May / June 2007
$2M for OCAD Digital Futures Initiative
A new era of collaboration is upon us as what is being heralded as the "imagination economy" brings creative minds together with technology and engineering minds to produce and further enhance new digital technologies.
The practical virtues of the highly skilled scientific, technological and engineering minds are universally lauded, but so far, not much attention has been paid to what creative minds can bring to the table - until now.
Chris Bentley, Ontario's Minister for Training, Colleges and Universities, recently announced a $2 million annual investment by the Government of Ontario into the Digital Futures Initiative (DFI), an important new cross-disciplinary program which will enable the Ontario College of Art & Design (OCAD) to significantly enhance its curriculum and infrastructure of new digital technology studies.
The project will place OCAD at the forefront of the emerging "imagination" economy of the 21st century, says OCAD President Sara Diamond. "Students will now have many new opportunities to study art and design practice using digital technology."
This emerging new era of "imagination" economy is highly collaborative and cross-disciplinary as existing boundaries between fields blend. Artists and designers are pioneering new experiences and forms of expression using digital technology.
Ultimately, the initiative will strive to produce graduates who meet Ontario's need for creators and innovators - graduates who can imagine, design, produce, direct or initiate businesses across a wide range of sectors and industries.
The initiative will be supported by private sector partners to ensure the curriculum meets industry needs as well as provides students with work-study experiences. Through partnerships, the initiative will develop applications for industries in the communications, new media, advertising, technology, finance, health care, tourism, entertainment and service sectors. ORION is one of the project's participating partners.
The Digital Futures Initiative will also engage industry partners and other educational institutions. Industry partners will participate on advisory boards, collaborate on research, and provide students with work-study experiences and opportunities to engage directly with real-world challenges. Academic partners will develop programs and courses jointly with OCAD, thereby giving students greater access to specialized faculty and equipment across a number of Ontario's leading educational institutions.
Learn more at www.ocad.ca/about_ocad/news_events.
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