Our theme for 2022 is in recognition of the journey many of us find ourselves on as we emerge into a new world 'post COVID'.

Our theme for 2022 is in recognition of the journey many of us find ourselves on as we emerge into a new world 'post COVID'.
Laura Cotterill recently spoke at TEDxWolverhampton back in November.
As a write this blog post, I am feeling rather stressed and overwhelmed and it is honestly due to the constant feeling of digital connection to other people; not only in my job but also my personal life.
As a millennial, I have had what I think is a healthy balance in my relationship with technology. In my childhood I experienced the lengthy wait times trying to connect to dial up, msn messenger chats, watching the clock for my 60mins free BT minutes on the landline and took pride in using my hefty Motorola ‘Talkabout’ 180 phone that was for texts and calls only with the occasional game of snake thrown in. I had a relationship with technology where I was able to mentally and physically disconnect and relish in social endeavours without this constant feeling of connection I find myself having today.
Fast forward and I’m sat at my laptop drafting this blog post, have my two phones (one work, one personal) side by side, seeing a constant stream of WhatsApp notifications, email threads, and phone calls, it’s lunch time and I feel exhausted…
Whilst I have found the balance of using technology from a work perspective somewhat over whelming at times, it has not stopped be from appreciating the sheer value of digital technology; it has certainly kept me sane during lockdown and has enabled me to continue my job and social life using virtual opportunities.
The developments of technology have been influential within the everyday lives of young people and it is apparent that the Internet is now transforming Education. The Internet has provided a social context whereby relationships, virtual interaction and collaboration are promoted; furthermore, offering an outlet for unlimited exploration of ideas. Student’s knowledge has advanced within the digital ether and the growing social-culture driven by the reliance of fast access and instant information across unrestricted space and time is now very much ‘normal’. As a result of this, our student’s pre-lockdown, were seeking out online connections and we are now using these desires to remodel the Education system as a direct response to the global pandemic with what I see as positive results.
Within a very short space of time, my students were propelled into virtual learning experiences and had to adapt fairly quickly in more collaborative methods of learning. The interface of Education completely changed within 24 hours and both myself and my colleagues were improvising overnight. Lesson plans and delivery methods had to be reconsidered and dynamic online opportunity shifted to the forefront of the teaching and learning agenda. It was challenging and has most certainly taught me to explore innovative ways to keep my students actively engaged in their own learning.
Whilst there were some teething problems to begin with, the transition as a whole was fairly seamless. Through the pandemic, I have seen that using purposeful technology has great potential to aid in generating communities of knowledge. Lave and Wenger (1991) define Communities of Practice as, “groups of people who share a concern or a passion for something they do and learn how to do it better as they interact regularly” – I have seen this approach become more prominent in enhancing digital relationships amongst my learners.
Students are seeking virtual community in outlets such as TikTok, YouTube and Instagram; these social media settings have become pivotal in creating a collection of people who contribute to the growth of the whole platform and propel social creativity.
The use of online platforms has enabled students to bridge the technological gap between social and educational contexts. Not only this, but I have seen relationships with my students improve and I feel that technology has provided a very much needed mutual space for networking opportunity. During lesson delivery, I have seen that online spaces have improved student’s willingness to share knowledge and ideas and they now relish in the chance to communicate with each other.
The most significant observation from teaching online during the pandemic has been that online spaces have provided an open forum enabling students to shift away from a focus on themselves and work towards what can be achieved by the emergence of community opportunity. I hope that we continue to adopt this approach within the formal learning environment as it has equal value in driving social enquiry – which is needed more than ever during such lengthy periods of isolation and social disconnect. Which may well continue for some time to come.
References: Lave, J., & Wenger, M. (1991). Situated learning: Legitimate peripheral participation. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Iman Hussain, 2020 TEDxWolverhampton speaker sat down and spoke to us about being involved in LUPE, a web solution for small businesses to continue to find customers in the community and to foodbanks and charities during lockdown.
As the pandemic set in across the UK one of the biggest problems was access to food. Newspapers and social media were littered with people bulk buying the staples of canned food and fresh produce, as well as oddities such as excessive amounts of loo roll and even several varieties of hummus.
This simply could not continue, and it quickly set in that some people would perhaps suffer from the food drought. An already constricted system was being pushed to its limit. In Wolverhampton and throughout the UK the effects of food poverty had started to balloon.
I have always seen technology as an equalising force for good. Much like the printing press, or the industrial evolution, technology was always designed to make human life more enjoyable and easier. A team of highly skilled individuals from the University of Wolverhampton and myself set about developing an application to help address the disparity in food using tech for good.
My team consisted of Lukas Jaks, a swiss army knife in the field of computer science, and Chloe Allen-Ede, a Physics student with exceptional data science experience. Through our research we learned that many businesses forced to shut down early in the lockdown included pubs, hotels, and offices. These premises would often have large storage facilities with an abundance of foods and cleaning supplies that they couldn’t make use off.
This conclusion led to a eureka moment, whereby we realised that simply redistributing stockpiled food and supplies could kick start a local economic resurgence.
Our plan was to create a website that could be accessed from computers, phones and tablets that would allow users to advertise what foods they have available, and see what food is available in the local areas. It would allow closed businesses to sell and redistribute their stocks and would allow loo roll hoarders to trade their white gold for food. Any food at risk of going out of date would automatically be donated to foodbanks.
We wanted to create a tool that people would use, so we pooled in local resources at met with experts from across the West Midlands. By using local knowledge, we wanted to make sure that our solution was every much ours as it was there’s. From Tony’s Delicatessen to the Redditch Foodbank, we collected feedback and iterated the fruits of our labour.
Working with Tony gave us a direct insight into the mind of a small enterprise owner during the lockdown. Tony explained some of the challenges he faced with being forced to close and having stocks of food with no customers. It was disheartened to see how the local economy was being disrupted. Despite that both Tony and his colleagues remained positive and formed a vital part in making our community solution.
A challenge we faced due to the nature of the pandemic was verifying the safety and security of food and supplies. People might not want to buy or trade supplies in person or from unknown sources.
For this we turned to a bleeding edge technology called “blockchain”. You might have heard of its uses with the digital currency of bitcoin, or in the efforts to secure country borders, but we felt that it would be far better suited to monitor a supply chain. The blockchain is simply a shared list of items and their features, it is distributed across all members of a community and members must agree on its status and verify its authenticity for any transactions to take place. Like a shared shopping list.
The blockchain would allow each food item to have a history and a clear chain of ownership so people know where their food has come from and who has been in contact with it. Furthermore, as the app is accessible online the actual transfer of items can be done on a contactless basis – Far safer than queuing at a congested supermarket.
Our team continued to collect data and feedback from stakeholders throughout the community including foodbanks and office buildings to create a solution that worked for everyone.
As our application came to fruition, we christened it Lupe, named after the Latin for Wolf, the French for magnifying glass and a backronym for the phrase “Lockdown Use Purchase Environment”.
Our application was recognised in the international “CallForCode” competition, held by IBM and the Clinton Foundation, to help inspire and recognise rising talent and “tech for good” projects. Patrons included celebrities such as Lady Gaga and Pierce Brosnan as well as politicians such as the Clinton family. Out of thousands of entrants from around the world we were delighted to hear that our efforts had placed our small Wolverhampton based team came second beating ivy league universities and start-ups. Forget Silicon Valley, we put the West Midlands on the map!
To us it was never about winning, it was about creating a real-world solution to a problem that we could see the effects of. Being able to use our digital skills to help reboot our community was all the reward we needed and made all our hours of hard work more than worth it.
People often think that to change the world you need to have millions in funding and have connections, but technology has levelled the playing field. Three students from their local University, united with the idea to make a difference using their digital skills made a difference.
Mathilde Petford will be speaking at TEDxWolverhampton which is live online on Saturday 7th November 1-5pm. Free tickets are still available.
In 2014 I went to university and found myself losing sense of my own identity due to the intensity of the new surroundings. I was in a new city with new people and a completely new schedule. I remember the first time I went back home after moving to university, as soon as I stepped off the train in Wolverhampton station the familiarity flooded over me, as I first saw my family I breathed in a sense of remembering who I am. I would go home every couple of weeks to stay grounded, I needed the clarity of people and places that I knew well.
2020 has felt very similar, everything is unknown, unpredictable and unsettling. We don’t know what to expect month by month and making plans feels almost impossible. When the UK first went into lockdown many of us began working from home for the first time, stopped seeing friends and family and had a completely new schedule to learn. I found myself being reminded of trying to adjust to university, the feeling of losing my own sense of identity. I have learned that there is little more effective at reminding me who I am than seeing family; the first time I stood in the street talking to my family on their doorstep after lockdown was the moment I remembered myself again. The world could be quite literally closing down on us and feeling connected to family could make us whole again.
Writing my TEDx talk during a global pandemic has been interesting to say the least. My imposter syndrome always sits on my shoulder heavily, so feeling like what I have to say is important during this year has been a challenge. My talk is about society modernising its views on what a family is, the role a family can play and who belongs in your family. Whilst writing I was reminded about how much I have relied on my family and my community to hold me (metaphorically, I haven’t hugged my parents for 7 months) during this year. I have been reminded that in the grand scheme of things, it doesn’t matter who your family are, whether they are your blood relatives or people you’ve chosen to be your family, they are a big part of what makes us who we are.
I am so fortunate to have strong relationships with family who are still here and local to me. 2020 has taught me not to take this for granted, but I can’t help but think about the people who don’t have family around them. I think about students in lockdown at university accommodation sending messages to each other using Post-it notes on their windows, neighbours collecting shopping for those who are isolating and all of the zoom quizzes we organised for each other to stay in touch, stay laughing and stay distracted. It didn’t only need to be our relatives that helped us stay connected, we all play a role in supporting and being kind to those around us; a role that has never been more important.
When the world is so uncertain, all we can rely on is those around us; this might be family, it might be friends but it also might be the person living next door. Check in on people, let your loved ones know that you love them and pass on an act of kindness; because they’ll be the things that ground us when everything else feels like it’s floating away.
Dr Martin Khechara interviews Dave Pitt about what he has been up to since Dave's performance at TEDxWolverhampton 2019.