Blog (page 39)

Recap – Hub Progress to Date

Headshot of smiling woman with red hair in grey topBy Julia Smeed, Innovation Hub Project Lead

We are so excited to launch the Innovation Hub blog to provide a space for dialogue about innovative mindsets and methodologies and to document the story of the Hub.  Over the past two months we’ve been busy identifying our domains for innovation and preparing to build the Innovation Hub teams.  I’d like to first take this opportunity to say a huge thank you to the hundreds of students, staff and faculty who were part of this process.  It’s been so wonderful to work collaboratively and I am so excited to continue this work with you!

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Creating the Domains for Innovation

Headshot of smiling woman with red hair in grey topBy Julia Smeed, Innovation Hub Project Lead

Since the launch and the Day of Learning, our five Domains for Innovation have been evolving.  A team of over 30 Ambassadors continued this work which led to six versions of the domains for innovation.  We are so pleased to say that thanks to all of the input and feedback from the community, we have landed on the following five domains:

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Innovation Hour – July and August

The Innovation Hour is an informal morning coffee hour for staff, faculty & students who are interested in learning more about the Innovation Hub and sharing innovative ideas that will enhance the student experience at the University of Toronto.  It’s a chance to chat with colleagues about where innovation is already happening, to learn more about the Innovation Hub and to brainstorm opportunities for innovation.  Hub updates will be provided during these meetings.

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Celebrating Failure

Headshot of smiling woman with red hair in grey topBy Julia Smeed, Innovation Hub Project Lead

The University of Toronto is home to some of Canada’s most famous research, discoveries and inventions.  It’s important to remember, however, that these successes were often preceded by many failures. The Innovation Hub seeks to create a culture where failure is allowed, and even encouraged in the creative process.  Our failures spark curiosity and allow us to learn.  Failure propels us towards innovation!

There are so many great reasons to fail!  Just take the advice of businessman, engineer & inventor Elon Musk:

Elon Musk Quote: "Failure is an option here. If things are not failing, you are not innovating enough" #CNBC25 - Elon Musk in an interview with Fast Company.

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Day of Learning – June 16, 2016

On June 16th we continued our learning with a focus on learning how innovative methodologies from a wide variety of industries might be applied to the student experience at U of T.  Speakers included many of our own faculty/staff from some of the most innovative areas of U of T and colleagues from the community who are doing some great work in this space.  You can check out our Google Drive folder for more details about the Day of Learning and a collection of some of the presentations.  We wrapped up the day with a very human-centred debrief time on the Cumberland House Lawn.

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Innovation Hub Launch – May 16th, 2016

We launched the Innovation Hub on May 16th at Chestnut.  This was a great day where we over 260 students, staff and faculty gathered to explore the mindset of innovation and discuss how we can bring innovation to the student experience at University of Toronto.  our AVP of Student Life, Lucy Fromowitz, reminded us that our role is to “hold the door open” for students.  She shared about the incredible innovation that is already happening across the University and encouraged us to explore ways to deepen our collaborations to explore how “when we work together the sum is much greater than the individual parts”.

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