Lösungen für Menschen

Interview with Dr. Beatrice Moreno, University of Applied Sciences for Engineering and Economics (HTW).

One of the teams from the "Prototype your Future City!" workshop wants to develop a test strip that shows the sugar content of jams and marmalades. It can be applied to the outside of the jar. A company is already showing interest in this prototype, as conscious nutrition and improved education around food is an important topic for the future. This is a great result, isn't it?

Dr. Beatrice Moreno: Yes, I am very satisfied with the workshop. But not just because of the idea for the sugar measuring strip. The other teams have also developed very interesting and scalable ideas on important city topics. The result was six great solutions for society and life in the city. How can I make this life better? I always focus on solutions for people.

The cities of the future and the people living in them will be confronted with topics like climate change, and they will experience medicine that is increasingly more effective and communication networks that are are growing ever denser. In Europe, conversations focus mostly on how to make existing infrastructure more sustainable and improve comfort and quality of life. In other cities around the world, the focus is more on creating infrastructure that didn’t previously exist or to rebuild it after natural disasters or wars. But regardless of whether we’re talking about Europe, Africa or Asia, technology can contribute so much toward making life better. And this is something we must do!

I am a doctor and computer scientist. In addition to teaching at the HTW, I am also a member of the board of Tech Unite e.V. The organization is currently running  28 projects in Africa alone – projects to facilitate communication, to improve water supply, to make better health care possible... I want to do something to improve conditions, and I see so many opportunities to use new technologies to do this!
And this is exactly what I want to convey to students. I want to motivate them to start their projects thinking about people and their needs and, based on these insights, to develop IT-supported solutions. What is also very important to me is to make it clear how much can be achieved in a team, where everyone contributes their special knowledge and strengths. You can achieve almost anything – for example, you can develop a concept for a solution in 3x3 hours and build a prototype.

One of the teams from the "Prototype your Future City!" workshop wants to develop a test strip that shows the sugar content of jams and marmalades. It can be applied to the outside of the jar. A company is already showing interest in this prototype, as conscious nutrition and improved education around food is an important topic for the future. This is a great result, isn't it?

Dr. Beatrice Moreno: Yes, I am very satisfied with the workshop. But not just because of the idea for the sugar measuring strip. The other teams have also developed very interesting and scalable ideas on important city topics. The result was six great solutions for society and life in the city. How can I make this life better? I always focus on solutions for people.

The cities of the future and the people living in them will be confronted with topics like climate change, and they will experience medicine that is increasingly more effective and communication networks that are are growing ever denser. In Europe, conversations focus mostly on how to make existing infrastructure more sustainable and improve comfort and quality of life. In other cities around the world, the focus is more on creating infrastructure that didn’t previously exist or to rebuild it after natural disasters or wars. But regardless of whether we’re talking about Europe, Africa or Asia, technology can contribute so much toward making life better. And this is something we must do!

I am a doctor and computer scientist. In addition to teaching at the HTW, I am also a member of the board of Tech Unite e.V. The organization is currently running  28 projects in Africa alone – projects to facilitate communication, to improve water supply, to make better health care possible... I want to do something to improve conditions, and I see so many opportunities to use new technologies to do this!
And this is exactly what I want to convey to students. I want to motivate them to start their projects thinking about people and their needs and, based on these insights, to develop IT-supported solutions. What is also very important to me is to make it clear how much can be achieved in a team, where everyone contributes their special knowledge and strengths. You can achieve almost anything – for example, you can develop a concept for a solution in 3x3 hours and build a prototype.

Indeed, the range of ideas and the speed at which they were developed are amazing. How can you get this far in a short period of time without further preparation?

Dr. Beatrice Moreno: It works with Design Thinking. However, it’s important to understand that: working creatively has nothing to do with chaos, nor does it mean you should work without pressure. On the contrary, with Design Thinking, there is always a precise schedule for the work to be done, and this is timed. Everything has to be very concentrated. The other two important prerequisites: a thorough analysis of the initial situation and a very concrete definition of objectives. This is important so that you don't get lost. You have to be able to go back periodically and check whether assumptions and the direction of your thoughts are correct.

And then, of course, you need something to touch. Thinking alone does not get us ahead. You have to actually make something! The Technology Foundation's Hacking Box is very well suited for this. I already knew it from a seminar I held with Syrian refugees in August 2018, where we looked at what technical solutions could help with reconstruction in the cities. Even then I found the many small and simple components very stimulating, especially for the creative process. And once again during the most recent workshop, the box, coupled with the good ideas of the students and the corresponding mentors, was able to push us down the path toward actually creating something.

The prototypes are finished. What's the next step?

Dr. Beatrice Moreno: I have gathered feedback from the workshop participants. They have really worked hard and now want to develop the prototypical ideas further in the coming weeks. I have already agreed on the final date: on 15 January, we will be back at the CityLAB to present what has become of the projects. If you are interested, you should save the date. We will also give an update on the projects here in the beginning of next year. See you then!

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