The moment I came across an article about Solveiga Pakštaite, the inventor of a temperature-sensitive food label that shows when products really spoil to fight food waste and improve food safety, I knew I had to get in touch.
Solveiga is also an entrepreneur with an industrial design background. She is the founder & director of Mimica and was named MIT Technology Review's Inventor of the Year. She also holds an honorary lectureship at UCL and consults on innovation projects for leading consumer and technology companies.
In this episode, she shares her take on creativity, what makes design – of a toothbrush, vegetable peeler, or push door – truly functional and the difference between specialised and inclusive design. She also describes the various stages of a rigorous design process, focusing on problem-solving, as opposed to embracing solutions too early and too quickly.
We discuss the value of testing one's own creativity, the logic of expiry dates, and why the focus on reducing the use of plastic has pushed aside food waste and food loss, which are huge sustainability issues. After listening to this conversation, you won't be looking at the most mundane objects around you in quite the same way, so I hope you enjoy it.
Images credits: R_GA/Mimica
More about Mimica
Videos
Articles
ABOUT THE CREATIVITY FOR ALL PODCAST
A maths teacher can be creative. So can a financial adviser, a community builder, and a yoga teacher. Not to mention a speed painter, a potter, or an actor!
Creativity is everywhere and I love nothing more than to explore it in The Creativity for All Podcast, either by focusing on a theme – such as perfectionism, feeding your creative brain, or the pressure to be creative – in my solo episodes, or through my conversations with all manner of creative people.
I want to challenge the perception of creativity and, in the process, debunk many myths attached to it: it's painful, for artists and the chosen few, etc.
My guests and I are keen to zoom in and dissect the origin of an idea, the impulse that makes us engage with our own creativity, with the hope that it will inspire listeners to get creative too.
My podcast is designed for anyone who’s already being creative, or is tempted to use their creativity, in particular those of you who think they are not creative or can never be. I would love to change your mind!
The Creativity for All Podcast is sponsored by Blue as an Orange, where we believe in creativity through communication, and offer mentoring and coaching for aspiring writers and tailored language tuition for individuals and companies.