Can we all agree that being at university should be about fostering intellectual thoughts, meeting interesting people, and allowing an open environment for ideas to grow and flow?

It seems that, with all the studying and stress, we often come to forget what being at a prestigious education institute is about: inspiring young minds and coming up with innovative new ideas.

Luckily, this year there’s going to be a new club starting that serves to remind us of exactly what we’re doing in this exam-crammed, stress-inducing, sleep-deprived… you get the point. I present to you: i³.

The Institute for Inspiration and Innovation

Yes, I know it looks like i-cubed, but it stands for The Initiative for Inspiration and Innovation. To quote the founder:

“We have so many bright students in so many different areas of study, and there is no great platform to bring them all together under an academic umbrella, currently. We want to invite all students of all backgrounds to come out and take control of their education. University isn’t just a place for getting jobs; it’s an opportunity for intellectual exploration and growth.”

Wow, for a moment it felt like I was writing a news article, not a blog post… let’s get casual again.

With the goal of making “ideas sexy again”, i³ believes strongly in bringing ideas learned in the classroom out of it. Somewhat comparable to the you-better-know-about-it TED Talks conferences, i³ will have similar conferences where students can host talks and present their ideas to others. As well, there will be more frequent and casual events for students to just mingle, sharing ideas and inspiring one another.

Ideally, it would work sorta like this.

Personally, I think this is brilliant, mostly because it’s an open environment where people from different disciplines are encouraged to associate with each other and have mutually beneficial conversations. And I’ve always thought that, to be a well-rounded member of society, one has to know about more than just what one studies.

Did I also mention that, since it’s a new club, they’re recruiting Executive members? You can find the club on Facebook here and find the application sheet under the Files tab. Note that you’ll have to be part of the U of T Facebook group. Questions? Just ask. And now that I’ve discovered the wonderful power that is inserting quotes, I’ll leave you with another quote from the founder (more like a giant blurb):

“Upcoming to the University of Toronto in 2012/2013 is a new club, i³, which takes upon the goal of integrating students across the campus, from all facets of study and collegiate affiliation, on the basis of one key unifier: ideas.

“University is a chance for intellectual growth, a place to explore new ideas, and a place to foster innovation. However, there is often little emphasis outside the classroom on the ideas of its individual constituents, and even less on cultivating these ideas among the community. This is especially true given the large average class-size at the University of Toronto, and the relatively few seminar-sized classes and tutorials. There are few opportunities for individuals to build academic peer communities in which to exchange and create ideas, and this carries outside of the classroom: learning stops at the door. While the University of Toronto is home to some of the most intelligent students in the country, with many great ideas, many of these go unshared and unsupported. This is detrimental to both the individual and the intellectual community as a whole.

“The Institute for Inspiration and Innovation (i³) at the University of Toronto is a group intended to expand and foster the intellectual interests of students through forums and grants, akin to a more social and integrated version of the popular TED talk series. We aim to help foster inspiration, innovation, and the integration of these intellectual virtues.

“i³ is currently seeking Executives for its inaugural year. Currently available positions include a Secretary, a Communications Director, an Events Coordinator, a Treasurer, and a host of Liaison positions. For more information on the club, or to receive an Executive application and get involved, please see the i³ Facebook group at [https://www.facebook.com/groups/ithreeuoft/] or email us at [ithreeuoft@gmail.com]. Applications will be due July 9th, for equal consideration.”

This entry was posted on Wednesday, July 4th, 2012 at 1:45 pm and is filed under Academics, Arts, Clubs, On Campus, UT Life. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.