The fifth annual Innovation Summit was held in Johannesburg, from 28 to 30 August, and aimed to showcase some of the most innovative local ideas and technologies under the broad theme of “Africa's Competitive Edge”.
Eskom was lead partner for the event, and group executive for sustainability, Dr Steve Lennon, spoke to ITWeb about the importance of harnessing local innovation to overcome some of the challenges facing SA:
Embed video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIeSjFb62Hk&list=UU2vHWQlNumxtRQWnh9KzqoA&index=7&feature=plcp
Principal and founder of the Makeka Design Lab, Mokena Makeka, was also one of the speakers at the Innovation Summit, and showcased his plans to establish a Museum of Design, Innovation, Leadership and Art, in Cape Town. The centre would bring together entrepreneurs, designers and innovators in an environment that encourages collaboration. According to Makeka, there is a disjuncture between technology and design in SA that needs to be addressed:
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Education initiative. Danie Heymans of Hands On Technologies was one of the exhibitors at the Innovation Lab at the summit, and demonstrated how Lego robotics can be used to teach school children 21st Century skills, including engineering and programming:
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Eskom also showcased some of its most innovative new technologies, including a remote-control helicopter and robot, both used to inspect power-lines remotely. Winner of the National Eskom Science Expo, Hearn Johnson was also there to show off the low-cost prosthetic hand that he engineered:
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