The United States patent office affirms that throughout history, inventions have helped people discover new worlds, build communities, develop resources, increase productivity, cure diseases, ease burdens, and enjoy life to the fullest. The Lincoln Project Accelerator provides young change makers with unique opportunities to study some of the world’s leading inventions and innovations. Designing prototypes is an integral aspect of innovation and therefore Lincoln Ambassadors proactively design and present prototypes that model the ideas that they come up with.
Knitted within the design challenges given to Lincoln Ambassadors is a concerted effort at developing critical thinkers, with the ability to lead teams on complex assignments. The refusal to bend under the pressure of leadership, and the confidence to take on responsibility is a positive reflection of the growth trajectory that Lincoln Ambassadors are on.
Young people around the world, between the ages of 7 – 18 from the Americas and Europe to Africa and Asia have taken on the challenge of using tech for development. The Coding 4 Development Program is designed to help young change makers level up on their coding skills while learning about global challenges facing their local communities. The projects they will be expected to start will go a long way towards ushering them into a community of developers with a passion for social change.
One of the major learning points under our program is that not all innovations have to be in science or technology. The Lincoln Project Accelerator believes that an innovator is someone who comes up with an improvement to anything that presently exists. This ranges from coming up with new ways of thinking and doing things, to devising new ways of using inventions that presently exist. With a combined application of academic rigour and opportunities for practice, Lincoln Ambassadors get the unique opportunity of learning about 21st century innovators and developing their own prototypes for innovation.
Design thinking
Design thinking, has been identified as the global gold standard for instructing (would be) entrepreneurs, innovators, pioneers and thought leaders. Lincoln Ambassadors over the course of their time in the Project Accelerator will have the unique privilege of learning the basic tenets that under-pin the design thinking model, and seeing how they can be used in coming up with pioneering inventions and innovations.
INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT: Mr. Philip Goodwin argues that development is now less about capacity building and more about social innovation. It is in that regard that we believe that it falls upon Lincoln Ambassadors to spear head this innovation.