We're bringing a global cohort of digital innovators together for the first ever Global FUTR Lab, part of this year's FutureEverything Festival.
The ten participants of the Lab were selected from an open call to eight countries, inviting people working at the intersection of technology and culture as digital artists, creative entrepreneurs, producers and technologists to apply to be part of this unique international cohort.
Between them, the ten participants represent a diversity of backgrounds, experience and digital and creative practice. They include an entrepreneur designing apps to teach children about Nigerian folklore and culture, an artist setting up media art labs in Indonesia, a student building smart-city platforms to ease traffic congestion in Lahore and a media artist from Korea who has built a playful interactive musical installation.
The selected ten will take part in a two day workshop, developed by research company Strange Telemetry, framed around the city of Manchester which will explore the relations between innovation and infrastructure. They will also show their work and have the chance to present it to delegates and the public at the 20th anniversary of the FutureEverything Festival, which takes over the city of Manchester between 26 – 28 February. Last year, 17,000 members of the public engaged with FutureEverything across the Festival weekend.
The Global Futr Lab project has been devised by British Council and FutureEverything to create an opportunity for international innovators to connect with the UK in a meaningful way. Lab participants will add fresh new voices from around the world to engage with the conversations and debates on digital culture that sit at the heart of FutureEverything.
Drew Hemment, Founder and CEO of FutureEverything, says,
‘Over 20 years FutureEverything has injected design thinking into our festival. It’s about people coming together for new experiences and fun, and channelling all that inspiration into agile research, rapid prototyping, open innovation and user-led design. ‘We call this festival as lab’. It’s great to work with the British Council to bring together innovators from around the world to reimagine the way we interact with technology, our cities, and each other.’’
Find out more about ten selected Global Futr Lab participants here:
BEYOND THE FESTIVAL
After their week in Manchester, the ten participants will become part of the Global Futr Network, with the FutureEverything team continuing to work with them and support them in their practice.