A team from Boise State University will compete in San Francisco on March 1-2 for a chance to secure $1 million in startup funding to launch a sustainable social venture.

The team is one of 42 that advanced to the regional finals of the fourth annual Hult Prize. In a partnership with the Clinton Global Initiative, the Hult Prize is the world's largest student competition aimed at solving the world's most pressing challenges.

The 2013 prize is intended to help provide safe, sufficient, affordable and easily accessible food to an estimated 200 million people who live in urban slums. This challenge was chosen by former President Bill Clinton, who will award the prize.

The Boise State students, dubbed Team Spherical Life, are Scott Blades, Kelly Suter, Neha Sharma and Concepcion Yeng Chi Morel, all full-time students in Boise State's Career Start MBA program; and Don Sturtevant, an executive at J.R. Simplot Co. who is enrolled in the part-time MBA program.

They will be among student teams competing in five cities around the world. The other cities are Boston, London, Dubai and Shanghai.

The winning team from the regional finals will move into a summer business incubator to receive mentorship, advice and strategic planning as team members create prototypes for their businesses. The final round of competition will occur at the Clinton Global Initiative annual meeting in September.