{"id":277,"date":"2025-08-18T17:15:18","date_gmt":"2025-08-18T21:15:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.bsu.edu\/globalaffairs\/?p=277"},"modified":"2025-08-18T17:15:18","modified_gmt":"2025-08-18T21:15:18","slug":"global-entrepreneurship-congress-the-bold-change-the-world","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.bsu.edu\/globalaffairs\/2025\/08\/18\/global-entrepreneurship-congress-the-bold-change-the-world\/","title":{"rendered":"Global Entrepreneurship Congress: The BOLD change the world!"},"content":{"rendered":"

What qualities come to mind when you think of someone who is BOLD?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

If you are BOLD, you\u2019re often willing to take risks. Someone who is BOLD has confidence in their ability to make change. BOLD individuals are courageous. These same entrepreneurial traits appear over and over again among students and faculty who branch out of the norm, identify a problem to solve and explore the world for solutions through global education.<\/span><\/p>\n

In June, I had the opportunity to attend the annual <\/span>Global Entrepreneurship Congress<\/span><\/a> held in Indianapolis. This collection of Global Entrepreneurs have been gathering to advance the goals of entrepreneurship across the globe since 2009. Previous events have been held in Melbourne (2023), Riyadh (2022), Bahrain (2019), Istanbul (2018), Johannesburg (2017), and <\/span>more<\/span><\/a>!\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

According to the GEC website, \u201cthe Global Entrepreneurship Congress is the only place where founders at all stages of development and policymakers, investors and support organizations from all economies are in the same room <\/span>\u2014<\/span> collaborating to bring ideas to life, drive economic growth and expand human welfare.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

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What impressed me the most about the conference was the incredible diversity of the attendees! I met entrepreneurs, policymakers, and investors from Brazil, Japan, Togo, Ecuador, Chile, and across the United States. Each individual I met reinforced the importance of global cooperation and inclusion of voices from across the spectrum of humanity, to solve the world\u2019s greatest problems.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

My reasons for attending are rooted in the role global education plays in preparing Ball State University students for success in the 21st century economy. This was an opportunity to connect with industry leaders and discuss how a globally-minded education creates the conditions for economic growth and prosperity.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The theme of the GEC Indiana 2025 conference was \u201cThe BOLD Change the World.\u201d When I think of global education, especially at Ball State, this phrase resonates with me. I see BOLDness in the international students who come to Muncie to pursue their dreams and contribute to the campus community. I see BOLDness in the U.S. students, many of whom have never left the U.S. or the great State of Indiana, take a leap of faith and study abroad with their BSU faculty on a BSU-In program, or semester-long exchange. You have to be BOLD in order to take the risk to leave your friends and family<\/span>\u00a0behind, learn a new language or way of being, in order to become the best version of yourself, and by extension, the best version of your community.<\/p>\n

\"Conference<\/p>\n

The event featured panels that included Indiana Governor Mike Bruan, the CEOs of mainstay Indiana companies: Eli Lilly, Cummins, Zimmer Biomet, and Beck’s Superior Hybrids. Each company highlighted the importance of global engagement, with both Eli Lilly and Zimmer Biomet being led by foreign born CEOs. Openness to collaboration and new thinking is a critical skill that not only benefits entrepreneurs, but also keeps these businesses fresh and at the cutting edge of their industries.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The headliner for the event featured Indiana University alumnus and celebrity entrepreneur, Mark Cuban. I was struck at how his comments aligned so closely with what global education values and brings to universities like Ball State:<\/span><\/p>\n