2025 Design Innovation Intern Blogs

As part of the Hive’s Design Innovation Internship Grant, we ask recipients to document and reflect on their experience and share what they gained from their roles in the form of a written blog.

Here are the four grantees from Summer 2025. Learn more from them about their internship experiences with their partner companies, their personal and professional growth, and the envisioned real-world impact of their work in their individual blog posts.

• Mira Shah (Pitzer ’27) completed an internship with early-stage startup ABCD (American-Born Creative Desi), conducting user experience (UX) and market research. ABCD (American-Born Creative Desi) is a startup building a curated online marketplace to support South Asian Americans in connecting more deeply with their culture.

• Zo Pancoast (Scripps ’25) completed an internship with The Better Lab, a health design research organization that uses human-centered design to improve healthcare systems, services, and experiences.

• Elizabeth Ortega (Pomona ’27) completed an internship with the Green Jobs Board, a specialized career platform focused on the climate, sustainability, and environmental sectors.

• Amanda Oluwatosin Adaeze Eric (Pomona ’25) completed an internship with Kounkuey Design Initiative (KDI) in Nairobi, Kenya, a global nonprofit organization that combines design and community development to create “productive public spaces”: well-designed, community-led projects addressing environmental, social, and economic challenges.