Why it has been so quiet here and what is going to loudly shatter that silence
As this is the age of social networking, and as social networking is all about open and honest communication, I will be completely honest with you about why it has been so deafeningly silent on this blog lately: I have had two extremely busy months, and haven’t had time to write about it at all. What have I been up to?
The Road to Copenhagen
I participated as a ‘roadie’ in The Road to Copenhagen (R2C). R2C is a road trip on electric scooters from Den Bosch (the Netherlands) to Copenhagen. Three hundred young professionals from the Netherlands, Germany and Denmark participated in the trip, which started the 2nd of December and ended on arrival in Copenhagen the 15th of December, halfway during the United Nations’ climate change conference COP15.
On our long, cold way to Denmark we attended numerous lectures and workshops by scientists, politicians, energy experts and specialists from the automotive sector. These lectures and workshops helped us in conceiving what was ultimately the main goal of R2C: A manifesto. A list of recommendations on the development of personal sustainable mobility. Upon arriving in Copenhagen, we presented this manifesto to Danish MP Per Ørom Jørgensen and to the Dutch Minister of the Environment, ms. Jacqueline Cramer.
Read more about R2C at the official website, or download the manifesto.
Electric Vehicle Charging Points
As a continuation of my Industrial Design Engineering MSc.-graduation assignment I was hired by ALFEN bv to further develop the electric vehicle charging points I designed, and to assist in the manufacturing of a prototype and the startup of the series production.
Christmas and New Year
Lastly, I have been celebrating some very happy holidays, and I would like to take this opportunity to wish you all a very inspiring 2010. I wish you a 2010 with a lot of new insights, opportunities, friends, music and love. A 2010 in which you will reap the benefits of all you have worked so hard for in 2009, and in which you will be able to apply the harsh lessons from 2009 in your quest to reaching ever greater goals.
So, now you know what I have been doing that kept me from writing, you might want to know what I will be doing to make it up to you. I have several things coming up that will undoubtedly make you forget about the dark and silent months that lay behind.
Make-over of the blog
Overall I’m quite happy with the look of my blog, but I’m dissatisfied with the details. And, since “the details are not the details,” as Charles Eames once said, I have decided to start working on a complete redesign of the blog. A redesign that will focus on the details. Keep a lookout!
Blogging about mobility for WCIT 2010
In May this year, the World Congress on Information Technology (WCIT 2010) will take place in Amsterdam. This congress will focus on the ‘Challenges of Change’, and the role information technology will play in different social, economic and environmental development ‘tracks’. I have been asked as an electric and sustainable mobility expert to write regular blog-articles about future mobility and the role information technology will play in the fast evolution of mobility we are currently seeing.
Visit the WCIT 2010 website for more information about the congress, and visit the blog to read the articles in the different congress tracks.
Fresh articles
Naturally, there will be a whole lot of fresh articles on this blog in 2010. Apart from articles about design thinking and personal development, I am planning on creating a few periodically returning sections, one of which will be a really cool series of interviews with Industrial Designers that are precursors in equipping social media as a business tool.
Portfolio updates
To conclude, there will be more portfolio updates during the different projects. Thus far I have only been writing summaries of finished projects, but starting now I will keep this blog up to date with the progress in my running projects.
I hope to see you all soon during the big return of my weblog, and I will be happy to hear any feedback you may have!
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Incontinence Aids
