The B!G Idea 2022 briefs are ready! It is time to stop talking and to get down to brass tacks. A selection of our students have chosen the topics for this year’s projects based on what is important to them, issues that are stressing them out or an issue they would like to contribute positively to. Times are difficult nowadays for teenagers with a lot more wicked problems to consider than the generations before them had. We are excited to not only support our students and cant wait to see what B!G ideas will come out of this year’s creative innovators.
Housing Crisis – Visual Communications
What B!G campaign would communicate the need for affordable and sustainable housing for the future?
Ireland’s population has just reached 5 million for the first time since 1851 so what does that mean? Well for one thing it means that we are going to need more homes than we currently have, they need to be liveable and they need to be affordable. Ideally they need to be smart homes that are environmentally aware and future proof and that’s a lot for a home to be. What kind of smart campaign can shed light on these shortcomings of the Irish housing market. What are some modern and sustainable solutions and how can you bring them to the front of the conversation?
Mental Health – Spaces and Places.
What B!G idea would create a supportive place or space to encourage positive health among young people?
In Ireland by the age of just 13, 1 in 3 young people will likely have experienced some form of a mental issue. By 24 that becomes 1 in 2. It’s important to talk, really important. Talking can help ease stress and anxiety and allow young people to access help. What would a space or place look like that really encourages young people to talk. A space where you could express yourself, a place where you could let go. How can you and your team create a space, or place to support positive mental health for young people?
Equality – ICT/UX
What digital B!G Idea would empower people from diverse backgrounds to feel more included in society?
Today about 90% of people between the ages of 16 and 24 use a smartphone to stay connected. What good is all that connection if it just makes people feel more divided than ever? Online people feel pressure to fit in but our differences need to be celebrated. Let’s leave social media platforms out of this one but if you were able to create a website or an app to bring people together and feel more included, what would it do? How could it bring people from different backgrounds together and make them feel part of something meaningful?
Climate Change – Product
What B!G product would reduce your community’s carbon footprint?
Our carbon footprint is the total amount of greenhouse gases that we produce in everyday life. It’s important to be aware of but it can also make us feel stressed when we hear about it so much. And that’s one fo the biggest challenges about climate change. It’s so big scary that some people just want to ignore it and pretend it’s not there. But that’s where you come in. What kind of a product could be created to help people notice our changing climate? How can we change its perception as something to worry about and turn it into something real? And, just maybe, something positive?
Healthcare – Wearable
What B!G Idea in wearable technology would allow young people to manage their own wellbeing?
The pandemic has had a massive impact on young people’s wellbeing. You may have noticed?! School at home, exams, maybe a part-time job not to mention trying to keep something of a social life with your friends? To top it all off, in the last 12 years, there has been a decline of Irish teenagers meeting EU guidelines for physical exercise, and we know exercise is a really important part of wellbeing. With wearable technology, it’s easy to keep track of your health, but what if you took another step forward? Could you invent a wearable that kept track of your wellbeing? How would you wear it? What would it measure and how would you interact with it?
It’s time to think B!G.
Want to help guide students through their projects?
