Innovation doesn’t happen in isolation it happens when people cross paths make connections and contribute to a shared effort. When all this happens in a particular place it creates an ecosystem where innovations flourish. We see this in Silicon Valley with business visionaries, tech experts & venture capitalists come together to produce innovations that are transforming our world. Furthermore in Boston where medical researchers teaching hospitals and bio technology developers build on another’s discovery to advance frontiers of health 

Economies call these concentrations interconnected people in institutions innovation clusters – this way of working is the new normal and it has led to remarkable changes. But too often people in the world of education people are still trapped in their own bubble without a chance to connect and share with partners. 

What if we could build an ecosystem that helped the  education stakeholders connect and brought them together with new people, ideas and voices. To expand what’s possible in education that’s the idea behind education innovation clusters or Ed-clusters for short.

What are Ed-clusters?

Ed-clusters are collaborative communities where educators, entrepreneurs, researchers, funders and other community stakeholders work together to design test and share promising tools and practices. Together they form an ever evolving ecosystem to support and spread innovation. Across United States regions are forming ed clusters to shape the future of teaching and learning in the places they call home.

School districts and tech companies and learning researchers are working together to do rapid cycle product evaluations. Foundations are supporting networks of schools, museums, libraries and community centers to expand learning opportunities anywhere anytime. Teacher colleges in school districts and regional development agencies are partnering to prepare students to be community problem solvers and help rebuild local economies.

Allright… Now that I have put this fancy “made in USA” approach lets compare it to what we have in here.

Our approach to innovation is quite vague, we talk about it a lot, really a lot. However the chronology of our actions do not always match. The main reason for that is – short term thinking and aspiration for quick wins do not lead to long term positive results.

For years I have been hearing re-creation of silicon valley like ecosystem. That idea is a failure at a start, because every community & nation is unique. We cannot simply detach an approach and recreate it without major adjustments.

There is a reason I brought to your attention ed-clusters. I have pointed out on many occasions that the main factor that is creating a bottleneck for Azerbaijan’s innovation & non oil industry diversification is education. 

It is not just about the quality of education (sadly it is the case as well) but also about how up to date is the educational system & how it interacts with the industry (both public and private).

We simply cannot aim at copying ecosystems that took decades to recreate. No matter how you look at it the pinnacle of silicon valley is Stanford. In my opinion we should focus more on replicating and adjusting best practiced educational systems and instruments. We should focus on re-inventing our education & aim at creating thousands of scientists, doctors, teachers & most importantly engineers.

As a first step I would start (as a pilot program) from introducing new courses starting from school where children are taught 

• Soft skills
• Communication
• Teamwork
• Problem-solving
• Critical thinking
• Decision-making
• Coding skills 
• Engineering

Further on re-deploy this approach at other locations as well as expand it, adjust it & build up on it.

Sad to recognize that our educational system is outdated, nonetheless we have to remember that the roots of education are bitter but the fruit is always sweet.