Accelerate, Wentworth Innovation + Entrepreneurship Center Convenes Interdisciplinary ThinkTank on the Future of Aging

BOSTON, Oct. 26, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Accelerate, Wentworth Innovation + Entrepreneurship Center announced today its upcoming ThinkTank, the latest in a series of collaborative, interdisciplinary events where attendees convene to address societal challenges and identify future opportunity spaces. The latest ThinkTank will focus on the Future of Aging and will take place on Saturday, November 3, 2018 from 10:00 - 4:00 p.m. at the Cambridge Innovation Center.

The university partner for the ThinkTank is Innovate@BU. Wentworth also partnered with leading industries and organizations dedicated to improving aging outcomes, including AARP, General Electric, Cambridge Innovation Center, the Massachusetts Executive Office of Elder Affairs, Stantec and more.

"Advances in healthcare and technology allow us to live longer than ever before, increasing the senior population significantly," said Dr. Monique Fuchs, Associate Vice President of Innovation + Entrepreneurship and Founder of Accelerate at Wentworth Institute of Technology. "How we take advantage of this third phase of life, integrate seniors into society effectively, and change our views on aging is at the core of this ThinkTank. By convening academia and leaders across industries and ecosystems such as healthcare, architecture, social services, mobility, technology and more, we can co-create ideas to improve the overall quality of life for our aging population and for ourselves."

The goal of the event is to convene a diverse audience across industries and academia to facilitate conversations and connections between individuals whose work and influence may not otherwise intersect. Mixing senior leaders with students and faculty removes hierarchies and allows authentic co-creation of ideas. Participants at the invite-only ThinkTank will ideate and uncover opportunity spaces potentially shaping the future of aging, leading with key questions and uncertainty about this topic and what it means for society. The Business Innovation Factory is leading the facilitation of the day and firms IDEO, Continuum, Essential Design, i2i Experience, and Optum are sending design thinkers.

This is the second ThinkTank that Accelerate has held in 2018. The previous ThinkTank in February focused on the "Future of Cities | Converging Generations" and outcomes of the day were captured in a booklet and video.

Accelerate is pleased to be partnering with the following organizations and thought leaders, amongst others, who are committed to proactively preparing for the rapid rise of aging communities around the globe:

(Speaker) Dr. Charlotte Yeh, Chief Medical Officer, AARP Services, Inc.
"The truth is - everyone of us is aging every day," said Dr. Charlotte Yeh, Chief Medical Officer, AARP Services, Inc. "Age is not a condition to fix, but an asset that contributes wisdom and experience. The future of aging is not about 'aging in place' but 'thriving in motion', with purpose, optimism and social connection. Successful aging with vitality is not about design for old, but design for all, bringing life to our lives."

Gerry Fine, Executive Director - Innovate@BU
"We are excited to partner with Accelerate on this ThinkTank and its unique format that brings together academia and industry to solve real problems in an innovative multi-disciplinary way. Aging is part of our shared future, no matter where you are or what you do, and planning appropriately for it is an important discussion we look forward to participating in."

Tim Rowe, Founder and CEO - Cambridge Innovation Center
"We're thrilled to host this event to bring innovators together around the challenges and opportunities of aging populations around the globe. That's why we're launching AGENCY as a hub designed to foster innovation, grow companies and scale ideas that build an age-friendly world. We will be facilitating coworking and collaboration between entrepreneurs, experts, and enterprises here in Cambridge, with expansion to our CIC's in Tokyo, Rotterdam, Miami and other U.S. cities."

(Speaker) Danielle Duplin, Co-Founder and Global Launch Director - AGENCY
"The ThinkTank approach lends itself perfectly to tackling this substantive topic and surfacing creative ideas that could potentially become new companies. We are glad to bring a cross-sector community together for this immersive experience as part of our launch week events for AGENCY."

(Speaker) Dyan Finkhousen, Director of Open Innovation & Advanced Manufacturing and Co-Founder of GENIUSLINK^TM - General Electric
"At General Electric, we're continuously looking both inward and outward for ways to innovate. Accelerate's ThinkTank model breaks the mold when it comes to cross-collaboration and innovation among disciplines and GE is glad to participate in the event."

(Speaker) Robin Lipson, Chief of Staff and Chief Strategy Officer - Massachusetts Executive Office of Elder Affairs
"The Commonwealth is always looking for new and innovative approaches as we work to promote independence, empowerment, and well-being of older people. That is a core principle behind the Governor's Council to Address Aging in Massachusetts. We need to tap the spirit of innovation that is on full display at events like Wentworth's ThinkTank, so that we can ensure that Massachusetts remains a great place to grow up and grow old together."

(Facilitator) Eli McLaren, Chief Market Maker - The Business Innovation Factory
"The ThinkTank format offers a special opportunity to convene meaningful conversations with Boston area community members who might not ordinarily have the chance to share ideas with one another. The Business Innovation Factory is thrilled to take part in the Future of Aging ThinkTank and is excited to collaborate with the Accelerate team on exploring the challenges and opportunities associated with aging communities around the globe."

Kyle Rand, CEO - Rendever
"Rendever's approach to tackling social isolation in seniors with cutting edge technology is unique, and we've seen amazing results. But when you think of the vast diversity of seniors in America and throughout the world, it's critical that we have a wide variety of products and services all working together to form multidisciplinary approaches to social isolation and all of the other challenges that present with aging. That's why the ecosystem here in Boston, and represented at this ThinkTank, is so amazing and critical - this is the city that will lead the way in improving the aging process."

ABOUT ACCELERATE, WENTWORTH INNOVATION + ENTREPRENEURSHIP CENTER
Accelerate, Wentworth Innovation + Entrepreneurship Center, was formed in May 2012 to build innovative thinking and entrepreneurial confidence among students impacting their career choices and success. The mission of the center is to prepare students with critical competencies for today's competitive work environment. The center's focus on experiential learning allows students to gain experience in idea iteration, prototyping, building confidence by taking risks with small projects and big ideas, see the bigger picture and solve real-world problems. The center promotes interdisciplinary collaboration and intentional networking among students, alumni, industry, and the Boston community. To learn more, visit http://www.wit.edu/accelerate/.

SOURCE Accelerate, Wentworth Innovation + Entrepreneurship Center

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