Although this year’s DICE-TY Academy could not take place in person, thankfully the prizegiving could!
Teams from St. Columba’s College, Stranorlar scooped the first and third prize in the LYIT’s annual design sprint DICE-TY Academy.
The challenge, what over 65s or teenagers would require around the themes of Home/Place or Work/Education in the year 2040, ignited very creative responses from the 80 students from schools across the county.
Admirable solutions, across all four schools, included a very topical solar-powered train for Donegal, an interactive exhibition where you virtually walk through places and events of Donegal’s past, power generating pavements and the winning idea of an inclusive, ultra-modern cultural space for young people.
The project stems from the current consultation on Letterkenny 2040.
Speaker and judge of the event Sinead McCauley of Donegal County Council’s Regeneration Team said “It has been wonderful to take part in the DICE_TY project around the themes of place-making in the urban and rural context and to be able to share some of the regeneration projects that Donegal County Council are progressing.
The Team from St. Columba’s College, Stranorlar who scooped the first prize in the LYIT’s annual design sprint DICE_TY Academy. The challenge, what over 65s or teenagers would require around the themes of Home/Place or Work/Education in the year 2040. Included are team members Michael Meenan, Aine Sweeney, Odhran Lafferty, Clifford Turtle, TY Co_Ordinator, Crona O’Donoghue, DICE Academy LYIT, Tom Rowan, School Principal, Tena Patten, LYIT DICE Academy and Catherine Cooke Harkin, St. Columbas DICE Co Ordinator. Photo Clive Wasson
“The students showed great skills in identifying and researching problems and came up with some innovative, creative and exciting ideas for how we might adapt and imagine our futures to be. This type of innovative and collaborative thinking is extremely important and it has been very inspiring to see how the students are highly capable, resourceful and creative in challenging problems and designing for an ambitious future.”
The wealth of speakers and the diversity of their perspectives was evident in the student’s attention to universal design principles – design that reflects the needs of multiple users, equality and environmental considerations. An aspect the students reflected on in their worksheets and final proposals.
Example student work board
At a time when young people, particularly in Donegal often get bad press, the DICE_TY Academy is evidence that the next generation are sensitive, astute, empathetic, considerate and highly creative!
As Emmet Rock one of the workshop facilitators recognised “the capacity of the students to show empathy for their elders and for the past was impressive. Balancing nostalgia with future needs. Many of the ideas nullified wider problems in society.”
This was a sentiment reflected by a Loreto Letterkenny student who said: “We have learned many valuable experiences, both for business and life. How to put ourselves in the shoes of others.” A key skill in developing unique ideas.
The students did not get to interact with other teams and schools as they would have when held on LYIT’s campus rather than virtually, but they still learned valuable communication and teamworking skills.
As Orla Greene and Darcie Kennedy of the Abbey Vocational School reflected “DICE_TY was great as it brought us all together as a team and helped our creative thinking.”
Alongside learning these valuable skills, the students also learned from the speakers and the project that they have agency in what happens in the future.
“This experience has enabled me to think in a very different way. To be able to imagine/dream and come up with things I would have otherwise never would have.”
“DICE taught us that your ideas can become reality!” – Loreto students.
With these creative, thoughtful and inspired minds planning our future, the future is in safe hands.
