Last night, I had a great time mentoring at the Speed Networking session at the London College of Communication, University of the Arts London. There I met more than 50 young, ambitious and intelligent students and new graduates from Design, Screen, Media and Communications majors. And before that, I had a one-on-one session with another recent graduate who wanted to create a platform to provide visibility for Southeast Asian artists and creatives.

The way we talk to people, we describe and define things, the choice of words we use, and the use of jargon all matter. Your choice of language shapes our reality. If you want to change the world, first, change your language. — Here is an example I talk about from time to time, but I realised that I have never written about it: About a decade ago, I was working on localising the Change.org website into Turkish when the platform started operating in the country. I was a campaign strategist in the Turkish operations’ founding team; part of my job was to oversee the localisation.

Veganism will not save the world. On the contrary, it might make it a worse place than before. The main problem does not lie within what you produce and eat. It is how and how much you produce and consume. You might not enjoy this piece, but I hope you read it. — Culture shapes the market, and the market influences the culture in return. Let’s begin with how the market dynamics affect a cultural shift. Whenever there is an emerging cultural shift, the market aligns with it. Because whatever the people are sensitive and excited about, the brands will associate themselves with those concepts and ideas.

Yesterday, I read this piece about Tamagotchi written by Michelle Delgado for the Smithsonian Magazine. The article reminds us that the toy has turned 25 this year. — While reading the article, I have found it utterly fascinating to think about a “virtual pet” from the 1990s in the age of the Metaverse. In addition, the report included exciting hints on the semiotics of product design and embedding cultural codes of parenting into game strategy.

Creativity and innovation thrive especially at the intersection of cultures, borders and disciplines. Throughout history, migrants, refugees, nomads and expats have conveyed ideas, knowledge and skills from one culture to another and triggered profound transformation. These forays and expeditions in the last few centuries have shaped the world we live in today. — Coffee, paper and even sugar, which are all basic daily necessities today, were first conveyed through cross-cultural interactions. The same goes for the geometric compass — an indispensable implement in the hands of children the world over. We live in a world that is more interconnected, interdependent and more uncertain…

Son bir yıldır zaman algımız biraz şaştı, değil mi? Ofis saati, aile saati, uyku saati, yemek saati, spor saati… tüm saatler birbirine karıştı ve yavaş yavaş kendimize daha minimalist bir düzen kurmaya başladık. Sonu belirsiz bir günün içinde kendimizi sürekli tekrar ediyormuş gibi hissediyoruz, adeta Groundhog Day! — Zaman algımızla beraber geçen zamanı hafızamıza nasıl kaydettiğimiz de değişiyor. En son ne zaman R sayısı 1’in altına düşmüştü, en son evden hiç çıkmadan kaç gün geçirmiştik, en son ne zaman bir restorana gidip keyifle yemek yemiştik? …

Do you remember what the word ‘vacation’ meant to you before the pandemic? What was the main motivation behind going on a vacation? What rituals did you have? After a long period of travel deprivation and being cramped for space in our homes, the need for vacation and our expectations have changed completely. In parallel, our sense of time has been transforming since the beginning of the pandemic as well. We conducted an informal survey in early 2021…

Yaratıcı Ekonominin gücü ve etkisi her geçen gün biraz daha fark ediliyor ve göz önüne çıkıyor. Bu alandaki sistematik çalışmalar 1998’de başlamış olsa da yaratıcı ekonominin gelişimi çok daha öncelere dayanıyor. Film endüstrisinin ihracat hacmi yılda 500 milyon doları bulan Türkiye ve İstanbul’un diğer yaratıcı sektörlerinin de öne çıkmasının vakti geldi de geçiyor bile. — FUTURATE yaratıcı ekonomi ağının liderliğinde ilk kez düzenlenen Creative Business Cup İstanbul ile yaratıcı işletme ve girişimlerin görünürlüğünün artırılması ve dünyanın en büyük yaratıcı ekonomi ağı Creative Business Network’ün parçası olma fırsatları sunuyor. Yarışmadan söz etmeden önce isterseniz nedir bu Yaratıcı Ekonomi dedikleri biraz ondan bahsedelim.

This is the first in a series of articles that explores how the sense of time is transforming globally, and the effect that this will have on brands, product development and industries in the associated ecosystem. For nearly a year now, much of the civilised world has grown used to…