KENNETH'S KREATIVITY KONFETTI: Creativity & Innovation — Building A Learning Community

This is personally from me to you. It is one opportunity for the creative director of this blog to share field / practical lessons with blog readers and to interact a little more closely. We were clear about naijaGRAPHITTI blog aims from the onset; it is all about information, education, communication and lessons sharing and not self-promotion.

Today I want to share about building a learning community. As a professionally trained Master trainer, I have gained understanding of how to start a course, any course for that matter, with setting out the course objectives and gaining insight into participants' expectations first. Then build momentum slowly, until arriving at a heightened crescendo. This is the golden rule: do not rush the participants (blog readers in this case) or yourself as facilitator. This is the singular reason naijaGRAPHITTI team is not rushing to churn out posts upon posts on creativity and innovation, just to be posting. Of course, there is always the concern of the pace being too sluggish. This is a real concern, but I am not overly worried. Based on the depth and quality of the contents we have pieced together and researched, I can assure you we have high value materials worth waiting for.

Our first year has been rather frenetic in terms of behind-the-scenes work — researching on creativity and innovation, related subjects and other consideration and, last but not the least, working on the technical side of the blog. Our research has bordered on creativity and innovation from a multidisciplinary perspective.  This is on purpose: I was weaned on creativity from the focus of a writer and amateur artist while I mastered innovation as a science student. As much as I appreciate innovation as crucial topic relating to science, technology and innovation (STI), underpinned by the so-called STEM subjects including science, technology, engineering and mathematics, I am intrigued about all-round creativity and innovation. Hence the direction and thrust we have chosen.
Let me confess here that we have pictured naijaGRAPHITTI as a very long-term project, until we see a glimpse of change. We want all people to gain something from naijaGRAPHITTI — a history teacher should learn some knowledge by visiting naijaGRAPHITTI as much as an engineering student; creativity and innovation relate a whole lot to our lives than we care to admit and in that instance the concepts tend to be pluralistic. 

Nevertheless, I remain a strong fan of STI. Because of the vast opportunities in this sector, however we must never ignore our creative industry which most likely would have some elements of STI incorporated.

There is a man whose presentation to the Commonwealth Ministers encapsulated what are the opportunities and challenges for science and technology to which I perceived clearly that NaijaGRAPHITTI blog could contribute toward tackling. And that is Professor Daniel Verishima Uza, Vice-Chancellor, University of Agriculture, Makurdi. In a very short but articulate treatise, the university administrator articulated the essence and crucial role of science and technology as being key to national development as well as Nigeria’s stark limitations. 
Let me excerpt his brief write-up extensively here:

At a time when Nigeria is engaging in Vision 2020 development projects aimed at accelerating economic development to propel the country to the league of advanced nations by the year 2020, it is pertinent to highlight the role of science and technology in achieving this goal.

Science may be defined as “cumulative verifiable and communicative knowledge”. Pure science is the investigation of nature to satisfy the need to know while applied science is the application of pure science to some practical human need.

Technology on the other hand is a body of knowledge and devices by which man masters his environment. It is not synonymous with applied science, being more empirical in its approach to solving problems. The three major technologies – agriculture, medicine and engineering – all made substantial progress before they were wedded to science. Fundamentally, technology is an extension of man’s capacity to see further and clearer, hear more, travel faster and for greater distances etc. Science and technology have therefore been key drivers for growth and sustainable social development and transformation of nations, leading to industrialization.

Infrastructure links all industries together. It is a complex that seems to evade precise definition but is invaluable in the economic transformation of any nation.  A recent colloquium of Nigerian engineers, defined infrastructure as to those physical structures that facilitate the production of goods and services, without themselves being part of the production process. They include highways, airports, harbours, utility production and distributive systems, water and sewer systems, communication networks and energy networks.

Generally our infrastructure is still poorly developed when compared with that of developed and developing countries. For example Brazil, an emerging economy has a population of 179.1 million and generates 86,020 MW of electricity, resulting in per capita generation of 480 watts.

In contrast, Nigeria currently produces about 3000 MW for a population of about 140 million, giving a per capita generation of 21.43 watts, which is not enough to light even a 40 watt bulb, accounting for the nation’s virtual perpetual darkness.

Similar contrasting observations can be made with our transportation, communication, agricultural, and education infrastructure. To achieve rapid scientific and technological development, there must be substantial improvements in our infrastructure.

Apart from oil and gas, the majority of national industries are moribund.  If anything is to be blamed for these massive failures, it is human failure not science and technology. Human factors are critical in determining the course of socio-economic transformation. Germany, today’s industrial giant presents a perfect example.  Germany was brought together united under the inspirational leadership of Otto von Bismarck in 1871. Before unification Germany was composed of states that were only loosely united as German speaking people each with its own king. Bismarck’s inspirational leadership signaled the transformation of Germany into a nation with relentless zeal for competition with Britain and France in commerce and industry.

Nigeria has a proliferation of Universities, and other tertiary institutions that can form the basis for development of science and technologies at different levels to provide support for the takeoff and sustenance of an industrial revolution.  However, the country must be prepared to address specific obvious loopholes in the educational and industrial systems.  For example, there is no foundation established for the development of science and technology.

Developed nations in the West have set the pace with about 10 per cent of their countries’ GDP set aside by law for development of science and technology.  Asian countries such as South Korea have followed suit and set aside over 10 per cent of their GDP for science and technology. In Nigeria, inspite of a proliferation of Universities, Polytechnics and Research Institutes less than one per cent of GDP is allocated for funding of science and technology.

According to the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO 2007), there were 882,715 patent applications from China, 5,220,327 from the USA and only 699 from Nigeria between 1985-2006.  It has been shown that there is a definite correlation between funding of research and development and progress in science and technology.

Do you see what we see: Nigeria can gain a lot through the promotion, practice and funding for science and technology.

Nonetheless numerous challenges abound. This write-up presents a catalog of problems and constraints facing the development and growth of science and technology in Nigeria. One key role an individual can play is to educate and inform the general population while advocating to policy makers. This blog can contribute in this direction!

Now the key question is what do you wish to contribute? 

Remember reading this blog and telling others about where they can get invaluable information about creativity and innovation in a fun environment would also be considered a useful contribution.

Are you ready? We are..., I am..., very ready. Let's go!