Creating a Culture of Innovation
MaRS coordinated a panel discussion on “Innovation and the Creative Environment” as part of the Global CONNECT Conference, featuring Adam Bly of SEED Magazine, Geoff Cape of Evergreen, David Pecaut of Toronto City Summit Alliance and BCG, and Tim Jones of Artscape. This session was unlike anything the attendees had seen at other conference events.
The group discussion, moderated by MaRS CEO Ilse Treurnicht, focused on how communities can be cultivated that foster innovation and creativity. Tim Jones, CEO of Artscape, a Toronto non-profit dedicated to cultural regeneration, talked of the need for “place-making, space-making and knowledge-creating” as part of developing the kinds of communities people want to live and work in. Geoff Cape described the Evergreen Brickworks project as a convergence facility of a different kind – focused on social entrepreneurship and the environment. Our job is to “make great places to live” since 30% of companies are located where CEOs want to live. For Cape, this statistic demonstrates how important physical space is in terms of how we live our lives, as well as for the health of our economies.
David Pecaut, citing his experience building the Toronto City Summit Alliance, focused on the importance of the “strength of weak ties” or building networks to deal with social and economic development to make great cities. According to Pecaut, there is an unmet need to nurture these networks, especially in a multicultural city like Toronto.
Adam Bly, of SEED Magazine, which combines science and culture, focused on the importance of trying to “understand the creative process of science, the human element, the psyche of the scientist” to get at the impact of creativity on this process. He said science is the “core of sustainable cities” and clusters of scientists create a culture of creativity.
“Much of the discussion at Global CONNECT was about moving important ideas of science and technology closer to the market. This panel brought a different perspective – focused on the role our communities play in attracting and retaining talent, and inspiring those talented people to do great things,” said Ilse Treurnicht. She continued: “innovation extends beyond the boundaries of science and technology, and will increasingly rely on bringing people from diverse backgrounds together to think about our complex challenges in a completely new way. The environment absolutely matters.”
The group discussion, moderated by MaRS CEO Ilse Treurnicht, focused on how communities can be cultivated that foster innovation and creativity. Tim Jones, CEO of Artscape, a Toronto non-profit dedicated to cultural regeneration, talked of the need for “place-making, space-making and knowledge-creating” as part of developing the kinds of communities people want to live and work in. Geoff Cape described the Evergreen Brickworks project as a convergence facility of a different kind – focused on social entrepreneurship and the environment. Our job is to “make great places to live” since 30% of companies are located where CEOs want to live. For Cape, this statistic demonstrates how important physical space is in terms of how we live our lives, as well as for the health of our economies.
David Pecaut, citing his experience building the Toronto City Summit Alliance, focused on the importance of the “strength of weak ties” or building networks to deal with social and economic development to make great cities. According to Pecaut, there is an unmet need to nurture these networks, especially in a multicultural city like Toronto.
Adam Bly, of SEED Magazine, which combines science and culture, focused on the importance of trying to “understand the creative process of science, the human element, the psyche of the scientist” to get at the impact of creativity on this process. He said science is the “core of sustainable cities” and clusters of scientists create a culture of creativity.
“Much of the discussion at Global CONNECT was about moving important ideas of science and technology closer to the market. This panel brought a different perspective – focused on the role our communities play in attracting and retaining talent, and inspiring those talented people to do great things,” said Ilse Treurnicht. She continued: “innovation extends beyond the boundaries of science and technology, and will increasingly rely on bringing people from diverse backgrounds together to think about our complex challenges in a completely new way. The environment absolutely matters.”
BROWSE PAGES
- MaRS Convergence: Spring 2008
- MaRS Convergence: Fall 2007
- MaRS Convergence: Winter 2006/07
- Global CONNECT Comes to MaRS
- Thinking Like a Citizen of the World
- Heritage Building Recognized
- Building a Successful Global Company
- Creating a Culture of Innovation
- Ushering in a "Medical Revolution"
- MaRS Educating Future Entrepreneurs
- Tenant Profile: AXS envisions what we can't see
- MaRS Joins Give a Day to AIDS Campaign
- MaRS and OCE Introduce Market Readiness Program
- MaRS Attracts International Attention
- MaRS Blog Takes Off
- MaRS Convergence: Fall 2006
- MaRS Convergence: Winter 2005
