Rachel Lozano Castro serves as San Diego Regional Policy & Innovation Center’s (PIC) director of innovation, managing the PIC innovation team and its portfolio of cross-sector initiatives, partnerships and programs.

A bilingual and bi-literate Spanish speaker, Rachel brings a unique set of experiences to her role at PIC, including the director of the Brink Small Business Development Center at the University of San Diego (USD), where she assisted over 1,000 entrepreneurs in growing their businesses. Rachel also helped startups raise $250 million dollars in angel investments and non-dilutive capital as well as government grants. Her efforts helped lead Brink to be named one of 10 “Inclusive Innovation Hubs” nationwide. Prior to this, she worked as the assistant director for USD’s Center for Peace and Commerce, a program that creates leadership opportunities for students through social entrepreneurship.

Rachel has received several recognitions throughout her career and was most recently honored as the 2022 Citizen Diplomat of the Year by the San Diego Diplomacy Council and a “40 Under 40” by America’s Small Business Development Center. She is also a frequent lecturer and speaker on topics relating to bi-national leadership, business, and social innovation for universities across the globe, as well as prominent programs such as TEDx.

Rachel is a graduate of San Diego State University with a master’s in public administration with a focus in Latin American studies. She also holds a bachelor’s degree in international studies from Point Loma Nazarene University.

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