As my first year in Detroit comes to a close, I reflect on my time as a Challenge Detroit Fellow here—the many things I’ve learned, the many friends I’ve made, and the many ways I’ve grown—and I freely admit my story is just a minuscule part of what’s going on in this incredible city. There […]
There’s a modicum of apprehension that surfaces when faced with engaging, inspiring, and mobilizing youth. What will the children think of me? Will they wonder why I’m here? What if they think this is dumb? How do I get them to care? I’m sure this feeling is normal, at least for unseasoned aspirants like myself. […]
1. Take a driving tour
The city of Detroit is a rather large one, spanning 139 square miles — more than San Francisco, Manhattan, and Boston combined. Detroit is also a city of incredible diversity with unique things to see in different pockets all across town. Be sure to check out the arresting mansions of Boston-Edison, the hidden canals of Jefferson-Chalmers, […]
My host company has a strict foosball policy – everyone must be good at it. Well, actually, that’s not entirely true. Some people choose to not even play foosball… but others (myself included) take it very seriously. And my competitive bent along with the jovial nature of my colleagues has inspired me to become a much better […]
We, at Challenge Detroit, use a tried-and-true methodology called the Design Thinking Process to develop innovative deliverables for our non-profit partners during our Friday Challenges. The process is iterative and moves fluidly between five stages: empathy, define, ideate, prototype, and test/learn. For our recent COTS Challenge, my team deftly put the Design Thinking Process into […]
The seatbelt sign flashed off and I tugged my travel bag from under the seat in front of me. As I stepped off the airplane, my senses were assaulted with an excess of oddities. The world was brighter and sleeker, the air smelt obscenely crisp, and I had a hard time tuning out the loud […]
The old woman remembered a swan she had bought many years ago in Shanghai for a ridiculous sum. This bird, boasted the market vendor, was once a duck that stretched its neck in hopes of becoming a goose, and now look! — It is too beautiful to eat.
Then the woman and the swan sailed across […]
For someone who a few years ago couldn’t tell the difference between a Buick and a Chevrolet, even when staring directly at both emblems, I’ve learned a lot about cars. Some of my education can be attributed to the weeks I spent interning at General Motors, the acquisition of my driver’s license, and of course […]
Once again facing a dearth for words, I would like to take this opportunity to direct my readers to a particularly insightful reflection written by a first time visitor to Detroit.
In What Ruin Porn Means To a City Rebuilding Itself, Julia Shiplett discusses her first trip to Detroit, her expectations, discomforts and realizations. I admire […]
There’s something rather contagious about Detroit’s bike culture. Maybe it’s Detroit Bike City’s Slow Roll or the tantalizing allure of Detroit Bike & Brunch. Maybe it’s the spokes spread across our living room as my husband tinkers with his bike frame. Or maybe it’s the cyclists riding through the night with their neon lights flashing […]