Like many students, Grayson Allen initially struggled to find the “perfect fit” for his major. He reached out to family friends and his social network, and after hearing stories of their career paths, was inspired to select a new major and career where he could create solutions to help improve peoples’ lives. Originally an aerospace engineering major, Grayson changed his major to manufacturing engineering at the Polytechnic campus. Grayson and a friend Kevin Hale, a software engineer, had heard a tragic story of a child drowning in a pool…a tragedy that struck them as preventable, and their backgrounds would be perfectly suited for designing a new solution to help solve the problem. Leveraging the power of the program that would become Venture Devils, they launched their company Halen Smart and their first product, GATESENSE, a device which turns any gate into a “smart gate”. Join us as Grayson walks through the product viability process, the rollercoaster ride of creating a new venture, the importance of having a simple solution with heart, and the lessons he’s learned along the way.

Recommended if you're interested in: New product design, product viability, manufacturing engineering, pitch-fest examples, startup successes, iterating to success
Recommended if you're interested in: New product design, product viability, manufacturing engineering, pitchfest examples, startup successes, iterating to success

Innovation isn’t always about science and technology. While many of us may only experience playing a musical instrument through Guitar Hero, a new trend across the nation is guitar ensembles – groups replicating orchestral pieces using only guitars to play all parts of the orchestra. In an era where the arts are being seen as less important than STEM, music programs are searching for new and creative ways to entice more people to pick up an instrument. Thomas Wheeler, a guitar performance and pedagogy master’s student at ASU, takes an innovative approach to crafting a guitar solo from one of the most complicated musical pieces of all time, known as The Planets. Thomas had a vision of transposing this piece early in his bachelor’s program, but realized he didn’t have the technical competency – he needed help from collaborators, mentors, and a deep immersion to craft a masterpiece. Learn from Thomas how passion, commitment and a never-give-up attitude propelled him to his final performance. Don’t forget to listen to his performance on YouTube! Hear him at https://youtu.be/jkEMUd9SEek.

Have you downloaded the Sun Devil Rewards app? Each week we provide you with a "secret word" valid for 100 Pitchfork Points good for redeeming ASU gear and VIP experiences. This episode's Sun Devil Rewards "secret word" will expire at 11:59 pm on Monday, April 10, 2020.

How do microplastics impact the ocean, wildlife, and the wellbeing of the overall planet? Learn from PhD student Charles Rolsky, who has fused his lifelong love of the ocean with the brainpower of the biosciences to create research programs dedicated to studying and remediating microplastic pollution in the world’s oceans. Charlie also shares his experiences – the good, the bad, and the funny - in becoming a public figure, from speaking at TedTalks to starring in an ASU commercial. In addition to describing the how ASU has enabled his innovation mindset, he highlights the importance of scientists being comfortable with also being storytellers, to build the bridge between the research community and the public.

Evvan Morton, a PhD candidate in Sustainable Engineering, has always been interested in using science to solve problems. With encouragement from teachers and mentors, she decided to pursue a career in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics). Women of color are under-represented in STEM fields, and going into a field where not many people look like you can make for a lonely experience. During a research project in Belize, Evvan realized the power of travel and working with diverse populations of people in providing opportunities for empathy and creating a broader sense of community and belonging. In order to provide opportunities to others, she co-founded BioGals, a nonprofit organization focused on the success of women of color in STEM fields through research and study abroad opportunities. Come learn how Evvan is transforming lives not only through her research efforts, but also by creating opportunities for other women to have their own transformative experiences.

We’re kicking off Season 3 of the podcast with a new cohost! Tune in as we learn about Sahel: her passion for diverse perspectives and storytelling, love of all things travel… and the 5 languages she speaks! We also review what innovation means to each of us, and highlight some of the amazing things we’ve learned through two full seasons of interviewing some of the innovative students we have at ASU. Whether you’re a new member of our audience or an avid listener, this episode is a great way to get (re)acquainted with the podcast and the team.

Have you downloaded the Sun Devil Rewards app? Each week we provide you with a "secret word" valid for 100 Pitchfork Points good for redeeming ASU gear and VIP experiences. This episode's Sun Devil Rewards "secret word" will expire at 11:59 pm on Wednesday, February 12, 2020.

In our final episode of Season 2, our guest is none other than our producer Maggie Dellow. Hear about her experience in launching the podcast, and what she has learned about innovation from our many amazing guests. Maggie and Jonah review some of the "myths" around innovation they uncovered during Seasons 1 and 2, and how the many guests on the show have debunked those myths and demonstrated the grit and resiliency inherent to the innovative mindset. We also review some of our favorite moments of the podcast so far. Best wishes to Maggie in her future endeavors...and stay tuned, Season 3 is right around the corner!

Have you downloaded the Sun Devil Rewards app? Each week we provide you with a "secret word" valid for 100 Pitchfork Points good for redeeming ASU gear and VIP experiences. This episode's Sun Devil Rewards "secret word" will expire at 11:59 pm on Thursday, September 5, 2019.

When Michele Clark began looking into doctoral programs, she found a National Science Foundation grant that focused not only on the ecology of an area, but the human dimension, as well. She found at ASU an interdisciplinary team of demographers, soil ecologists, and governance, focused on invasive species research in Nepal, which inspired her to pursue a PhD in Environmental Life Sciences. Developing nations have fewer resources to counteract invasive species, but for whom the invasion can have devastating impacts on their quality of life. Invasive plants are non-native species that are either intentionally or unintentionally introduced to an ecology, and can cause detrimental impacts to the health of people living in the area, the economy, and the surrounding environment. Invasive species are like a plant-based horror movie: nearly indestructible aliens marching across the land, causing irreparable harm. Named by the Nepali people “tree killer”, the invasive vine, mikania micrantha, had done a shocking amount of damage to jungle in the study area: completely obscuring trees and strangling other native plants. From the very beginning, the research team innovated by not chasing the most statistically significant technique, but instead the one that is most impactful to the community. They did so by involving the Nepali people in building a toolkit to help reduce this invasion. As Michele describes it, it’s more of a “technique kit”, which allows the local community members to know what to do, and how to do it…long after the research team has left. Listen in to hear how Michele found a shared passion for community-based innovation at ASU and how those innovations can inspire and support local communities, but also how research teams can, in turn, learn from those communities as well.

Have you downloaded the Sun Devil Rewards app? Each week we provide you with a "secret word" valid for 100 Pitchfork Points good for redeeming ASU gear and VIP experiences. This episode's Sun Devil Rewards "secret word" will expire at 11:59 pm on Monday, August 19th, 2019.

For students Anne-Marie Shaver (PhD in Musicology) and Hunter Langenhorst (undergraduate student in Music and Culture, and Spanish literature), music has long been an important part of life. The Acoustic Ecology Lab offers unique ways to embrace that passion. “Every single sound we hear has its sonic niche. Whether it’s the birds chirping, or the wind, or gravel creaking as people walk…every single sound has a frequency,” Hunter explains. “Losing that special frequency can give us hints about what is happening in the environment, and the ecology, in that place. Studying those sounds, or lack of sounds, is what the lab does.” Simply put, the Acoustic Ecology Lab is using sound to understand what is happening in our environments. Stemming from the pioneering work of Dr. Garth Paine in Acoustic Ecology, and with the help and vision of co-director Professor Sabine Feisst, the lab features an interdisciplinary team of computer scientists, engineers, music enthusiasts, and environmentalists. Learn about the lab’s Sound Walks, how measuring gunshot sounds can prevent poachers and save jaguars, and other amazing interdisciplinary projects at the Lab.

Have you downloaded the Sun Devil Rewards app? Each week we provide you with a "secret word" valid for 100 Pitchfork Points good for redeeming ASU gear and VIP experiences. This episode's Sun Devil Rewards "secret word" will expire at 11:59 pm on Friday, August 9th, 2019.

This ground-breaking magazine started humbly in 2016 by a small team with sponsorship by Dr. Amanda Tachine. The passion, drive and discipline of this multi-disciplinary team of students gives voice and presence to Native American and Indigenous students in a beautifully-designed, thought-filled and powerful medium. The team includes Sequoia Dance, a recent graduate of the Masters in Social & Cultural Pedagagy program; Taylor Notah, the Senior Editor of the magazine and recent graduate of the Cronkite School of Journalism; Danielle Lucero, a current PhD student in the Justice and Social Inquiry program; and Brian Skeet, a recent graduate with a degree in Industrial Design and Design Management from the Herberger Institute of Design and the Arts. Turning Point highlights resources available to Native students, as well as student narratives that create a sense of belonging and community. The magazine highlights Native students on college campuses across the US – to bring forward resources, narratives, and stories that usually go whispered, and don’t always get to be the center of attention.
Have you downloaded the Sun Devil Rewards app? Each week we provide you with a "secret word" valid for 100 Pitchfork Points good for redeeming ASU gear and VIP experiences. This episode's Sun Devil Rewards "secret word" will expire at 11:59 pm on Friday, August 2nd, 2019.

Native Phoenician James Cook, a mechanical engineering systems student, shares his experiences in a multi-year use-inspired research project. Through the GlobalResolve service abroad program at Barrett, the Honors College, students are able to engage in interdisciplinary projects focused on “bridging the global divide with sustainable and collaborative solutions”. For James, what started as simply meeting a mandatory course requirement turned into a 3-semester long passion project focused on finding sustainable, innovative ways to preserve fish for local fishermen in Indonesia. The research team created a solar-thermal, ammonia-based ice generator using cheap materials, allowing for fisherman to quickly freeze their fish to maintain freshness. Along the way, they partnered with an Indonesian university and made lifelong friends. Listen in as James shares stories of traveling the world, using humanitarian engineering to make a meaningful difference, and what living the innovation mindset means to him.

Have you downloaded the Sun Devil Rewards app? Each week we provide you with a "secret word" valid for 100 Pitchfork Points good for redeeming ASU gear and VIP experiences. This episode's Sun Devil Rewards "secret word" will expire at 11:59 pm on Friday, July 26th, 2019.