Here at Spring2 Innovation, we are constantly experimenting and piloting new initiatives and projects. We love trying something new and seeing what’s going to happen.

A few months ago, we held a design thinking session with an uncommon group – grade 6 students. For the session, we combined the content from their science and entrepreneurship classes with our design thinking course content to develop a business in the energy sector.

The students had a strong background in energy through their teacher and curriculum where they had learned about nuclear, solar, wind and other energy sources. They had also talked about marketing and business during the school year, and after an hour of learning design thinking methodology, the students began coming up with some pretty cool ideas.

By starting the discussion around understanding who the hypothetical clients could be, and what they would want from a business, the class epitomized innovation. The Home Depot of solar products, or a unique twist on a genetics lab were just a few of the ideas.

And by combining design thinking with the school’s curriculum, students were creative, engaged and coming up with real-world solutions for their hypothetical clients. They incorporated commercialization right from the start as part of their design.

After the session, we were inspired!

If grade six students can combine their knowledge of science and entrepreneurship to develop business ideas in the energy sector by looking at challenges from an end-user perspective, think about what can be done by bringing design thinking into more businesses. Merging design thinking and science creates the spark of innovation. By looking at solutions from an end-user perspective, businesses can be empowered and more commercially viable than ever before.

If you’re interested in what a design thinking session can do for your business or team, contact us. We’re always looking for opportunities to engage and get creative.