Online course in Design Thinking and Innovation for 50 Danida Alumni members

Join our course in Design Thinking and Innovation and learn how to apply human-centred innovation techniques to address challenges in your organisation and in your community. You will receive a certificate upon completion of the course

We are pleased to invite you to apply for a seat in our online course in Design Thinking and Innovation that we are running for the second time. The first course included representatives of local DAN alumni networks and Danish embassy staff and it was very well received. This is what some of the participants said:

 “The course was an eye-opener in regard to issues of innovation and how to foster innovation. Important for all those who want to bring about or facilitate societal change, be it at organizational or community level.”

“It demystifies what innovation is all about and lets you know that failure is ok as long as you keep trying out new ideas to get what you want.”

What will you learn?

The sessions will equip you with creative problem-solving skills and easy-to-use tools for finding innovative solutions to real life problems. Through a series of four 90-minute webinar sessions, you will gain an overview of what innovation is, understand how to develop an innovative mind-set, and learn an established innovation process.

Each of the sessions are interactive, combining illustrative examples with case studies, and you will be given the opportunity to try out new tools. The course will also include two suggested homework assignments to be carried out between sessions that will allow you to experience Design Thinking by applying some of the learnings to solve real-life problems you are facing.

Your toolbox in Design Thinking

Each webinar session presents part of the innovation and design thinking process and a selection of innovation tools and methods for problem solving.

Session 1 - Innovation: A Common Language & Understanding

Why innovate? - Different approaches to innovation - Core concepts in innovation - Design thinking process

Session 2 - Design Thinking, Part 1: Empathise & Define  

Understanding your target audience - Asking the right questions - Tools and methods for problem definition - Experiencing design thinking (Part 1)

Session 3 - Design Thinking, Part 2: Ideate & Prototype

Tools and methods for ideation - Think with your hands: the prototyping stage - Experiencing design thinking (Part 2)

Session 4 - Design Thinking and Beyond: Testing and Iterating for the Future

Reviewing ideas & prototypes - Getting out of the building: the testing stage - Building an innovation culture

Important dates

The online course is comprised of four live sessions totalling 6 hours.

The four sessions will take place on 2, 9, 16 and 23 February 2021 from 2.00 pm to 3.30 pm CET.

Application procedure

If you wish to join the online course, you must commit to attending the entire course, as the learning outcome of each session builds on the previous session. You will receive a certificate upon completion of the course, if you have attended at least 3 out of 4 sessions.

When applying for the course, please motivate your application by writing a short text about how you would like to apply the tools and skills from the course, for example in your work, your community or your local DAN network. If there are more applicants than the 50 seats available, we will select the successful applicants on the basis of the motivation texts received.

The deadline for this call is 4 January 2021 at 12:00 PM (noon) CET and applications will only be accepted, if submitted via this online application form.  

Applicants will be informed of the outcome of their applications by 5 January 2021 at the latest.

Facilitators

Caroline Appel: Carol leads Youth Business International's global training and facilitates knowledge sharing on training matters amongst YBI`s members around the world. She has also led YBI's innovation efforts for two years. Previously, she worked in Brazil for 10 years, supporting low-income entrepreneurs in the field, and developing and systematising entrepreneurship-training methodologies.

Chris Massey: Chris is an independent training consultant, helping people develop the human skills necessary for the modern world of work. His areas of specialism include facilitation, entrepreneurial competency development, international leadership, and intercultural communicative competence. Chris has over 20 years’ experience working internationally across the commercial, public & social sectors, with 10 years spent living and working outside UK.