Here at Haas

In this episode, we speak with ab banks, a leader at Oxford Tract Farms. ab works with the Berkeley Food Institute and on the ground with Berkeley Student Farms. An Oakland native, ab banks serves as garden lead for People’s Programs in West Oakland, grows food and ensures produce goes from the urban garden into the hands of under-resourced community members. ab was the first member to join People...

On this episode of the Here@Haas podcast, we sit down with Ana Carolina “Caro” Mexia, Co-Founding Partner at Nido Ventures and Forbes 30 Under 30 honoree. Born and raised in Mexico City, Caro blends her roots in computer science and product leadership with an MBA from Stanford to spot and support the next generation of transformative B2B technologies. Nido Ventures was founded to bridge the techno...

On this episode of the Here@Haas podcast, meet Dave Alberga, a former Army officer and successful founder, CEO, and investor who sits on several boards.  Dave has assisted in the launch of numerous start-up organizations and in their growth into large companies, including leading The Active Network from pre-revenue to $480M in annual sales, and a $1B exit for investors. Prior to Active, Dave serve...

In the Leading People class at UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business, students step beyond the classroom to interview leaders who inspire them. Working in teams, they record in-depth conversations and transform them into compelling podcast episodes. Each episode features a different leader, sharing real stories, challenges, and insights on what leadership truly means—guided by the fresh perspectiv...

In this episode of Here@Haas, Michele and Vance kick off a new faculty series with one of Haas’ most celebrated educators: Distinguished Teaching Fellow Greg LaBlanc. Known for his dynamic classes on strategy, game theory, and behavioral finance, and for his influential podcast, unSILOed, Greg shares how an early Montessori education shaped his interdisciplinary curiosity, the unconventional acade...

In this episode of Here@Haas , we sit down with the remarkable Jeep Kline — Haas lecturer, founder and managing partner of Raise Well Ventures , and former World Bank economist whose career spans deep-tech venture capital, global economic development, and transformative leadership. Jeep shares her journey from growing up in Bangkok during the 1997 Asian Financial Crisis, to advising ministers of f...

In this inspiring episode, Vance and Michele sit down with Ravi Malhotra , a second-year MBA student in the EW program at Haas and Corporate Controller at HeartBeam. From his humble beginnings in India to leading finance operations in Silicon Valley, Ravi shares his remarkable journey of grit, purpose, and continuous learning. Ravi dives deep into what sparked his passion for accounting, why he pu...

In this episode of Here@Haas, we sit down with the multi-talented and dynamic Paramee Intarachumnum —Executive MBA student, Vice President of Social for her cohort, and co-founder of Invex, an investment platform bridging high-quality tech deals with Asian investors. From launching a mentoring startup to building a chicken farm school for underprivileged youth in Thailand, Paramee shares her remar...

In this episode, hosts Vance and Michele welcome Lucia Casella , an engineer turned MBA student at Berkeley Haas, to discuss her experiences in the Evening Weekend MBA (EWMBA) program. As a member of the LUX 2026 cohort and the VP of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Justice, Belonging (DEIJB), and Mental Health Awareness (MHA), Lucia shares insights into balancing a career, academics, and leadership...

In this episode of Here at Haas , hosts Vance and Michele welcome Claudia Viña Vazquez, a second-year full-time MBA student at Berkeley Haas and the former president of the MBA Association. Originally from Spain, Claudia shares her journey from studying in Europe to pursuing an MBA in the U.S., how she adapted to life in the Bay Area, and why she ultimately chose Haas—even though it wasn’t her fir...

H@H Ep 79: Xan Wood , current FTMBA student at the Haas School of Business talks to hosts Ameya Purandare and Marissa Maliwanag about tech, venture capital, private equity, and much more. In this episode, we explore the Berkeley entrepreneurship ecosystem, the need for a venture fund dedicated to Berkeley Entrepreneurs, the formation of Courtyard Ventures Fund 2, and many other things.     On Cour...

H@H: AtB Ep 7 – In this episode, Nate Pola, Director of Programming @ Berkeley Blockchain Xcelerator and Defi Governance and Stakeholder Incentives Researcher talks to Paul Bryzek about his love for teaching, his interest in crypto, and how it culminated in him revamping the edX courses as the director of programming for Blockchain at Berkeley B@B. Nate and Paul further discuss all things blockcha...

H@H: Ep 78 - Dr. Kurt Beyer , Haas lecturer specializing in Entrepreneurship and Innovation, Navy veteran, and founder of the California Innovation Fund chats with host Paulina Lee on her last episode for Here@Haas (originally recorded in Spring 2022). Dr. Beyer shares his journey to Haas from flying planes to writing a book to his first start-up to teaching at Haas and everything in between. This...

H@H: AtB Ep 6 – On this episode, Nick Helgeson , MBA 2022 and Johnny Antos , MBA 2022 a senior developer at Prysm Group (a consulting firm specializing in the economics of emerging technologies, particularly in the blockchain space), chat with Paul Bryzek . They share how they stumbled into the crypto ecosystem, the Web3 speaker series they created on the Haas campus, and what’s in store for the f...

H@H: AtB Ep 5 – Electrical Engineering & Computer Science (EECS) and Senior Product manager from Blockchain @ Berkeley James Dai chats with hosts  Paulina Lee  and  Paul Bryzek and shares his blockchain expertise as a seasoned blockchain developer. His diverse experiences and collaboration with The Berkeley Center for Responsible, Decentralized Intelligence (RDI), in collaboration with Profess...

H@H: AtB Ep 4 – Partner at NGC Ventures Andrea Chang chats with hosts  Paulina Lee  and  Paul Bryzek and shares her industry insights as a crypto VC. Andrea is a graduating full-time 2022 MBA originally from Taiwan who moved to California to attend Haas. She previously lived in Singapore and worked at Goldman Sachs doing equity research for a few years. Later she joined NGC Ventures, one of the la...

Taking the time to come to Haas and do an MBA can be an incredible opportunity for exploration and introspection, especially for those of us that are interested in sustainability and social impact. But the task of figuring out what you want to do next and how you want to make an impact can feel daunting at times. With that in mind, we’ll be delving into the question: “how might we chart our path a...

Once you have your MBS and certificate, how do you translate that knowledge into the working world and make some lasting change? Today we are joined by a couple of very special Haas MBA alumni that have developed their careers in sustainability with very different paths. We will hear from Tracy Gray who is a Haas MBA alumni class of 2007. She is the Founder and Managing Partner at The 22 Fund, the...

H@H: AtB Ep 3 – Co-Founder of Two Grahams Capital, LLC Graham Bode , current Haas student soon to graduate, chats with hosts  Paulina Lee  and  Paul Bryzek . Graham shares his Haas story, an entrepreneurial journey including quitting his cushy corporate job to pursue his own ventures full time. He initially was very skeptical of the entire space, but quickly became immersed with blockchain technol...

In this episode, we talk to two faculty members who are driving the effort to integrate sustainability and social impact topics into the curriculum at Haas through both the core curriculum and electives. Dave Rochlin, the Executive Director of the Innovation, Creativity, and Design Practice at Berkeley Haas joins us first. He teaches a new applied innovation elective called Designing Tech for Good...

Haas has launched the Michaels Graduate Certificate in Sustainable Business to empower new leaders to create the economic and social transition to a climate-resilient, low-carbon, and equitable future. The Michaels Certificate in Sustainable Business will equip aspiring leaders to evaluate operational and strategic decisions using a sustainability lens. In this episode, we’ll hear from Kat Baird,...

Welcome to Sustainability at Haas mini series, a podcast looking at how the UC Berkeley Haas School of Business is shaping the next generation of sustainable business leaders. In 5 episodes, we will share with you perspectives from the Dean, faculty, students, alumni, and staff about how UC Berkeley is developing sustainability in its core.  For our first episode, we have two very special guests:...

H@H: AtB Ep 2 – Co-presidents of Blockchain @ Berkeley Darya Kaviani and Ratan Kaliani , some of the most connected blockchain students who can be found across campus, chat with hosts Paulina Lee and Paul Bryzek and share their extensive knowledge in the Blockchain space. Like a fire hose, these guests provide a fast stream of knowledge on tap! This episode is packed with blockchain fundamentals,...

H@H: AtB Ep 1 -  Professor Maura O'Neill  chats with hosts  Paulina Lee  and  Paul Bryzek  to share her extensive expertise and knowledge in the Blockchain space, originating with her early work in mobile money payments as she served as Chief Innovation Officer under the Obama Administration. Listen as Professor O’Neill takes us on a journey through the web3 space, how geo-political events inc...

Welcome to Around the Block @ Haas, a Here@Haas podcast focused on all things Blockchain on Berkeley's campus. Meet your co-hosts, Paulina Lee and Paul Bryzek!