First-ever Creativity & Innovation Day at DBS Asia X

Apr 25 . 3 min read

More than 450 people took part in activities such as the BikeBlender, where participants had to power a smoothie blender by pedalling on a stationary bike.

Leonardo da Vinci is recognised as a talented artist and designer. In fact, many of his designs led to the invention of cutting-edge machinery such as tanks, parachutes and helicopters. It is therefore apt that the United Nations introduced the World Creativity and Innovation Week (#WCID) to begin on his birthday every year.

It is in line with this innovative spirit that the inaugural DBS Asia X Creativity and Innovation Day (#DAXCID) was born. The event drew more than 450 participants to DBS Asia X on 16 April to take part in insightful panel discussions on how technology impacts our everyday lives, and workshops on creative thinking and sustainability.

Here’s how the event got participants to put on their thinking caps:

In conversation: Relooking the way we live and work

Panel discussion on ‘Why we should care about everyday innovation’ (From left: Kelvin Tan, NUS Enterprise; Anne Lehman, BlueSG; Kenji Mirassou, Egencia; Shivani Saini, GSK; Eswar Viswanathan, Schneider Electric)

Speakers from 14 different organisations spoke across three panel discussions about how companies are adapting to rapidly advancing innovations in technologies. The diverse panels provided a wealth of perspectives about how businesses are evolving in the new age, how they foresee future collaboration models and how workplaces will operate with more digitalisation.

Acclaimed architecture photographer Darren Soh also shared how he chronicles Singapore’s rapidly evolving landscape. He shed light on how he constantly pushes the boundaries of creativity to capture old architecture through fresh lenses, noting, “if something is demolished, you cannot bring it back. That’s why I keep taking pictures.”

Hands (and legs)-on Fun

The LEGO ® Serious Play ® Workshop was a hot favourite at the event and was well-received by participants. “It activated a lot of creative juices,” a participant shared. “You don’t realise how insightful [building items with your hands] can be until you explain [your concept] to people later on.” During the workshop, participants were introduced to the LEGO Serious Play methodology by certified facilitator Jason Yew, who challenged them to think and ideate brick by brick.

The LEGO® Serious Play® Workshop promotes creative thinking and effective dialogue in a fun and innovative way.

With sustainability a core theme of #WCID, Terra SG was invited to conduct an upcycling workshop. Participants were taught how to use their creativity to transform recycled plastic bottles into planters, injecting new life into them.

Unique bikes were also stationed at the event to provide heart-pumping fun. The BikeBlender got participants spinning to create their own blended smoothie, while the SpinArt station allowed creativity to run wild as masterpieces were created with every pedal. The robotics station also saw participant-built robots battle it out in an exhilarating game of soccer.

Pour in the paint, pedal and viola! An art masterpiece is created with the SpinBike.

As Wan Ting sums up, “Technology is just a tool. You need a specialty to guide people to a purpose.”

While we celebrate #WCID, it is important to remember that creativity permeates our everyday lives, and innovation cannot confined to a week in a year. So, let’s put on our thinking caps and innovate for a more sustainable future.

Source: Medium