Idea Generation and Innovation Activities

Most small-group activities will work in a hybrid setting: here are some tips on how to adapt them.

Use Y-box for your New Production Development ideation workshop

Time: 5-10 minutes

1. (15-30 minutes) Write down 10 true statements about your creativity in your Creativity Notebook. These can be anything: ‘I feel the most creative when I’m dancing.’ ‘My desk needs to be messy/tidy for me to feel like I can be creative.’

2. EXTRA CREDIT: If you get even the slightest whiff of an 'aha!' moment, add a second layer sentence to your Noticing Wall (the back page of your Creativity Notebook). Noticing Wall Statements look like anything from, 'Huh, I never thought of it that way!' to 'Wow, I guess I really do need a messy desk to feel creative; I wonder why.'
   

Uncover and challenge the hidden beliefs, assumptions, and internal voices that are limiting progress toward an important goal. In small groups, one person shares a personal or professional challenge while two others play contrasting “pixie” roles – one advocating for change and possibility and the other representing resistance and caution. Through this playful exchange, participants surface unconscious assumptions, explore opposing perspectives on risks and opportunities, and gain clarity on how to move forward. This structure helps reveal internal barriers, generate new insights, and support more informed action planning in individual and group settings.

Dixit Braamcamp. Turning a boardgame into a co-design tool for citizen participation in local development

Notice threads in the present that if tugged on might unravel a more attractive future. Identify how the hints of a more ideal future are present, just not widely distributed yet. Participants can notice small changes, support structures, and local success patterns that have the potential to be scaled up to a global transformation. This includes surfacing strategies to overcome resistance and methods to spread early successes. Future~Present does not produce a plan to be implemented but rather builds momentum, imagination, social proof, and confidence in subtle or incremental signals. This builds capacity to actively shape next steps and pounce on opportunities.

Create a shared visual map of what a group observes, discovers, and plans to act on together. Participants begin by capturing individual observations and patterns related to a question or challenge, then combine (“meld”) these into a collective map that makes insights and action ideas visible to everyone. By moving through stages of noticing what’s present, interpreting why it matters, and identifying next steps, MindMeld helps groups surface rich, shared understanding and align on concrete actions before moving forward.