Inspiration to learn about yourself

During the #openfood campaign and hackdays in Lausanne and Zürich in Switzerland, I heard / read / saw relatively little about people working on hacking / rethinking / improving farming. There was one initiative, though, that I found fascinating: OpenFarm, using which you can see on a map where local food producers are located. Read more about it here   and here . In this posting, I would like to offer some more  inspiration on farming innovation - in terms of research I have done on the topic.  What interests me is not least how we can use technology to create more value in farming / agriculture.   Just so you know it, I grew up and have lived in cities for most of my life, so I have relatively little experience with farming / agriculture. In other words, please go a little easy on me when / if you give me feedback ;-) Happy reading.

At a #makezurich event the other day at Impact Hub Zürich , I had a fascinating talk with a couple of people from India. They had some brilliant ideas, I think, related to recycling. I understood that they wanted to measure, for example, when containers at the recycling spaces / "Sammelstellen"   are ready to be picked up. During a short brainstorming session right in front of boxes with different sensors in one of the workshop rooms at the event space, we ping-ponged a few ideas about what sensors would be relevant to use for the task. One person had an idea to use some kind of a light sensor that measures when things, that people put in the containers, have reached the top of the containers - meaning that the light from one side of a container to the other side of the container would be permanently interrupted / blocked. Another had an idea to use a sensor measuring weight. As we chatted about this idea, we talked about that that would probably work quite well for glass....

In  this report , I read that measurements play a key role in the innovation process. To develop new and improved products and processes, we look for, for example,  improvements in quality or performance. It could be cleaner air.  reductions in inefficiency / waste. It could be a reduction in the amount of energy a lamp uses to light up a certain space.  use of new materials or techniques. It could be road materials that help us generate energy when we walk / drive on them. To get this information, we need appropriate measurement support. Reading  this blog posting , I read that measurements help give us feedback to use for continuous improvement . Just as we all need to give feedback to our colleagues, users, friends, partners and other people around us, so we can help each other improve competencies, we need to get feedback from technologies so we know what is changing, how we are progressing / advancing.  In this regard, I come to think of Duoli...

At nextzürich I noticed that a large number of ideas have been communicated about making Zürich a more bicycle friendly city. So as I saw this invitation   to the event Nextsalon Velocity ,   I decided to participate to help contribute to making Zürich a more bicycle friendly city. At the event , I found it very interesting to share ideas with other participants about what we can do to improve conditions for everyone moving from a to b in Zürich. I found it fascinating that the event was complemented by work on the internet, for example on nexzuerich.ning.com , Facebook , nextzuerich.ch , and on ronorp.net. In this blog posting , I read that to be an innovator, you have to be a relentlessly curious anthropologist and a keen-eyed ethnographer, so with a mobile electronic device, I walked / cycled / drove around the city to take photos of the areas in Zürich where I have experienced there is a strong potential for making conditions better - not least for peop...

# 1:  Brainstorming - the DISNEY method # 2: Reimagine the restaurant experience # 3: Bicycle friendly cities # 4: Creativity exercises # 5: Six thinking hats

As I was in Denmark this Summer visiting my mother, I took the opportunity to visit the Western part of Aarhus, a part of the city that is undergoing significant transformation. Due to my interest in innovating work and living environments , I found it interesting to observe some of the changes going on in the area which will contribute to improving the lives of people. While I was there, I made the 1 minute video embedded below. To know more about the rebuilding work that is going on in the area, have a look at Helhedsplan Gellerup .  

Reading this  article  and this  article , I learned that Hamburg is working on a plan that, over the next 15-20 years, is going to expand the number of green spaces considerably. The  hamburg green network  will connect parks, recreational areas, playgrounds, gardens, and cemeteries through green paths. These changes are not least being made, as I have understood it, to respond to  environmental changes  such as increasing temperatures and sea levels and - more generally - to make the city a healthier and more pleasant place to live.  Digital technologies contribute to changes that are going on in the way people get from a to b. Via  betahaus hamburg , I learned, for example, about  citeecar . What I like about the solution of citeecar is, for example, that it is simple to understand - and a  relatively inexpensive transportation solution . In short, it seems to be a carsharing solution for the average joe. Studying other t...

Holland played like champions. Will anyone beat THAT header?! #WorldCup — Richard Branson (@richardbranson) June 13, 2014 Rethinking education by @frankcalberg #educationanytimeandanywhere #howtocreatemorevalueineducation http://t.co/3dxOWC5TRS via @SlideShare — Paul Tanton (@paul_tanton) June 12, 2014 What is your purpose? by @frankcalberg #business #howdowereallyhelp http://t.co/XN480roWAj via @SlideShare — Brian Larsen (@BrnLrsn) June 5, 2014 "When your heart speaks, take good notes." – Anonymous — Dan Rockwell (@Leadershipfreak) June 5, 2014 What kids say they need to learn better. http://t.co/munwHE3VkA http://t.co/whcY9epDbL — Frank Calberg (@frankcalberg) May 30, 2014 Germany sets new record, generates 74% pf power from renewables reports @climateprogress : http://t.co/gXU6aVahSQ — PSFK (@PSFK) May 21, 2014 “For years, the question was, ‘What to do with payphones?’ and now we have an answer." pic.twitte...

At Niederhorn , about 2,000 meters above sea level in the impressive swiss mountains, I was positively surprised to see a relatively large number of solar panels installed on the roof of a building. What also surprised me was that I did not see any wind mills up there. Although I'm far from being a wind energy expert, there seems to be a potential for generating quite a lot of energy from the wind blowing on / in the mountains. For more information about renewable energy development, please feel welcome to visit this group .

What effect will changes happening in the business environment have on how companies, you work for, will respond? What will you do? PESTEL

In the last  posting  , I touched upon  technological changes  happening around us. In particular, changes in information and communication technology has in the past years been undergoing and is continuing to undergo large changes. The demands / needs are large around the world. As you will see from these  internet usage statistics  we are experiencing high growth globally in the number of people using the Internet on various electronic – including not least mobile electronic devices such as tablets, smartphones, and/or laptops. To support the large growth in internet usage across the world, a strong development in all kinds of areas, naturally also in competencies, is required. Reading this  article about optical fiber  and this  article about fiber-optic communication , I learned that optical fiber can be used as a medium for telecommunication / computer networking / internet communication because it is flexible and can be bundled as ca...

In this hackathon report summarizing the findings of the MIX Hackathon   ”Hacking HR to build an adaptability advantage”, a very interesting innovation challenge, I read this on page 4: “We are surrounded by all sorts of things that are changing at an exponential pace: the number of mobile phones in the world, CO 2 emissions, data storage, the power of semiconductor chips, the number of devices connected to the Internet, the number of genes that have been sequenced, world energy consumption, and knowledge itself. Today, the most important question for any organisation is: Are we changing as fast as the world around us ?” To know more about technological changes happening around you, have a look at this presentation .  During a November 9th event , I came to think of the above, as Mr. Thomas Keil talked about his experiences working with strategic renewal. From what Mr. Keil communicated, I understood, for example, that training people to think creatively / work inno...

In a recent posting ,  I noted how  Renault-Nissan  is strongly moving forward regarding electric vehicles. And in this very interesting  McKinsey interview   with Mr. Alan Mulally, CEO of  Ford ,  I read for example this: "..we believe there is a social consciousness that is developing where people really want to consider alternative energy sources that are more sustainable and good for the planet." And towards the end of the interview with Mr. Mulally, I read this: "So we might be part of connecting different modes of transportation - bicycles and waterways and cars and buses and subways - all as part of the vision of enabling movement and bringing people together." The strong  development of renewable energy  and electric vehicles are interesting trends that help create more value for more people around the world. Another interesting trend are technologies / apps that enable people to share, for example, cars and parking space...

Technological changes

Via this tweet  I came across this article  in which I read that Renault-Nissan has sold its 100,000 th electric vehicle. Reading the article, I also learned that the Renault-Nissan Alliance has sold more zero-emission cars than all the other major car manufacturers combined. Being interested in renewable energy, which I work on in, for example, this Google group , interested in transportation innovation about which I developed, for example, these slides as well as these slides , and admiring the leadership of Carlos Ghosn , I have been curious to try out a Renault-Nissan electric vehicle for some time. As Mobility launched acampaign featuring the Renault Twizy   a great possibility arose to try out one of the agile, electric vehicles that Renault-Nissan has developed. I was possibly surprised about the driving experience and found the vehicle handy for getting around in / around a city. That the small vehicle, which measures 2.3 m . x 1.2 m ., is equipped with h...

Transportation innovation

Bicycle friendly cities from Frank Calberg Services