(Courtesy of Guest Blogger Annie Weiss, Ingenuity Cleveland)
Ingenuity formed as an organization in 2004 to create a destination event in Cleveland, IngenuityFest, to showcase our region’s deep artistic and cultural resources and explore the space where humans and technology intersect. Conceived as a “moveable feast,” IngenuityFest transforms underused and unknown spaces into highly visible performance and exhibition venues, sparking renewed interest in these locations and bringing audiences to the city’s core. In 2011, it embarked on a mission to become a year-round organization. Since then, it added two annual programs: Bal Ingénieux and the Cleveland Mini Maker Faire, an ongoing program: IngenuityLabs.
Now, Ingenuity has launched a new series – Agents of Ingenuity – based on the success of the pilot Engines of Ingenuity Summit at the 2014 IngenuityFest. The 2014 summit featured panel conversations around gaming, audience retention, intellectual property, and hacking health, along with a workshop on “the Art of the Pitch.” Agents of Ingenuity is a conversation series that brings together individuals from the creative community, big business, small start-ups, and academia to discuss topics that highlight Cleveland’s unique opportunities as a globally competitive city for innovation and manufacturing. Structured as unlikely conversations between these representatives, our program will continue to grow with evening cocktail discussions, social hacks and a larger Agents of Ingenuity Summit (stay tuned for this one!).
This past November, Ingenuity hosted its first two live conversations at the Bop Stop and featured Jack Schron (Jergens), Ethan Karp (MAGNET), Jeff Epstein (Health-Tech Corridor) and Erika Anthony (Cleveland Neighborhood Progress). The intimate setting allowed for great audience interaction; so, be sure to mark your calendars for the 3rd Thursday of the month as we announce additional live conversations there! Tickets are $15 per conversation and include a drink ticket.
As part of our mission to engender the flow of ideas, we complement our live conversations with recorded podcasts, creating a year-round network of the people driving our region forward. We work in partnership with Design Lab Early College High School, a STEM and project-based learning institution, as part of an emerging program in recording technology for students. The shows feature interviews with innovators based in Northeast Ohio plus ingenious representatives from beyond. Content promotes our sponsors and local businesses and ties our community together through a permanent archive.
To stay up to date on the program, or to check out our current podcasts be sure to visit our website.