It's be bugging me the last few days, well ever since I saw the work of the boys from Victoria College in the Design and Technology department the other evening.
All this brilliance, all these resources but what opportunity? It got me thinking about how Apple get new applications for their Ipod touch / Iphone. Apparently anyone can submit an idea and then it is evaluated by Apple and if considered good enough will be available for anyone to put on their Ipod for a fee. This is amazing use of what is known as the long tail; using the tallent of everyone to develop some of the cleverest apps.
So lets translate this to Victoria College DT department. Why not connect them with the leading furniture manufacturers of the world and should there be something created by one of the boys that is a brilliant design, that design could then be evaluated by a furniture manufacturer and if appropriate turned into production.
Everyone wins; Furniture company doesn't have overhead of full time designers; they have access to a massive pool of creativity. Great design gets rewarded - school gets recoginition; boy gets recognition; the economy gets a boost.
Can it really be that easy?
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2 comments:
David - This is an excellent concept that could easily be replicated across all 6th form colleges and schools across the UK. Perhaps what we do is create a web portal that allows schools to post a display of what topics / talent / skills / resources they believe they have to offer to industry. Industry can browse and contact the school if they want to tap into it. Likewise supportive industries could post what they are looking for. Not difficult to do technically, but will need selling to the schools and industry.
Suggest possible first step is we could see if Victoria College want to build the website that would drive it (we can help if they need it). See if they are interested in the concept, if so they plan, build and market via the web, choose the name etc. That exercise alone would be give them valuable experience in what it's like to start a "Here comes Everyone" experience. Or have I been reading too much Clay Shirky!!
That sort of thinking could lead to you becoming an economic vandal! See
walls and community
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