Innovation

Collaboration not Competition

An Innovation, Technology & Design Summit recently took place in Sydney, with the goal of businesses sharing their efforts and contributions towards sustainability. A lot came out of the many sessions which took place with a range of topics including fashion, technology, medicine and health care, food, packaging, transport, circularity and manufacturing. Understanding further about the capacity for businesses to make contributions to a sustainable future was really valuable and is something which should be promoted more. A key finding which came out of the summit, which was reflected in many sessions and topics, was the concept of having collaborators and not competitors. Typically, a lot of development within communities and around the world is often associated with the not-for-profit sector and with charities. Whilst it’s good to have the work that’s being done with many development organisations, I think it can be limiting to have it exclusive to just these spaces. With a growing awareness about climate change, global warming, pollution and waste now is the time to innovate and share the responsibility of a sustainable planet and future, beyond the not-for-profit sector. A panellist at one of the sessions at the summit highlighted their thoughts around business models and shared their belief of approaching work with the mindset of “we don’t have competitors, we have collaborators”. Rethinking development in this way is a conscious shift from a model of aggression and rivalry to partnership and team work. It’s great to encourage businesses to support and align themselves with charities or important causes however, increasing awareness as to how businesses can make modifications and reduce things like their carbon footprint, with the goods or services which they produce, may make more of an impact. For example, the summit was informative of enhancing awareness about the detrimental impact which food packaging has on the planet. I was surprised to hear that food packaging can cause more harm to the environment than animal production for consumption and travelling by aeroplane. Whilst today I feel that people are generally quite informed about environmental degradation, being informed across a wider range of things which harm the planet and people, which have the most harmful affect like food packaging, can highlight areas where businesses can be more involved in making modifications to their outputs. In terms of greater individual responsibility fashion and waste was brought up. Today there are increased rates of consumption and production of clothes. The concept of how something can be reused and what people now are calling “preloved” clothes was discussed. How people can learn about proper care for their clothes so that countless items don’t continue to end up in landfill each year is the goal; or when clothes no longer serve a purpose to ensure that they are donated and not thrown away. Overall, whether there is work done at the individual or organisational level to contribute to a more sustainable world, success will be achieved through more collaborative action; where the outputs are focused on sustainability directly.

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Welcome to Stepford!

The film ‘The Stepford Wives’ examines a number of important issues in terms of gender equality and women’s liberation. I remember hearing the term ‘Stepford wife’ prior to seeing the film, prompting me to watch it. I was interested in how women’s rights were explored by designing women as robots subservient to their husbands. Whilst the film explores the idea and practise of forced submission to a power figure within marriages and as a community, it’s a model which I’ve noticed filtered throughout society in other ways. The film also explores the concept of diversity, how the idea of someone being different, relative to the group norm, is condemned. In the film condemnation is expressed through a pseudo welcoming, to then encourage force moulding of the outsider wife into a robot. This concept of diversity, along with The Stepford Wives, remains extremely relevant today in many settings. Rarely is there a genuine appreciation and respect for people’s differences. There is so much emphasis in the social conversation of diversity about ethnic, religious, class, gender, sexuality, age and disability diversity and having this physically represented within spaces. This is not to say that this diversity is not important, it absolutely is and I even find that diversity amongst these groups is not effectively executed. What I am more referring to is genuine diversity amongst people where inclusion of certain groups or people is uncomfortable, or requires creative change to include them. For example, when modifications need to be made to effectively include people so that they can apply themselves and reach their full potential; whilst successfully contributing to a group’s goals. I recently read a post on LinkedIn about an experience of a young lady who was trying to gain employment but continued to face barriers of employers who were unwilling to accommodate someone in a wheelchair. Unfortunately, unwillingness to make positive changes for people is riddled in many spaces. The COVID-19 pandemic shed light on issues where inclusion of certain people is more uncommon. For example, people suffering with mental illness and managing mental health, and people who have more unique and introverted personality types. What became clear was that society and workplaces are often structured and catered to accommodate more extroverted personalities. Much of the mental health care which was provided from employers during the pandemic was to ensure that people were managing ok with lockdowns and the lack of social mobility. Whilst it is a positive thing to see improved access to mental health care services, mental illness is rampant outside of a global pandemic. I often hear how mental illness and mental health care is more accepted today however, in instances where modifications need to be made to someone’s schedule, environment or way of living, it can sometimes be more unaccepted or perceived as an inconvenience. Similarly, the pandemic saw plenty of people working from home which was quite energising for many introverts out there. This sort of flexibility is something which should be respected a lot more. The genuine appreciation for diversity is also the creation of environments and spaces which allow people to reach their full potential. In turn ultimately benefiting the organisation or group which someone is part of. Modifications for people can be so simple and overall contribute to wellbeing. For many people having the ability to work from home can allow them to properly focus on objectives and work to their maximum potential, as they are separate from social politics and distractions. This sort of setting should be better understood as productive and not as disinterest in the organisation, group or people. An enhanced understanding about personality types and what they need is essential for sustainable relationships. If working from home meant that a person was able to maintain their personal wellness and uphold the best work performance for themselves, then this should be valued and permitted. The wellbeing and sustainability of people is critical in achieving goals, maintaining healthy relationships and generating positive output. Overall, the Stepford model of forced moulding for everyone to be the same is outdated and unproductive. Modifications is a key element of success and should be highly regarded as a tool for organisational and personal success.

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