25 June 2019 | Münster
Change Lab is an open forum event based on student-driven interests. It is a shared co-learning platform for academics, external experts and students to spread ideas that create societal impacts and changes via short and powerful discussions. The goal of Change Lab is to create sparks between people from diverse backgrounds to jointly innovate for our society.
To achieve the goal, over the last three months, ten international students from the Münster University of Applied Sciences have worked together in a semester project to gather the opinions and preferences from the academics, students and community members in Münster. Based on the result of a marketing study involving 371 local participants in Münster, the students created a tailored marketing strategy for Change Lab, co-designed, prototyped and organised the first Change Lab event with the theme of 'Cultural Diversity'. Accordingly, the first event was held on Thursday, 13Th June at Denkpause Bistro, in the Fachhochschulzentrum FHZ, Münster.
The first event attracted a group of international participants (below addressed as 'Changemakers') with various cultural backgrounds. Several interactive activities were conducted to construct an inspiring and fun environment for the audience. Alongside with drinks and snacks, the Changemakers engaged in networking activities and met their fellow creative people.
The highlight of the day was the group discussion session, where our Changemakers brainstormed and came up with innovative solutions to facilitate the integration of expats in a foreign culture. Five teams competed for the title of 'The most innovative Changemaker of the day'. The winning team came up with an idea to introduce picture charts in hospitals and clinics to help foreign patients overcome language barriers.
The event was a big success and was positively rated by the Changemakers. Followed by the positive experience, Change Lab will return next season to offer more interesting topics and activities.
The students responsible for designing and organising the event presented their journey with Change Lab on 24 June 2019 in front of the delegates of the Change Lab initiative.
