From Campus to Catalyst: Showcasing Africa’s Next Generation of Innovators

In this strategic showcase at Newlab’s flagship Brooklyn location, UNDP’s timbuktoo Initiative will articulate to participants the value proposition of UniPods as high-tech spaces where students, faculty, private sector, and governments collaborate to solve real-world challenges. The event will feature a continent-wide lens, highlighting five powerful innovator stories from across the African continent, and culminate in a deep dive into SPARK Africa, a flagship summer residency program that will launch in full in 2026, bringing African and global students together to co-create scalable solutions to pressing development challenges.

Through immersive storytelling, student testimonies, high-level dialogue, and interactive engagement, the event will invite global universities, governments, and funders to join the movement, announce commitments, and shape the SPARK Africa 2026 cohort.