthen the Hub's innovation ecosystem.
Inaugural STEAM Innovation Challenge Open Now
National Challenge: Culture is Currency
Culture, creativity, and lived experience are powerful assets for innovation. Currency is more than money—it includes the knowledge, stories, relationships, creativity, technology, and ideas that create value. Across five Innovation Pathways, participants transform these assets into meaningful solutions, new opportunities, and community wealth. Each pathway begins with an essential question rooted in culture, community, and impact—and culminates in something meaningful, shareable, and designed for social good.
Who It's For
Built for Participants, Partners, & Amplifiers
The Culture Is Currency National STEAM Innovation Challenge brings together students, adult learners, educators, partners, and community leaders to turn ideas into action. Whether you are ready to create a project or you are ready to support the next generation of innovators as a Challenge Amplifier, join the Challenge and transform ideas into action.
For Students: Innovate With Your Culture
Explore an Innovation Pathway, build an idea rooted in your culture and community, and create something that reflects your voice, skills, and imagination. You can participate individually or with a team as you design, create, and submit.
For Partners & Amplifiers: Support The Next Generation
Help participants bring their ideas to life through mentorship resources, storytelling, visibility, and support. Partners and Amplifiers play a key role in expanding opportunity, helping connect talent to future careers, support adult learners in the design process and more.
A National Challenge
Culture Is Currency
Your Currency Can Be Your Culture
Your experiences, traditions, language, creativity, relationships, and community knowledge all hold value. Currency is more than money—it is anything that creates value. Culture Is Currency challenges you to turn what you know, create, and experience into assets for innovation, opportunity, and community wealth. In partnership with SUMA Wealth, participants can also build financial knowledge and explore how ideas can create economic opportunity through the Side Hustle Bootcamp.
Challenge-Based Learning
Start with a question that matters to you. Investigate it through research, conversations, and exploration. Then use what you learn to create and share an idea, story, or solution.
Free & Online
Recognize your value. Build your idea. Create what comes next. Explore Challenge resources, choose a pathway that fits your interests, and use the tools available to take your idea from exploration to creation.
Innovation Belongs to the People
Hear from our Beta-Culture Innovators and discover how ideas, creativity, and community come together through the Hub.
An Ecosystem of Support
Innovation Support Ecosystem
Great ideas grow stronger when you have access to everything you need to succeed. As part of the Culture Is Currency Challenge, we will provide tools, mentors, learning opportunities and resources through the Innovation Support Ecosystem to help you explore your ideas, build your skills, receive feedback, and share your work with a broader national network.