Documentation

The N.I.C.E. Award’s
theme in 2015:
“Solving the World’s Major
Challenges — A Call for
Innovations“
The 2015 award challenged the cultural and
creative sectors to propose surprising and
experimental innovations that are solutions to difficult
global problems – with special, but not exclusive, attention
given to digital innovations.
The following examples and questions give an idea of the
breadth of the theme and were suggested to potential
applicants as part of the call – other suggestions and
proposals from within different fields and topics with
effects across sectors were of course also more than
welcomed:
Cities are both growing exceptionally and also shrinking.
Many are in danger of becoming dysfunctional and less
liveable and sustainable. Which innovations coming from
within the culture and creativity domain can help stop
or turn around these trends? What is the role of digital
innovations, such as creating seamless connectivity,
re-designing mobility, enhancing information systems,
improving way finding, monitoring health. What is the
role, if any, of 3-D printing?
Migration – either by choice or forced by wars and poverty
– is a growing phenomenon in the melting pot of
European cities. It increases cultural and ethnic diversity.
This is a double edged sword as it both enriches our lives,
but also creates misunderstandings, fears and violence:
How can the cultural creative sectors contribute to
resolving these challenges and foster mutual understanding?
Is there a special potential for digital innovations
from ebooks for children in native and foreign languages
to new kinds of performances or events in traditional or
unusual settings?
schedules become more dominant. What does this mean
for cultural consumption? It shifts our sense of self and
how and where we consume culture from going to the cinema
to attending concerts to experiencing urban art. In
a digitalised world without dedicated spare time – what
is the new shape of culture? Is it visiting cinemas or using
Amazon Prime? Do you visit museums or access them via
the Google Art Project? How could or must cultural and
creative institutions (re-)act?
Can the digital world enrich our experience of culture
and if so how? Can it help increase our understanding of
diversity of culture or of the potential of a more open society?
Can it help make the world of the arts and culture
more inclusive?
In what other sectors can the cultural and creative sectors
have a positive impact – for instance in supporting
new models of intergenerational understanding or for
the challenges of health and especially for the elderly?
When the N.I.C.E. Call 2015 was designed and then published,
Europe was in the pre-phase of mass migration
and awakening of Big Data. Now – only six months later
– Europe is changing rapidly by migration and as well by
the digital shift – on a daily base we are reading about
changes and challenges the European society thought
to be years ahead. Not only the need for more solutions,
but also the urgency for quicker innovations are at hand
today.
The N.I.C.E. Award must be seen today as part of a new
growing movement in society to re-invent the social
effectiveness of innovations: new and now!
The digital revolution is radically changing work and the
divide between work and play is breaking down as 24/7
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