Design thinking is not only a method adored by the creative industry – it is also a potential for progress, when creative improvism takes over. The participants of the FORTHEM student conference had an opportunity to see the endless possibilities of this tool during the December series of conferences, as they have actively worked for 3 days in favour of the cooperation of universities from 7 countries.
Integration games are a permanent element of such events, which, let’s agree – helps to break the distance, especially when the participants, instead of have a face to face meeting, are forced to act remotely. The students worked in subgroups with painstaking organization and remarkable accuracy, step by step overcoming obstacles during project development. Following in the footsteps of the greatest detective of all time (when in doubt refer to the gentleman who lived at 221B Baker Street), they tried to find solutions to the problems that had been brought by the uninvited pandemic.
Whether it was fully successful – it is difficult to say unequivocally, but the atmosphere surrounding this meeting was exceptional. The international problem translated into a stronger sense of transnational community, which of course ended with UV students sending invitations for a trip to Valencia – to everyone gathered in the project team. And, additionally, with the promise of sending Christmas postcards that still haven’t arrived, but we firmly believe that one day will arrive in our mailboxes. What’s more – we received a must have for every participant – mugs with the FORTHEM logo. Now, the morning coffee tastes better than any coffee drank by Agent Dale Cooper.
Less jokingly, and more seriously, we went through various phases (discovery, analysis, etc.) until we reached the research stage, which should have a significant impact on the development of the FORTHEM initiative. Keep your fingers crossed for further cooperation, because when there is a possibility to cross the borders again (without fearing for own existence) – we will be unstoppable.
Text: Karolina Konik