How do you think creativity can make the world a better place?

My idea of a better world would be one where everyone is committed to making tangible local and global changes. There would be a greater collective awareness and synergy in every community. We would all act responsibly and with integrity, especially when tackling the major world issues of climate change and over-population. I believe there are creative solutions to global, social and humanitarian crises, and that creativity is key to positive change on a global scale.

I would define creativity as a mental process, the use of the imagination or original ideas. I think the use of the imagination creates original ideas leading to advances and improvements in a huge variety of sectors, professions and social groups. Using our imagination allows us to be resourceful, and can help us develop our futures and ourselves. Using our imaginations – being creative is like a 6th sense; we can engage with our intuition and subconscious insights to develop new concepts as well as our feelings.

Most people when they initially hear the world creativity associate it with the arts, producing work that is predominantly appreciated for its beauty or an emotional level. The arts are very important in a variety of communities.

Then there is the association with creative, design-based industries; but creativity is the key to innovation, it’s necessary in engineering, sciences, architecture and business. The use of creativity in these areas can lead to an infinite number of scientific advances, and the development of new or modified products, services and systems.

Creativity can lead to the improvement of farming efficiencies in developing countries, designing places for shelter, health and education. In Central Asia there are projects involving solar thermal collectors for water and space heating, made from basic materials such as wood, horsehair, and black paint rather than high quality manufactured collectors.

Creativity helps inspire and motivate, businesses are increasingly valuing creative skills more and more. In this current economic many believe creativity is what will help differentiate organizations and allow them to regain their market share. Small budgets have always inspired innovation and so the current economic situation opens up options for all creative thinkers, businessmen and marketers. Recession can prompt unusual levels of creativity and I would like to be a part of that.