Innovation for the public good

Dear Berkeley Engineering alumni,

From medicine to infrastructure to the environment, Berkeley Engineering has a strong tradition of innovating with impact — and our public mission sets us apart from other top-ranked schools of engineering. To date, more than 1,600 inventions have been patented by our faculty and alumni. And UC Berkeley has been ranked by Pitchbook as the #2 university worldwide for producing venture-capital-backed entrepreneurs and as the top public university for start-up founders.

As our society becomes ever more dependent on devices, processes and systems designed by engineers, it becomes increasingly important for engineering teams and leaders to represent the diversity of people in society — to ensure that these innovations will benefit people in an equitable manner.

We know that diversity strengthens innovation. A growing list of studies show that socially diverse groups are more innovative and productive than homogeneous groups. To that end, Berkeley Engineering is working hard to make its student and faculty bodies as diverse and inclusive as possible. Over the past academic year, we have welcomed 842 Pell Grant recipients — 32% of our student body. Among our undergraduate students, 28% are the first generation in their families to attend college, more than 32% are female and 14.6% identify as underrepresented minorities. Such diversity brings new ideas and perspectives into our community, elevating our creativity and engagement with the world beyond.

This issue of BEar News features a small selection of innovative Berkeley Engineering alumni who are making a positive impact for the greater good of our global society. I’m so proud of the legacy of this school, leaving our world in better shape than we found it.

Fiat Lux – and Go Bears!

Tsu-Jae King Liu
Dean and Roy W. Carlson Professor of Engineering