Montreal’s Conférence régionale des élus (CRÉ) was planning the Rendez-vous de L’île du savoir, an event where key players in Montreal’s science, education and business sectors strategize on engaging local youth in the fields of science and technology. As the CRÉ wanted this to be a highly participatory and collaborative event, it invited percolab to custom design and facilitate the day.
We listened deeply to the particular challenges in this context and developed a learning day that reframed the role of experts by allowing their specialized knowledge to inform, rather than direct, the emergence of new ideas and paths for action by participants. One of the day’s concrete results is the development of the Festival Eurêka. In follow up conversations with participants, a number of them expressed surprise and appreciation at the participatory approach.