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A Recap of Dream Tank’s Journey: Summer 2017
Team work makes the Dream work!
A Huge Thank You
As summer comes to a close, and the Dream Team reflects on a very full and exhilarating 3 months, we want to extend our sincerest THANK YOU for your involvement, passion, and contribution to Dream Tank. Because of your knowledge, talent, openness, and generosity. DreamMakers in Boulder launched their ides to new heights. We are humbled by your faith in and commitment to the kids and their dreams. The world is a better place because of YOU!
Our Accomplishments this Summer
Dream Tank began the summer piloting our fellowship program. We had a fantastic group of CU masters students, undergraduates, and high schoolers from Boulder and as far as Ohio, who each had critical roles running Dream Tank and executing on its mission of igniting kids dreams in Boulder.
“Dream Tank inspired me to teach young men and women to dream big while benefitting the planet.”
-Alex, HS Junior; Curriculum Development Team
Summer Accelerators
We held 3 summer accelerators and 3 pitch nights involving 34 DreamMakers launching their socially conscious business ventures. We played games, went on scavenger hunts, built a time machine, solved design challenges, and launched dreams!
A HUGE thank you to our sponsors, community partners, and hosts: Mackintosh Academy, Impact Hub Boulder, Galvanize, Kitables, Whole Brain Consulting, Pax World Investments, SHEO, TechStars, and Highlander Wealth Management. Thank you also goes to the businesses for our Pearl Street scavenger hunt: Galvanize, Reality Garage, Thrive, Made in Nature, Impact Hub Boulder, and Patagonia.
DreamMaker Success Stories
9-year-old Helyn Simpson-Teplin (Left), from Boulder, CO, joined Dream Tank’s first summer accelerator and rejoined 2 weeks later for our super accelerator for returning DreamMakers. She created the “Kinetic Store” that makes energy generation fun and addresses the Sustainable Development Goal #7 (Affordable and Clean Energy). Her idea stemmed from combining her love of gymnastics and her passion about the environment. Helyn’s product aimed to capture energy created through fun activities, such as jumping on a trampoline or cycling. EnergiLAB, a Colorado based company that works on similar issues, and Community Cycles, a local non-profit, offered her advice as well as donated equipment towards her first prototype. Inspired by Helyn’s idea, the group will be seeking to find a gym in Boulder willing to power their entire space using the kinetic energy it creates by people exercising.
Bodie Fox is a 9-year-old skater, surfer, and snowboarder who often loses things. That’s why he decided to create Shredder Stickers when he joined Dream Tank a year ago. Shredder Stickers makes fashionable stickers with a water-resistant tracker inside that will go on your snowboard, skis, or skateboard and more, so that you can locate them. He is looking to partner with TrackR for use of the trackers to go inside his stickers, and help TrackR design for kids and their ski/snowboard equipment. He plans to have an online store with multiple contemporary designs that people of different ages and genders will like. He has been connected with the company to move this partnership forward, and Bodie may become their first kid-sultant and partner!
Need a co-working space?
Our friends at Impact Hub Boulder are now offering a great new benefit to those interested in a co-working membership – Receive up to 3 complimentary leadership development and business coaching sessions (a $450 value) provided by Pursuits Coaching when you become a new member, now through 9/30/17!
Impact Hub offers flexible co-working plans and dedicated desks in a collaborative, sunny workspace. The free OZO coffee, organic teas, fast internet, high-speed printer and great community make this an exceptional value. Find out more by clicking the link below.
Whats next for Dream Tank
This fall, Dream Tank plans to pilot our Think Tank model in Boulder, where kids will get together specifically to solve a real-world design challenge for a company or cause. We are in the process of seeking sponsorships for this exciting opportunity, as we would like for it to be free to the kids who participate. If you know of any potential sponsors and/or collaborators, please contact hi@dreamtank.co
We will shortly release some other fall programs for new and returning DreamMakers!
Dream Team attends GlobalMindED in Denver
Left to right: Heidi Cuppari, Eric Glustrom, Hannah Davis, Luis Duarte, Summer Cuppari Gould, Anya Smith
The Dream Team had the pleasure of attending the GlobalMindED conference in Denver this past week. The conference brings together uncommon collaborators in education, business, STEM, government, and the nonprofit sector to support educational innovators who are setting a new standard for inclusive leadership.
Co-Founder and CEO Heidi Cuppari moderated a panel on social entrepreneurship including two of our 12 year old DreamMakers; Summer Gould and Anya Smith! The conference was a fantastic collection of professionals and students from around the country who are all working to make a difference in the world!
One of the great things about GlobalMindED is that they give out complimentary tickets to “First Gen’s”: the first in their family to attend college. These students mostly come from less privileged backgrounds and it’s important to enable them to participate in this great conference and contribute their points of view. At Dream Tank, we believe that every student deserves the opportunity to have their voices heard to start making their dreams a reality.
Story Architect founders(http://www.storyarchitects.biz/) and Dream Tank Junior Fellows Summer Cuppari-Gould and Anya Smith presented on a panel with other social entrepreneurs at the Global MindED conference in Denver last week. Heidi started off with a brief overview of Dream Tank, social entrepreneurship, and the story of how Dream Tank was created. Her daughter Summer told her that she saw that in society adults were not listening to kids and their creative ideas. Their dreams were being crushed, not praised or pursued. Heidi asked herself, “How can we use business and finance to make a positive impact in society? And lets bring kids into the discussion of solving global issues.”
Many of panelists had the same passion for change and diversity in the field of Entrepreneurship. For instance Eric Glustrom, the President of Watson University was there. Watson is a new university model for students ages 18-24 based in Boulder, Colorado dedicated to supporting next generation innovators, leaders and social entrepreneurs to solve the toughest challenges facing the world. MergeLane Program Director Hannah Davis was in attendance. MergeLane is an accelerator for businesses that have have at least one female executive. She stated, “ We need to broaden the definition of Entrepreneurship, it is a mindset of creativity and openness.”
Luis Duarte represented Gary Community Investments. His role includes identifying and developing public-private partnerships, and executing on philanthropic, near-market, and market-rate investment opportunities that encompass financial returns and social impact. He told a story about how he is reading a book called How to raise an entrepreneur and he challenged everyone in the crowd to “Let kids get their feet wet and chase their passions.” One of the main themes of the conference was diversity and inclusion in education and business. Anya said, “Everyone is so afraid of change. If people stood up and did something for themselves, it would create a chain reaction.” Summer indicated that if kids were in charge, “the world would be more colorful, there wouldn’t be as many endangered and extinct animals, there wouldn’t be climate change.” Join the movement to bring diversity to entrepreneurship with Dream Tank. Our call to action is an entrepreneurial ecosystem for kids and all walks of life!
Our team of fellows all attended GlobalMindED. Many of us experienced a conference like this for the first time! Dream Tank’s Fellowship Program is a pilot this summer where High School, College, and Masters Students learn social entrepreneurship and in return, take a role and lead something in Dream Tank.
Fellows were given a chance to spread our mission and learn about modern day solutions to issues such as access, equity, and opportunity for First Generation to College and underserved populations. We are always working to give our fellowship team beneficial experiences that allow them to make an impact while learning. The GlobalMindED conference was a great way to for fellows to take a seat at the table and start participating in important conversations with influencers across all sectors!
We are thrilled to be included in such an impactful conference and can’t wait for next year! Thank you
GlobalMindED~
Dream Tank News: Boulder Startup Week & Regenerative Future Summit
Last week, Boulder celebrated its world leading startup culture with over 200 events in five days! Galvanize is one of our sponsors and Jim Deters, founder of Galvanize, and Emilie Kintner, Director of Galvanize Boulder, led a talk at the 3 year birthday party during Boulder Startup Week. Galvanize is a great resource for startups in Boulder. We are excited to have Dream Tank at Galvanize July 24-29 and launch more amazing kid-led ventures!
According to their website, since Boulder Startup Week in 2016, it has acquired additional companies (to bring the total to 41) and expanded its network footprint by 10,000 miles (122,000 route miles total). This kind of opportunity allows companies to network in fields they never would have expected to connect with. Each year holds unique experiences, professionals, and memories. Dream Tank is looking forward to bringing even more youth voices and ideas into Boulder Startup Week next year and beyond!
Community Night: Youth and Innovation
Philip Weiser is a professor of law and telecommunications at CU. He is leading a new innovation and entrepreneurship initiative on campus, and recently announced his run for attorney general of CO! (Dream)maker Emma Kraft joined him during Boulder Startup Week’s community night at the Boulder Theater to talk about youth innovation and Dream Tank! Full video will be published next week, stay tuned!
The first annual regenerative future summit was this week! From May 15th-17th, leaders shared their ideas about forward thinking to make a sustainable future. Our CEO Heidi Cuppari had the pleasure of speaking about consciousness leadership in business.. and invited everyone to take a stand and start listening to the world’s best innovators – kids!
Check out Heidi’s speech in the video below:
14 Youth-Led Startups Launching in Boulder
“You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete.”
– Buckminster Fuller
Innovation is critical for our future. Yet, our current education systems are teaching memorization versus critical and creative learning necessary for our rapidly growing world.
That is all about to change.
14 young leaders from Colorado have emerged from the Dream Tank, where they have been incubating and designing an innovation that helps people and the planet. With their imagination, productive use of technology, and strong community allies, the Dreamakers have each uncovered a unique way to shape the future. The ventures will be revealed on Innovation Night April 11th. Get your tickets and bring a friend! Kids under 16 are FREE.
The night will feature innovation in:
- DESIGN & MAKERS
- INVENTIONS & TECHNOLOGY
- SOCIAL ACTION & ANIMAL RIGHTS
Meet Cartoonist and Comic Book Illustrator and Writer, Matea Chavez-Grandits
Matea will be launching Quirky and giving live demonstrations on how she learned character design and development by following her passion and natural gifts.
See how the Koala Girls are Taking Action for Endangered Species
10 yr old Della Beers and 11 yr old Sophie Feller are teaming up to raise awareness and protect the Australian koalas whose habitat is rapidly vanishing.
Learn how Minecraft Builders is using Tech to Protect Animals
Find out how 8 yr old Ian Feller and 9 yr old Ayden Dedrick-Fodeman used the popular game of Minecraft to convince the School Board and City Council to save an Owl Preserve in Boulder County!
WE INVITE YOU TO
Show Up. Be Inspired. Laugh. Cry. Dream Big.
