Innovation in Mind

Eat, pray, love

Fredrik Häglund — Thu, 17 May 2012 19:24:43 +0000

Elizabeth Gilbert delivers a fascinating speech about how all of us have a dimension in “the self” that will enable us to become a creative genius. In so doing she demystifies the creative process. Well worth 19 minutes of your life. Watch it!

Is Innovation hope?

Fredrik Häglund — Wed, 16 May 2012 17:08:57 +0000

Do innovations matter? Of course they do. 75 years ago we did not have effective antibiotics, jet engines, commercial television, computers and to travel between Europe and USA took five days by boat. Today we live longer, we are more than five times as productive, we have fiber optics, mobile phones and business life has changed with such innovative solutions as credit cards and more venture capital. All within the course of roughly 75 years. But for many people the most sought after solutions concern things such as improved healthcare, food and peace. They simply wish that new technology, new ideas and new solutions will provide them, in all essence, with a better life. For them innovation is not a dispute of how to define the term. No it is work that transcends boundaries and provide glimpses of hope. For in a world that sometimes is characterized by uncertainty, cynicism, false promises and war, people realize that if they have nothing else, they will always have hope that things will change. And above all innovation is about change. Although innovation can be many things, and currently we have a proliferation of definitions, I would argue that innovation management essentially is about providing the conditions for hope to materialise. Imagine that.

Who is John Kao?

Arne Berge — Tue, 08 May 2012 10:41:45 +0000

He was dubbed “Mr. Creativity” by The Economist. He is chairman of the Institute for Large Scale Innovation and calls himself an innovation activist. He has also played keybords with Frank Zappa. We´re proud to welcome John Kao as one of the moderators of Innovation in Mind 2012. Watch his appearance on The Colbert Report here!

Enter the Softspot!

Arne Berge — Mon, 07 May 2012 10:50:49 +0000

Unique and world renowned Museum of Public art, a stone´s throw from the University Quadrangle, will be the venue of exciting meetings between art and science during Innovation in Mind 2012. A great place to meet with innovative minds. Grab a bite, have something to drink and join in!

Student? Win a free ticket!

Arne Berge — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 08:34:47 +0000

Innovation in Mind is a meeting point for innovators of today and tomorrow – and of course we don´t forget the students! Take the chance to win one of 20 free tickets to one of this year´s most exciting events by filling out a simple form. The winners will be picked out in a lottery and notified by email latest one month prior to the event. The free tickets include everything included in Innovation in Mind 13-14 September – conference, meals, documentation etc. Travel costs and accommodation are NOT included.

Fill out the form here. Hope to see you in Lund 13-14 September!

The hottest spot in Europe

Simon Fransson — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 09:00:57 +0000

At Innovation in Mind, you will meet the people that have made it, as well as great innovators of tomorrow – the young generation. This is a great chance to scan the horizons for new opportunities, to see and understand the great challenges and discover how they can be solved. One of the aims of the event is to create a meeting point for ideas, knowledge and experience at the crossroads between science, culture, business and the public sector. On September 13–14, the historic university quadrangle, and the ”science strip” of Lund will be the hottest innovation spot in Europe. Don’t miss it!

”We want more!”

Simon Fransson — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 09:00:15 +0000

Encouraged by three years of success, this year’s Innovation in Mind will offer even more parallel activities in addition to the plenary sessions. Last year, more than 700 people took part in workshops, open forums and more around different innovation-related topics, and the message was clear: ”We want more!”. Stay in touch for updated information about the parallel options of Innovation in Mind 2012. The program will be released in April.

Behind the Conference Hall…

Arne Berge — Wed, 14 Sep 2011 22:16:01 +0000

…there is a bunch of crazy architect students doing crazy stuff with electric tubes. You’ve probably seen us running around with pen and paper during your coffee breaks. Maybe you have even been interviewed by us. So, what are we actually doing?

We might not think that architecture affect our ability to be creative and innovative. But many of you who have been interviewed said that light, a calm place where you feel relaxed, changing scenery, meetings with other people and new surroundings are important components to be able to generate new thoughts and ideas. To us, this has very much to do with the spatial structures, don’t you agree? So, the question we have asked ourselves and want to ask you is; can space affect or even improve innovation? In that case, how?

Inspired by your thoughts about what makes you creative and innovative, we have tried to create innovative spaces, space where ideas can occur, develop and be shared. What kind of spaces generates innovation? Your thoughts about innovation and space have been translated by us into the enormous creation you will see at 13.15 in the University Building!

Clouded privacy

Fredrik Häglund — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 15:34:13 +0000

The buzzword of buzzwords is currently “the cloud”. Sometimes it is portrayed as if the cloud will solve most of our problems. The use of the cloud also brings forth the issue of access vs. ownership. The cloud will not only be used to store things you already own, it will also act as an important distribution hub for various types of content, not to mention the information we ourselves upload, for instance through social media. But what happens to our privacy when we do this? And what incentives do companies that run their businesses in the cloud have to protect the privacy of their customers? Is it even in their best interest to do so? Services like Spotify, Voddler and Facebook argue that people increasingly value access over ownership. An aspect of this is that whenever we decide to consume some kind of media our choices and preferences are recorded by the provider. Gradually we become profiled and that information is highly valuable in terms of marketing and customized offers. It is with the profiles of Facebook’s 750 million users that the real value lies. But if users decided to protect their personal information to a greater extent the value of that body of users will diminish. Issues have therefore over the years been raised about Facebook’s strategies on how users are encouraged to share their information. Last year at D8 Mark Zuckerberg was interviewed on stage by Walt Mossberg and Kara Swisher. During the months leading up to the conference the issue of privacy on the internet had been heavily debated in newspapers and other media outlets. Not least was it discussed that many users complained about Facebook’s overly complex privacy settings. I believe the problems Mark Zuckerberg had in answering the questions says something fundamental about how issues of privacy is looked upon and treated by the cloud companies. As is pointed out in the second clip below (yes I know it is fiction…:) privacy will be a huge issue over the coming decades and as such we should not treat it lightly.

Innovation in Mind – a vibrant meeting point

Arne Berge — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 13:08:15 +0000

As we see the giant tent, seating 450, rising in front of the university building we can conclude: registration has closed and it will be crowded…again! And Innovation in Mind will not be the only innovation-oriented event taking place in the University Quadrangle of Lund 14-15 September. Other examples are two hands-on workshops dealing with different aspects on creating innovative environments, and the annual Qday – an event for the still curious. Altogether, these events comprise around 750 people with innovation in mind. And in the evening of the 14th the events will merge into an evening of inspiration, fulfilling two of the central aims for Innovation in Mind – to serve as a meeting point at the interfaces between different ideas, backgrounds and fields of knowledge – and to have a lot of fun. Welcome!