"To design for the future you must leaf through the past": Museums as part of systems of innovation

Museums are not conventionally associated with innovation or viewed as part of innovation systems. After all, we could argue, museums are about the past, heritage, and nostalgia, whereas innovation is about the future. Yet, if this is the case, why does a company such as BMW co-locate its archive, museum, and innovation center? In this preliminary essay on the combination of past and present knowledge in innovation, we revisit the academic literature on innovation systems. We explore how, historically, museums and their collections have contributed to innovation and to the development of innovative designs. We ask: How have organizations set up to preserve the past contributed to the future, and what has encouraged and inhibited these processes? We focus primarily on nineteenth- and twentieth-century experience in the United Kingdom and on the relationships among the arts, design, and industry on the one hand and museum collections on the other

"I'm lucky to have a house." A critique of current and past housing policy and practice, and the effects on a group of Invercargill residents and housing providers.

Housing is not just about the building. It is a home, where people create their identity, live out their relationships, their plans and their social and cultural obligations (Easthope, 2004:135; Clapham, 2002:48). It is subject to several international human rights obligations for which the New Zealand government is accountable. It is at the same time a political-economic unit; a vehicle for financial investment, a market-based tradeable commodity. This dualism is a factor in New Zealand’s current mix of social and market-based housing (Bierre, Howden-Chapman and Signal (2008:21). This study explores how various needs are met by the existing housing mix, which needs are left unmet, and how this impacts on people’s lives. A constructivist, ethnographic methodology enables the development of a comparison analysis of housing from multiple points of view: Invercargill residents and housing providers were interviewed using a semi-structured format. The result is a context-rich exploration of Invercargill’s existing capacity to adequately house its population in homes that are secure, warm and safe. The study concludes that whole groups of Invercargill people are excluded from adequate housing, and have great difficulty having their voices heard. What is suggested is a whole-of-society housing strategy that meets New Zealand’s human rights obligations. The strategy should link to policy and programmes at community-level, and be based on participation of residents and providers at all levels and stages. the abstract of your thesi

Odd Couple Collaborations and Making them Tick!

Purpose Be it about blending intangibles to deliver to market needs or directed at fulfilling aspirations pushing at technological frontiers, inter-firm collaborations across industry boundaries are much in vogue. This paper aims to classify some collaborations as “odd couple collaborations”. These are fuelled more by aspirations of the partner firms, and not as much by market pull. The study provides key distinguishing characteristics for these and an understanding of what makes them tick. Design/methodology/approach The paper draws on secondary sources in the public domain to understand the motives and performance of several inter-firm collaborations. Odd couple collaborations are examined and some essential performance enablers are highlighted. Findings A typology that distinguishes odd couple collaborations from other inter-firm collaborations is drawn out. Analysing the performance of such collaborations, and a need for partners to work on the visibility and appeal of such collaborations, is discussed. Stringent market evaluation of the offering and careful creative blending of intangibles are also highlighted as key enablers. Originality/value The paper contributes to a vast body of research on inter-sector or distant collaborations by isolating and examining a niche that is fast becoming pronounced. The analysis of odd couple collaborations provides cues for effective strategies for superior value from such collaborations. As organisations constantly seek to extend their innovative potential, these insights may prove useful for both practice and research

Agricultural Sciences Outreach Program

The College of Agriculture, Food, and Environmental Sciences (CAFES) mission statement and vision of the Agricultural Education and Communication Department is to develop future leaders, educators, and communicators to advance and advocate for the agricultural industry in a global economy (AGED, 2018). Student organizations, such as Agriculture Ambassadors and Agriculture Leadership Society, facilitate several outreach events to engage and excite prospective students in pursuing their higher education goals in agriculture at Cal Poly (CAFES Ag Council, 2018). In order to maintain growing student numbers, the Agricultural Education and Communication Department, specifically, the Agricultural Science major needs revamped recruiting efforts and to discover new, innovative methods of attracting the next generation of Mustangs. By increasing Cal Poly’s outreach to youth agricultural programs, the Agricultural Education and Communications Department could supply prospective students with more information and better display the opportunities available through the Agricultural Science major. This project will provide the AGED Department with ideas, methods and events to recruit students to apply and accept admission to the Agricultural Science major

Annotated bibliography of te reo material held in the Hocken Manuscript and Archives Collection

The Hocken Collections, and in particular the Hocken Archives, have a large number of items, both published and unpublished, either written in te reo or relating to it. Many of these items would hold considerable interest for students of te reo, but are inadequately described in catalogues, making efficient access very difficult. Access to the published grammars and wordlists is facilitated through the University of Otago Library catalogue, but identifying the unpublished material written in, or concerning, te reo is more difficult. Manuscripts and archives are listed in a database, called Hakena, but being an archival database it does not often provide the sort of information people looking for te reo material might be seeking. The aim of this bibliography is to improve access to information on the te reo content of manuscripts held at the Hocken Collections

Experiences of female students completing a full-time aboriginal program by computer-mediated communication

This naturalistic inquiry examines the experiences of female Aboriginal students who were completing a full-time college program by computer-mediated communication (CMC). The college program was designed for the preparation of Aboriginal Teacher Assistants. The background literature examines the work of previous scholars on listening to women’s voices, connected learning, appropriate technology for Aboriginal learners and the use of computer-mediated communication in meeting learners’ needs. Eight students volunteered to participate in the study. Two were lost through attrition. Data were collected through two sets of face-to-face interviews, one set of telephone interviews, field notes and observation of online messages posted by the participants. Participant profiles were created from the participants’ own words, and the data were analysed for emergent themes. Three themes were identified. These included demographics, prior educational experiences and learning preferences. The analyses of the interrelationships resulted in the identification of barriers to positive post secondary educational learning experiences and to the participants’ concepts of themselves as learners. The participants’ experiences in the Aboriginal Teacher Assistant Program were then examined in relationship to these barriers. The participants’ successfully completed this full-time college program and reported positive experiences in doing so. Through the analyses of their experiences, factors that led to the participants’ success were identified. It was determined that for these women to be successful, not only must education must be community-based, flexible, and holistic but also foster and nurture relationships between and among students and instructor. These factors were supported by the CMC method o f delivery. Implications include providing (1) appropriate technologies, (2) multiple ways of connecting and interacting and (3) face-to-face components when delivering Aboriginal programs to women at a distance. It also is important that we identify the characteristics of teachers who are respectful to Aboriginal values and who are successful in creating interpersonal connectedness through computer-mediated communicative alternatives

An Author Usability Trial for the Networked Assessment Toolkit (NEST)

The on-going development of NEST, the Networked Assessment Toolkit, was studied as an example of how a WWW-mounted computer program must be designed to have a pared-down interface that does not attempt to mimic the kind of user control we are used to in stand-alone software. Originally a UNIX command-line translator for marking up HTML exams, NEST was recently improved so that its authoring capabilities could be used via the WWW. Developed at the University of Melbourne in 1996, NEST was chosen for assessment of its WWW interface to determine how a complex piece of software can support a WWW interface. A non-trivially complex application, NEST was considered to be representative of the types of applications desirable for access via the WWW. The philosophies behind NEST, its interface and its function are described below, followed by the rationale for, and outcomes of, a usability study. This paper is most concerned with the areas where technical design considerations have a significant impact on usability issues

The Future of Public Administration, Teaching and Research in the North East

The North East has five universities: Durham, Newcastle, Northumbria, Teeside and Sunderland as well as over twenty colleges. The five universities in the region employ over 14,000 staff and generate another 15,000 jobs through their activities (Universities UK 2014). In total their activities generate Gross Value Added (GVA) of nearly £1.6 billion, equivalent to 3.8% of the total 2011 North East GVA (ibid 2014). This is higher than in any other region of England meaning that any threat to the UK university sector represents a disproportionately greater threat to the North-East economy. This chapter will look specifically at the opportunities and threats for teaching and research of public administration within the North East as a consequence of Brexit. Potential threats include the impact of any reduction in European funding (particularly research funding); reduction in the number of European students and reduction in the number of European staff working at universities in the North East. It is also noted that any wider economic uncertainty caused by Brexit may lead to further reductions in government spending. At the same time there may be opportunities that arise for public administration teaching as a consequence of Brexit. For example, any change in the status of the UK in Europe may lead to calls for a greater regional focus in England. There may also be a greater need for public policy and administration at all levels – national, regional and local – which would require significant development of staff across all areas of public services. The need for widespread workforce development would be heightened by any reduction in European staff working in UK public service organisations. The chapter concludes by making the case for greater collaboration in teaching and research across UK and European universities and notes that, irrespective of the final result of Brexit, pan-European research and teaching of public administration seems needed now more than ever. Northumbria University has a unique place within the North-East region as a centre of expertise in public administration and public leadership, to address these threats and respond to any opportunities