General Questions

What is the Unreasonable Institute?

We are an organization dedicated to one thing: giving high-impact social entrepreneurs wings. We do this by attracting up to 25 high-impact, young social entrepreneurs from across the globe and uniting them at a ten-week summer institute in Boulder, Colorado. Dubbing them “Unreasonable Fellows,” we incubate and accelerate their ventures with rigorous skill training and involved guidance from expert mentors. Once their ventures gain traction, we connect our Fellows with seed capital and a global network of support. Ultimately, our goal is to provide high-impact social entrepreneurs with everything they need to give their ventures wings. Click here to see our entire model drawn out.

Where is Unreasonable based?

We are based in the beautiful city of Boulder, Colorado USA. (ranked in 2008 as the most intelligent city in the United States by Forbes Magazine). Boulder has a thriving start-up entrepreneurial climate, a world-class university (recently named a Changemaker Campus by Ashoka U), and is becoming a true Mecca for innovation and early stage investment. We are proud to call Boulder our home.

Why did you choose the name "Unreasonable Institute?”

The name is based on a quotation by George Bernard Shaw: "The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists in adapting the world to himself. Therefore, all progress depends on the unreasonable man [and woman]." Plus, it’s a hard name to forget.

Who’s behind the program and why are you doing this?

We are a group of young and highly unreasonable people, who faced the beauty and challenges of starting our own companies in the past. Realizing that there was a lack of support for early stage social ventures, it was our impatience that led us to create the Unreasonable Institute. We firmly believe that we cannot afford to send the next generation of innovators and leaders into the world ill prepared to meet the challenges and issues we all face. It is our shared belief that entrepreneurship is the answer to nearly all the issues we face, that led us to create the Unreasonable Institute. Click here to see our individual team member bio's.

How does the Unreasonable Institute meet the requirements of an Unreasonable Venture?

Our main internal revenue mechanism comes from the $6,500 USD in sponsorship capital that each fellow is awarded to attend the Summer Institutes. In addition to these funds, our secondary income stream comes from the Unreasonable Conference, which is a culminating event of the Institute. These two revenue streams allow us to cover all of our operational costs within 1 year and in turn, give us the ability to scale within 3 years. Our model is designed to support others in reaching at least 1 million people. Ultimately we aim to reach the needs of millions people per batch of fellows.

Are you looking for investors?

We are currently looking for a founding sponsor of the Unreasonable Institute and if you are intrigued, please feel free to contact us. As for investors, we’re not looking for investors in Unreasonable itself, but you're welcome to invest in the ventures we incubate. The culminating event of the Unreasonable Institute is a 2 day Unreasonable Conference / Pitch Fest. At this venue, all Unreasonable Fellows will showcase their ventures to an audience of investors and philanthropists in an effort to secure funding opportunities. The Unreasonable Conference will be held in Boulder Colorado on August 7th and 8th, 2010.

Eligibility Questions

What sorts of companies do you work with?

We incubate and accelerate Unreasonable Ventures. An Unreasonable Venture, aside from being fueled by an unreasonable idea that effectively addresses a social or environmental problem, must meet three criteria. It must be able to cover its costs independently of external funding within 1 year (i.e. internal revenue generating mechanisms). It must be able to scale beyond its country of origin with 3 years. And finally, it must be able to reach the needs at least 1 million people.

Do you accept for-profit and non-profit ventures?

Yes. We make certain that all ventures we incubate have an internal revenue mechanism that covers their costs of operations. Their legal structure; whether for-profit or non-for-profit, is not a concern of ours. So yes, as long as you are selling a product or service that generates sufficient revenue to cover your costs of operations, we will work with your for-profit or your non-profit venture.

You say that “this is not charity” but you work with non-profit organizations?

We do NOT accept charitable or donation based non-profit models into our summer institutes. If your venture is a not-for-profit organization, its internal revenue (not revenue from donations or grants) must cover operational costs. We accept non-profits that meet this standard because for us, the question is not about what legal identity your venture is, but rather how much impact you can create. Often times, Unreasonable Ventures find that by incorporating as a not-for-profit they are able to better work with governments, universities, and other partners to scale more rapidly as well as receive in-kind support, and apply for certain funds limited only to non-profit organizations.

We are a founding team, can our entire team attend the Institute in Boulder?

We encourage, and in fact we require that you have a team in order to be accepted as an Unreasonable Fellow. With that said, although we want to know all about your team and what makes you the best at what you do, we will only accept one founding member per venture to attend the Unreasonable Institute in Boulder, CO. Our rationale behind this is to guarantee that while one founder is attending the Institute, they will have at least one team member back on the ground, interacting with their market, developing and testing prototypes in their home country.

I’m a single founder. Can I get accepted into the Unreasonable Institute or do you only look for teams?

We only accept and work with teams. Every Unreasonable Venture must have at least two team members working on the venture. We will accept one of your team members to attend the Unreasonable Institute in Boulder, CO, and the others will be directly interacting with their market and customers on the ground in their country of origin. We require this to ensure that while at the Institute, a venture can create prototypes, gain market feedback, and does not lose touch with their prospective customers. We will help facilitate streamlined communication between you, while at the Institute, and your team members abroad.

How do I improve my chances of becoming an Unreasonable Fellow.

A committee will select the finalists. We are looking for brilliant entrepreneurs that meet the requirements of all Unreasonable Ventures. But most importantly, for us, it’s about the team. The best things you can do to strengthen your application are:

• Create a team with business, technical, engineering, and other necessary skills.
• Make progress on your prototype or product and reference it in the application.
• Show us you’ve really thought about your venture and that you have taken actionable steps to do something about it.

Is my age a factor in your selection process?

Our focus is 20-30 year old social entrepreneurs. But it's not a hard and fast rule. We're after systemic social change and we hope to support that in whatever way possible and potentially across different age ranges. We believe, however, that there are barriers for entry for young social entrepreneurs in their twenties and that an Institute like ours fills a unique, under-served niche. We also believe that it is the members of this demographic who are on the verge of taking the reigns of the world's future and that we cannot afford to send them into the world unprepared to deal with increasingly urgent global threats like poverty, climate change, and disease.

Do I need to send in a business plan?

No. You will create an Executive Summary as part of the application process as well as answer a few questions so that we can better get to know you and your team. Aside from the standard application process, we do not accept additional outside materials such as a business plan, unless we specifically ask you for them.

Can I apply if I’m not from the United States?

Yes, yes and yes. Not only can you apply, we are dedicated to attracting entrepreneurs from around the world, so please do apply. We firmly believe that the issues we face today are global and that they demand an international audience. We select high-impact social entrepreneurs from every corner of the world.

Is my company too early (or late) stage to apply to Unreasonable?

Almost nothing is too early. We will accept ventures that are in idea stage as long as the idea has a high-impact potential and the team can prove to us that they will see it through. Typically, we prefer to work with ventures that have a prototype to market, but we do not require it. We also work with early stage ventures looking to scale beyond country of origin or to redefine their financial model. We will even work with well-established ventures that are looking to make the leap from being a reasonable organization to an unreasonable enterprise.

Do you require entrepreneurial experience?

We are looking for a relentless entrepreneurial spirit in all Unreasonable Fellows. This does not mean that you must have already founded a company or organization; but we do appreciate this level of experience. What it does mean is that we are looking for people who are resilient to failure and persist through the challenges. If you haven’t created a venture in the past, and if your current organization isn’t already established, you will have to prove to us that your entrepreneurial spirit is relentless and we are excited to put you to the challenge. Click here for more information on what characteristics we look for in all Unreasonable Fellows.

I have a great idea for a startup, but I lack the technical or the engineering expertise to make it a reality. Will you still accept me into the Institute? Can you help me find programmers or engineers to implement my idea?

We will only accept teams that have both the vision and the technical skill needed to make your idea a reality. Unfortunately, as of yet, we are solely dedicated to accelerating and supporting our Unreasonable Fellows so we do not have the extra time to help you identify and find programmers and engineers. But once you do, make certain you apply! Instead of us connecting you with a stranger, we recommend that you find one yourself through your personal network, as teams thrown together without much consideration, usually fall apart.

My English is not very good. Can I still apply?

We are an international organization and understand that not everyone who attends will be proficient in English. With that said, seeing that the Institute will be run in English, you will need to be able to read, write, and speak English well. Within the next three years we look forward to scaling outside of North America and to the potential of running Institutes in different languages.

Applying Questions

How much does it cost to attend the Unreasonable Institute?

The costs for attending the Unreasonable Institute are $6,500 USD but you cannot pay to attend. Rather, individuals and organizations from all across the globe will get to select and fund you online to attend the Institute. For details on the costs and selection process, click here.

Why don’t you let your applicants pay the program costs?

There are three reasons we don’t let our applicants pay the program costs of the institute. First of all, we don’t want to deter applicants because of the cost of the program. Second of all, we don’t want to deter the best potential applicants who view the price of attending our Summer Institute as a large opportunity cost to funding their own ventures. Thirdly, we believe that the market selects the best ideas by providing individuals the opportunity to vote with their dollars.

Why don’t you provide your Fellows full-ride scholarships?

To quote International Development Enterprises founder Paul Polak, “it’s not about ideology, it’s about what works.” Enabling our fellows to achieve sponsorship instead of giving them free-ride scholarships to the institute ensures that our Fellows have a great sense of ownership, support, excitement, and accountability. Rather than just receiving a full ride scholarship, each Fellow who attends the institute will do so knowing that a group of people believes in them and their ventures enough to sponsor their full costs of attending Unreasonable.

What is the Finalist Marketplace and how do I become selected?

Out of all applications received we will select entrepreneurs with the most high-impact potential. These entrepreneurs will become Unreasonable Finalists. The profile of each Finalist and their venture will be posted on our online “Finalist Marketplace”, dedicated to finding them sponsorship. In order to be selected as an Unreasonable Fellow, a Finalist will need to be fully sponsored by the general public for the $6,500 program fee.

When is the deadline to apply and what’s the overall timeline?

Applications will open up on November 15th 2009. The application deadline for the Summer 2010 Institute is December 15th. The Finalist Marketplace will open up on December 15th, and on January 31st we will announce the participants of the 2010 Summer Institute. The Institute will begin May 28th and will culminate with an Unreasonable Conference and a pitch fest on August 7th and 8th. For a more comprehensive timeline, click here.

When will I know if I’ve been accepted into the Unreasonable Institute?

We will announce up to 25 Unreasonable Fellows of our inaugural 2010 summer institute on January 31st.

What Happens at the Institute Questions

What will a typical day be like for an Unreasonable Fellow?

A typical day will start with you waking up in the Unreasonable Mansion alongside selected social entrepreneurs from around the world. For the first 5 weeks of the Institute we will have 2 to 3 hour morning skill training sessions focused on both interpersonal and professional entrepreneurial skill development. The second five weeks will provide Unreasonable Fellows the opportunity to learn by doing by interacting with relevant companies Each week you will get to lead creative workshops and un-conferences, designed to answer your questions and meet your needs. Every evening for the entirety of the Institute you will get to learn from the best by engaging in a dialogue with our expert mentors. In the end, it’s your company, and we’ll provide all the time you need to work on your product or service. What to learn more... check out the details here.

How does the Unreasonable Institute provide capital for the ventures you incubate?

Our Finalist Marketplace will provide you with the seed funding needed to attend the Unreasonable Institute for the 10 week program but you will most likely need more funding to give your social venture wings. The culminating event for the Unreasonable Institute will be our Unreasonable Conference / Pitch Fest. At the conference we will unite a community of over 150 philanthropists and socially minded investors to explore the social capital investments into early stage social ventures. These investors and philanthropists will come from all over the country to learn about your venture and to listen to your pitch. We’ll coach you so you’re as effective as possible, and do everything we can to help get the capital your venture needs to take flight. Furthermore, after the Institute we will showcase your venture on an online marketplace dedicated to connecting you with potential funders.

Where will we live while we’re in Boulder?

You will live in the Unreasonable Mansion in the heart of Boulder, CO. Ten weeks of living and working under the same roof will turn into a factory for high-impact ventures. Nightly, we will share a dinner together in the company of that evening’s mentor. At Unreasonable, we firmly believe in the importance of physical space for the incubation and support of early stage ventures and we know that creativity and brilliance shows up at all hours of the day and night. Living under the same roof only encourages the highest levels of collaboration and innovation. The house will be bordering the University of Colorado where we will lead many of our discussions, skill training session, and workshops.

Do I have to stay in Boulder for the entire 10 week Institute?

If you are accepted as an Unreasonable Fellow, arguably the most significant value you will receive is from the 10 week summer Institute. Knowing that you were selected from hundreds of entrepreneurs around the world, we ask that you attend the full 10 weeks of the summer institute. With that said, it’s your venture and if you have exceptional opportunities, meetings, or conferences that you believe will further your efforts you can certainly travel to them while at the Institute.

Who can I contact if I have more questions?

Please feel to contact us at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or contact anyone one of our team members by clicking here.