Young ideators grow into adult innovators. Sarah Almuhanna had a passion for design from a young age; she found an outlet for this through the pursuit of Architecture. During her final year at Portland State University (PSU), as she pursued her Master's in Architecture, she followed her creativity into forming Fungivores, the 2022 winner of the PSU Cleantech Challenge.
The idea for Fungivores that led to her winning the Cleantech Challenge was the value of green buildings and using sustainable materials to improve the relationship between humans and nature. This idea was built on the foundation of mycelium, the vegetative part of the fungi, to create biodegradable building materials that neutralize toxins within the soil.
Following her win at the 2022 PSU Cleantech Challenge, Sarah moved forward to compete at the 2022 Invent Oregon competition. One of our most impactful programs, offering students the opportunity to further hone their projects with the help of mentors and education.
After graduating and completing the Invent Oregon competition, Sarah realized she had an opportunity to give back by mentoring the next generation of innovators. This realization led her to join the Center for Entrepreneurship team as an instructor for the Verizon Innovative Learning STEM Achievers Camp.
Throughout her time as an instructor for the Verizon Innovative Learning STEM Achievers Camp, Sarah introduced many of the students participating in the program to the fundamentals of design thinking, prototyping, augmented and virtual reality, and coding. All with the hopes of inspiring them to continue seeking opportunities within the field of STEM, and this is no coincidence.
According to MIT Sloan, “thanks to inequality, the U.S. has potentially missed out on millions of inventors during that time — what the researchers refer to as ‘lost Einsteins.’” Furthermore, U.S. policies meant to increase exposure to innovation aren’t working. Researchers have proposed to mitigate these issues through mentoring programs, school programs, and interventions through social networks. And Verizon Innovative Learning Initiative STEM Camp is tackling this issue head-on.
With support from instructors such as Sarah, we can provide an opportunity for a younger generation to see themselves as inventors too. Currently, our Verizon Innovative Learning STEM Achievers Camp has available spots for students interested in joining our 2023 cohort. For anyone interested - Please sign up here for more information.