HEED Impact Studios

We received a go-signal from the principal of Montessori Integrated School last week to introduce HEED in their senior high school (SHS) program! Yesterday was another step closer to ex*****on as we met with their SHS teachers for implementation planning. Hoping for the best this academic year! ✨🇵🇭

Can you believe it? We're EIGHT YEARS OLD! 🎂✨

Today, we're celebrating by putting a spotlight on our alumni who remind us why we do what we do. Through humanitarian engineering, social entrepreneurship, and design for developing communities, they continue to lead the way as changemakers across disciplines.

We couldn’t be prouder of Shen, Ge, and the rest of our alumni. It’s been an honor to walk alongside them in their journey — and to witness how they’re shaping a more just and sustainable world.

Thank you for the thoughtful and beautiful feature, Jobs that makesense Asia! Looking forward to continuing building this regional ecosystem together!

🚨 𝗪𝗲’𝗿𝗲 𝗼𝗻 𝗗𝗶𝘀𝗰𝗼𝗿𝗱!

Looking for a space to connect with fellow changemakers, innovators, and doers? 💡🌏

Whether you're a student, faculty, researcher, creative, or community builder — you’re welcome here. Learn, collaborate, and build impact-driven projects with the HEED community!

🔗 𝗝𝗼𝗶𝗻 𝘂𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘄: bit.ly/HEEDcommunity

See you there!

July is HEED's birth month! This gift arrived today. Trademark Registered! 🥳

We have a series of free events and paid workshops coming up this month. Stay tuned! ✨

𝗧𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗸 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗼 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝗮𝗻𝘀𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗛𝗘𝗘𝗗 𝗙𝗮𝗰𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘆 𝗙𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 𝗦𝘂𝗿𝘃𝗲𝘆!

Your insights are incredibly valuable to us. We’re now diving into the next phase—analyzing your responses alongside faculty interviews to better understand how we can design a fellowship that truly supports faculty in delivering impact-driven education.

Stay tuned as we turn your feedback into action! 🚀

#𝗧𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸𝗧𝘂𝗲𝘀𝗱𝗮𝘆𝘀 | 𝗔𝗿𝗲 𝗪𝗲 𝗟𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝗘𝗱𝘂𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀 𝗘𝗻𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵?

At HEED, we believe that educators are keystones of innovation and impact in all levels, especially in senior high school and higher education. But how often do we pause to understand their needs?

We’re running a faculty development survey to hear directly from educators—about their goals, challenges, and ideas for transforming research and teaching into real-world solutions.

𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙬𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙 𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙨𝙘𝙝𝙤𝙤𝙡𝙨 𝙡𝙤𝙤𝙠 𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚 𝙞𝙛 𝙛𝙖𝙘𝙪𝙡𝙩𝙮 𝙙𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙡𝙤𝙥𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙙𝙚𝙨𝙞𝙜𝙣𝙚𝙙 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙗𝙮 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙛𝙖𝙘𝙪𝙡𝙩𝙮 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙢𝙨𝙚𝙡𝙫𝙚𝙨?

If you're a faculty member, we’d love your voice in the conversation.

𝗧𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗛𝗘𝗘𝗗 𝗙𝗮𝗰𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘆 𝗦𝘂𝗿𝘃𝗲𝘆 𝗻𝗼𝘄: bit.ly/HEEDFFsurvey

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗶𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗵𝗮𝗱 𝗮 𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝘂𝗱𝗶𝗼—𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗮 𝘀𝘆𝗹𝗹𝗮𝗯𝘂𝘀—𝘁𝗼 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗹𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗰𝘁-𝗱𝗿𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴?

We’re building that studio—with you.

Through the 𝗛𝗘𝗘𝗗 𝗙𝗮𝗰𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘆 𝗙𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽, we’re co-designing a development journey for educators who want to create real-world impact with their students.

📋 𝗧𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝟱-𝗺𝗶𝗻𝘂𝘁𝗲 𝘀𝘂𝗿𝘃𝗲𝘆 to help shape a fellowship that supports your goals, addresses your challenges, and amplifies your changemaking work:
👉 bit.ly/HEEDFFsurvey

🕒 𝗦𝘂𝗿𝘃𝗲𝘆 𝗰𝗹𝗼𝘀𝗲𝘀: May 30, 2025

🔍 𝗔𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗛𝗘𝗘𝗗 𝗜𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗰𝘁 𝗦𝘁𝘂𝗱𝗶𝗼𝘀
We’re a social business on a mission to cultivate changemakers who co-create sustainable technologies, ventures, and knowledge with underserved communities. This new fellowship is our next big step—and you can help shape it.

💌 𝗤𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀? Email us at [email protected]

✨ 𝗡𝗼𝘁 𝗮𝗻 𝗲𝗱𝘂𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗿? Stay tuned—we’re also cooking up a program for innovators like you!

“𝙄𝙩 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙗𝙮 𝙩𝙖𝙠𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙘𝙤𝙪𝙧𝙨𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙬𝙚 𝙬𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙜𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙤𝙥𝙥𝙤𝙧𝙩𝙪𝙣𝙞𝙩𝙮 𝙩𝙤 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙠 𝙤𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙖𝙘𝙩𝙪𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙮 𝙢𝙖𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙚𝙙, 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙢𝙖𝙙𝙚 𝙪𝙨 𝙖𝙣 𝙖𝙜𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙤𝙛 𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙜𝙚.”
– 𝗛𝗘𝗘𝗗 𝗔𝗹𝘂𝗺𝗻𝗮, 𝟮𝟬𝟭𝟴

This reflection from a former HEED student reminds us why we do what we do: to enable the next generation to design solutions with empathy, ingenuity, and purpose.

👉 𝗖𝘂𝗿𝗶𝗼𝘂𝘀 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗶𝘁’𝘀 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗛𝗘𝗘𝗗 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘀𝗲? Hear it straight from one of our former students in this reflection: bit.ly/HEEDtestimony001

𝗔𝗿𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗮𝗻 𝗲𝗱𝘂𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗿 𝗽𝗮𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗰𝘁-𝗱𝗿𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝗲𝗱𝘂𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻?
We’d love to hear from you! Fill out our short survey to help shape the HEED Faculty Fellowship: bit.ly/HEEDFFsurvey

Want to stay updated with HEED’s programs, fellowships, and community stories?
𝗝𝗼𝗶𝗻 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗺𝗮𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗹𝗶𝘀𝘁 here: heedimpact.org

💭 [𝗧𝗛𝗜𝗡𝗞 𝗧𝗨𝗘𝗦𝗗𝗔𝗬𝗦] | 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗠𝗮𝗸𝗲𝘀 𝗮 𝗚𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁 𝗘𝗱𝘂𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗿 𝗧𝗼𝗱𝗮𝘆?

At HEED, we believe that 𝗴𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁 𝗲𝗱𝘂𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗹𝘆 𝗿𝗲𝗶𝗻𝘃𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗺𝘀𝗲𝗹𝘃𝗲𝘀 — to remain relevant not just to the curriculum, but to the 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭 needs of students and society.

We first learned this from 𝗗𝗿. 𝗠𝗮𝗻𝗻𝘆 𝗕𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗼 during a 2014 interview with HEED founder, Jill. He reminded us that 𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗲 𝗲𝗱𝘂𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀 𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗰𝗲 𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗲𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴—𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗮𝗰𝗾𝘂𝗶𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗻𝗲𝘄 𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘄𝗹𝗲𝗱𝗴𝗲, 𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝗮𝗹𝘀𝗼 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝘂𝗻𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻 𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗺𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗼𝗱𝘀 that no longer serve today’s learners.

𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙙𝙤 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙣𝙚𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙤 𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙧𝙩 𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜—𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙪𝙣𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜—𝙩𝙤𝙙𝙖𝙮?

👉 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗿𝗲𝗳𝗹𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗽𝗶𝗲𝗰𝗲: https://bit.ly/HEEDarticles1

📝 𝗧𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗛𝗘𝗘𝗗 𝗙𝗮𝗰𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘆 𝗦𝘂𝗿𝘃𝗲𝘆 to help us shape a program for future-ready faculty: bit.ly/HEEDFFsurvey

📬 𝗝𝗼𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗛𝗘𝗘𝗗 𝗺𝗮𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗹𝗶𝘀𝘁 to receive updates on the Faculty Fellowship and other programs: heedimpact.org

[𝗠𝗘𝗠𝗢𝗥𝗬 𝗠𝗢𝗡𝗗𝗔𝗬𝗦]

𝙃𝙀𝙀𝘿 𝙗𝙚𝙜𝙖𝙣 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙖 𝙙𝙚𝙚𝙥 𝙛𝙧𝙪𝙨𝙩𝙧𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣.

In 2013, just two months into her role as a young faculty member at the Philippines’ premier state university, HEED’s founder visited Indigenous communities in the Calamianes group of islands in northern Palawan, then still recovering from Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan).

Despite graduating from the country’s top university, she stood on those islands painfully aware of a gap — between everything she had learned in the classroom and what was needed in the field.

𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵 𝗳𝗲𝗹𝘁 𝘁𝗼𝗼 𝘀𝗹𝗼𝘄.
𝗦𝗼𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗹𝗼𝗰𝗸𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝗻 𝗷𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗻𝗮𝗹𝘀.
The distance between knowledge and impact felt like a chasm.

A quote from Dr. Victor Hieser, written in 1908 about Culion, echoed what she was feeling:
“𝘐 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘯𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘧𝘦𝘭𝘵 𝘴𝘰 𝘢𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘮𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘩𝘶𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘴 𝘐 𝘶𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘨𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘩𝘶𝘨𝘦 𝘭𝘦𝘱𝘦𝘳 𝘩𝘰𝘴𝘱𝘪𝘵𝘢𝘭... 𝘶𝘯𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘨𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭 𝘩𝘰𝘱𝘦... 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘭𝘦𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘴, 𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘩𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺 𝘣𝘦𝘨𝘢𝘯, 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘢𝘭𝘸𝘢𝘺𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘭𝘦𝘧𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘺. 𝙄𝙩 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙝𝙞𝙜𝙝 𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙨𝙚𝙩 𝙨𝙘𝙞𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙠.”

Driven by that conviction, she and a group of like-minded faculty and students began to reimagine what science, technology, and design could look like as a form of community service. In 2017, they launched an informal initiative within the university — eventually offering an elective course on humanitarian engineering, social entrepreneurship, and design for developing communities.

It sparked meaningful ideas. But impact still ran up against familiar walls: time, bureaucracy, and misaligned incentives.

So we stepped outside our comfort zone and into the real, messy, unpredictable world.

We created 𝗛𝗘𝗘𝗗 𝗜𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗰𝘁 𝗦𝘁𝘂𝗱𝗶𝗼𝘀 — an independent space where we collaborate freely with local and international partners, researchers, educators, and changemakers to transform how the world innovates for those often left behind.

📬 𝗪𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗲 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗰𝘁 𝗲𝗰𝗼𝘀𝘆𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗺?
Sign up for our mailing list to stay updated on programs, fellowships, and collaborations:
👉 heedimpact.org

📣 𝗪𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗻𝘂𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗲𝘃𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗮𝗰𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗺𝗶𝗰 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗻𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘃𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗹.
HEED Impact Studios builds pathways for research to move beyond publications — toward implementation, adoption, and sustainable change. If you’re a faculty member who wants to explore new ways to bring your research to life, we want to hear from you.

𝗧𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝗿𝘁 𝗳𝗮𝗰𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘆 𝘀𝘂𝗿𝘃𝗲𝘆 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲:
👉 bit.ly/HEEDFFsurvey

𝗔𝗿𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝗻 𝘀𝗲𝗻𝗶𝗼𝗿 𝗵𝗶𝗴𝗵 𝘀𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗼𝗹 𝗼𝗿 𝗰𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗴𝗲? 𝗪𝗲 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝘆𝗼𝘂!

We’re designing a new 𝗛𝗘𝗘𝗗 𝗙𝗮𝗰𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘆 𝗙𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 — a nationwide program to support educators in turning academic research into real-world impact. 🌍💡

But we need 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘃𝗼𝗶𝗰𝗲 to make sure the program meets your needs.

📋 Take this 5-minute survey to help shape a faculty development journey that supports your goals, challenges, and changemaking work.

👉 bit.ly/HEEDFFsurvey

🕒 Closes: May 30, 2025

🔍 About HEED Impact Studios:
We are a social business that is on a mission to cultivate changemakers who co-create sustainable technologies, ventures, and knowledge for underserved communities. This new fellowship is our next big step—and you can help build it.

💌 Questions? Email us at [email protected]

✨ 𝗡𝗼𝘁 𝗮𝗻 𝗲𝗱𝘂𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗿? Stay tuned—we’re also cooking up a program for innovators like you! 🙌