RI Columns

To reflect on inspiring or confronting lessons and valuable or unexpected experiences during the introduction to the minor Responsible Innovation students are invited to write 7 'columns'.  

A column is a recurring small opinion article as often is published in a newspaper or magazine. What differentiates a column from newspaper articles is: that a column is journalistic and creative in character and regularly published; personality-driven by the author; explicitly contains the author’s opinion or point of view often reflecting on a current event or experience. So every week in a column you have to share how the topic of the week (experience or idea from literature, research activities, lecture, visit or otherwise) is related to your perceived or expected role as responsible innovator. 

Every week we discuss one or two chapters of the MOOC Responsible Innovation. The presentation of these 7 chapters is prepared by fellow students. Every student writes a column about every chapter. A column is about 500 words and these are written individually. So every student will write 7 columns in total.  

Columns are posted on tudelft.gingerresearch.net. Please add your column in the correct chapter, under Responsible Innovation in the section Columns.  

Important: Make sure you add yourself as author to the column and make sure your profile is edited sufficiently.

Tips for writing a column:

1. Start from a small observation – like something that felt uncomfortable or considered remarkable, something that sticks to your mind, an innovative thought or the like.
2. Be aware of the readers: students, academics, experts and artist who visit the Responsible Innovation web site.
3. Find and interesting topics or angles to reflect on and to draw in the reader. Share your experience or observation from the course with readers in a fascinating way; from an unexpected angel, contra intuitive experience or the like.
4. Keep the topic small and to the point.
5. Be prepared to do some extra research on the topic, to make sure the details are correct.
6. Write a convincing argument. That’s beyond making just a statement.
7. Make sure that you column concludes on the topic it started with.