Innovation Research

Over the course of the semester, please conduct research on innovations in Sub-Saharan Africa each week. By semester’s end your Innovation Portfolio should contain 10 to 12 innovation short reports (1-page description or 1 video) from which you will choose your top 3 to present to classmates in your group. Collectively, you will then select the most important one to share with class (3 innovations per group presentation).

Here is an example of innovation I ran into once:  http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/interactive/2015/09/infographic-kenya-water-women-150922095100149.html

Instructions for Innovations Presentations (Sign Up Sheet in class on Week 10)

Innovations presentations are scheduled for Weeks 11 and 12. A total of 4 presentations will be heard.

The purpose of innovations research is to answer an important question (see course description in syllabus): What are Africans doing to overcome their governments’ shortcomings?

Each of you put together a portfolio of 10 innovations coming out of Africa over the course of the semester. Choose the one that you found most interesting in terms of African ingenuity in the face of scarcity but also opportunity. Present it to your group members.

Once each of you has made a pitch for their top innovation, select one that you will present to class as a group. Keep in mind the reasons why your choice.

On presentation day, you will each present your top innovation and explain your choice of this one over others. Then the Group’s chosen innovation will be presented, keeping in mind that you will explain your rationale for choosing this particular innovation.