Author: Greg Maino

Maker in Residence: Kat Clear’s Maker Exchange

[vc_row type=”in_container” full_screen_row_position=”middle” scene_position=”center” text_color=”dark” text_align=”left” overlay_strength=”0.3″][vc_column column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ width=”1/1″ tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default”][vc_column_text]Generator’s Maker Exchange began in a Finnish boreal forest.

“The boreal forest of Finland is a magical place,” says Kat Clear, Generator’s Maker in Residence in March and April 2019. “And while I can tell you many tales of pine trees, peat moss, blueberries, mushrooms, sauna, and a fairytale amount of moss, I want to focus on the project I made there: the Hyytalia Trading Post.”

“I made objects out of found and natural materials and put them up for trade with the others, mainly scientists and another artists that I was there with. There were a couple directives and signs so the space could be open without my presence. Participants traded objects with me and documented the trade. In the end I was left with these small, intimate objects and images that were imbued with the magic and energy we shared in the forest.”

When Kat visited us to consider a residency, she was stuck by Generator’s dynamic community of makers, their collaborations and resource sharing, and the palpable energy and excitement in the air as dozens of people throughout the building created things.

“Making things is a delicate dance between intention, materials and lots of questions,” said Kat. “For me, everything I have ever made has been a product of an idea, some amount of materials and communication with others. I see art and objects as the relic of this event.”

Kat wanted to spend her residency meeting Generator members and learning about what they do. She wanted to use her studio as a place of “cultural commerce,” connection and conversation where folks could trade their creations.

Like her “prototype” exchange in Finland, Kat set the exchange up with signage (made on our Epilog laser cutter) so she wouldn’t need to be present in order for people to navigate the exchange.

Kat documented the people trading and the objects they traded with an Instagram account, @makerexchangegeneratorvt.

“The most valuable part of this experience always comes back to the people and the community that has formed around it,” said Kat.

Kat’s residency and the maker exchange came to a close at the end of April — but it’s not too late to get your trade on.

Kat is officially closing out her residency with a Maker Exchange Pop-up for one night only.

Join us Thursday, May 23rd from 6pm to 9pm. Bring an object you made for trading, enjoy a barbecue and ice cream social, and meet other makers.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row type=”in_container” full_screen_row_position=”middle” scene_position=”center” text_color=”dark” text_align=”left” overlay_strength=”0.3″][vc_column column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ width=”1/3″ tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default”][/vc_column][vc_column column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ width=”1/3″ tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default”][nectar_btn size=”jumbo” open_new_tab=”true” button_style=”regular” button_color_2=”Accent-Color” icon_family=”none” url=”https://www.eventbrite.com/e/maker-exchange-pop-up-tickets-61873137219″ text=”RSVP”][/vc_column][vc_column column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ width=”1/3″ tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row type=”in_container” full_screen_row_position=”middle” scene_position=”center” text_color=”dark” text_align=”left” overlay_strength=”0.3″][vc_column column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ width=”1/1″ tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default”][vc_column_text]–

Photos courtesy of Andy Duback.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

May 14, 2019
SPARK empowers Vermont’s lost Einsteins

A 2017 article in The Atlantic titled, “America’s Lost Einsteins,” by Alana Semuels, focuses on the economic disparity of who gets to invent — and how that affects us all.

Semuels found that “…if women, minorities, and children from low- and middle-income families invented at the same rate as white men from high-income families, there would be four times as many inventors in America as there are today.”

The Winooski High School SPARK team does some research.

More inventors mean more innovation, and more innovation means more people are contributing to the broader social good, including a thriving economy.

Stunningly, researchers found that “if girls were as exposed to female inventors as boys are to male inventors, the gender gap between male and female inventors would fall by half.”

Generator’s solution? SPARK.

Our SPARK program engages women and gender non-conforming students in the STEM fields — that’s science, technology, engineering, and math — through a year-long design-thinking process to develop, prototype, and pitch an invention.

Spaulding High School (Barre) students show off laser cut live binding journals they made in a workshop where they learned how to use Adobe Illustrator and the Epilog laser cutter.

SPARK’s focus is to expose students to careers in the STEM fields with long-term mentor relationships, ongoing exposure to advanced tools and technology, and by experiencing failure in a supportive and collaborative environment.

“School doesn’t teach you that failing is part of learning,” Program Director Rachel Hooper said, “Students get this false idea that success is a polished thing that only smart people achieve when in reality those ‘successful’ people had more opportunities, they had support, and they still probably experienced a lot of failures before they became successful.”

The team from LUND Center participates in a wearable electronics workshop with Generator member and educator Jill Dawson and learns about basic wiring and electronics.

Hooper set out to design an ambitious program. She partnered with Connie Liu, founder of Project Invent, using their curriculum to shape a program that uses design-thinking and physical computing to create new technologies that solve problems that affect their communities.

“Design thinking is a human-centered approach to problem-solving,” Hooper explained, “It’s an iterative design process in which teams design with community members to solve their problems by empathizing with their needs. Students learn to test their ideas prototypically and bring their designs back to the community member for testing and feedback throughout the process.”

At the SPARK kick-off event, teams participated in fun exercises like the Spaghetti Tower Challenge to warm up their design-thinking, team-working, and problem-solving skills.

Generator partnered with Winooski High School, Spaulding High School in Barre, and the Lund Center. Each institution had students facing different barriers.

“There are very large gaps in innovation by income, race, and gender,” Hooper said. “Most young people are not being shown these kinds of STEM pathways and they are not seeing themselves represented in the STEM community. When young women are invited to the world of design and invention and shown that other women are building their careers in the STEM fields they can create a pathway for themselves.”

Education and Outreach Director Rachel Hooper facilitates a brainstorming session for the Spaulding High School team.

SPARK started in fall 2018. Rachel met with teams once each week, usually at their schools, to brainstorm project ideas. The teams worked in consensus to conceive of and refine their project ideas.

The team from Spaulding High School is developing a concussion tracking field kit for nurses and athletic coaches to track student-athletes’ brain health throughout their high school experience. Collecting this data could change the way schools help students recover after a concussion.

Because it’s a design-thinking process, the team’s first task was to meet with people who had experience with concussions so that they could listen and design with an end-user in mind.

Some ideas from one of the SPARK teams.

The Spaulding Team was able to meet with a Generator member who had a traumatic brain injury (TBI), as well as a person who runs a TBI support group at UVM.

Through these meetings, the Spaulding High SPARK team learned that simply recognizing a concussion was a challenge, so the team shifted gears; instead of designing a product for concussion relief, the team set out to develop a concussion identification field kit for school nurses and coaches.

With their product ideas in mind and on paper, the SPARK teams started meeting at Generator to begin prototyping.

Madison (left) and Stephie (right) of the Winooski SPARK team work on prototypes in Generator’s conference room.

“I went into this new environment, Generator, and it stimulated me to work harder,” said Madison, a senior at Winooski High School. “There were lots of tools, and we were in this board meeting room with glass doors… it made me feel more important and like I was actually doing something helpful for people.”

First, the students worked with art materials and cardboard to sculpt their prototypes. Soon, they’ll learn how to design in Illustrator and other computer programs to create prototypes with the laser cutter, the 3D printer, and in the electronics lab.

Prototypes from one of the SPARK teams.

Once the prototype is made, the next step is to have their subjects test their inventions. “We’re making assumptions,” Stephie, a sophomore at Winooski High School explained, “Now we need to get into the reality and see if this is really working, and if it’s not, our goal is to find something else that works better.”

So is SPARK working?

“Since I’m a senior and I’m about to graduate I am thinking of careers and stuff,” said Madison, “Ever since SPARK my eyes have been opened to inventing.”

Madison went on to say that she’s hoping to spend more time at Generator. “I’m excited to figure out how to make more things with sensors.”

Stephie of the Winooski High School SPARK team shows off her prototype for a heart rate monitor necklace that helps the wearer monitor stress.

Program Director Rachel Hooper isn’t surprised. “The traditional thinking is that you need to be good at math and science and you have to have four years of undergrad AND an advanced degree to enter a STEM field,” she said. “Makerspaces change that.”

Stay tuned for more from SPARK.

March 19, 2019
Member Made: Marni’s giant laser cut ovaries

Marni Leikin is a Generator member and professor of digital media.

Marni schooling herself in all of our rapid prototyping tools, including the 3D printer, 4 Axis Modeling Mill, vinyl cutter, and of course the Epilog laser cutter — all to prepare for the rapid prototyping unit of her upcoming Digital Media Methodologies for Educators course at Champlain College, which will train and empower educators to bring cutting edge digital technology into the classroom.

This is one of the many awesome pieces she’s made during her practice and preparation: laser cut ovaries for the #vermontwomensmarch last month.

She says they were a major attention-grabber, and now they’re hanging down in Nutty Steph’s to help promote their chocolate vulva sales benefiting Planned Parenthood of New England.

Amazing.

February 17, 2019
Lights, lights, lights: The Illumination Collective

The Illumination Collective is comprised of community artists with a shared playful curiosity for light and shadow — many of whom happen to be Generator members.

Through creative tinkering, the Illumination Collective crafted a magical Illuminated Forest at the Champlain Mini Maker Faire this past autumn. Here’s member Kristian Brevik’s installation at the event:

Following the success of that one-night-only installation, the team gathered again to bring new glowing surprises to Echo Aquarium with the Illuminated Waterfront as part of the inaugural night of Highlight, Burlington’s New Year’s Eve celebration.

Some of the Generator members displaying work included:

Jody Brown

Jody Brown is primarily interested in environmental design and sculpture. She makes small-scale steel sculpture and works on ideas for larger scale work in a variety of materials. As part of the Illuminated Collective team, she’s using reflective materials combined with dynamic lighting to create sculptural installations. She co-owned and operated The Drawing Board in Montpelier, VT, for thirty-five years. She is accomplished in business management, picture framing design and production, art preservation and art materials services. Currently, she serves on the board of Studio Place Arts in Barre and is affiliated with Generator in Burlington.

Ken Howell + Terrence Sehr

Ken Howell is an artist and professor of media arts at Champlain College where he also serves as a faculty advisor with the Emergent Media Center, and leads the EMC Sandbox Team exploring new and novel human-computer interaction models . He holds an MFA from the School of Visual Arts, and a BFA from the Maryland Institute, College of Art. He is a founding board member of Generator, a Burlington makerspace and a founder and organizer of the Champlain Maker Faire. When Ken is not describing himself in the third person, he is an I that enjoys a creative life of making, tinkering, drawing, painting, and practicing bonsai. His work, even the bonsai stuff, deals with dichotomy, emergent properties, the quieting of the monkey mind, and dislocations in time and space, symptomatic of digitality.

Terrence Sehr is a digital artist interested in political and social media-sourced digital art using algorithmic appropriation and remix. Other interests include interactive art, mixed media sculpture, and the maker movement. Terrence is adjunct faculty in the Champlain College Masters in Emergent Media program, as well as the Community College of Vermont Computer Information Systems program. Terrence holds a Master of Fine Arts degree in Emergent Media from Champlain College, a Master of Science degree in Computer Science from the University of Vermont, and a Bachelor of Engineering degree in Electrical Engineering from The Cooper Union, NYC.

Alex Constantino

Alex Costantino is an art educator and artist working across various media, including ceramics, painting, and and digital sculptural practices. He holds a BFA in printmaking from Kansas City Art Institute and an MFA from the University of South Florida in Studio Art. In addition to creating art, he teaches art at Enosburg Elementary School, Champlain College, and Burlington City Arts.

Clay Mohrman

Clay Mohrman uses lighting to connect spaces with the surrounding environment through the combination of LED lighting technology and found materials. Using form, function and materials, his sculptures exist at the intersection of nature, design, and the built environment. The work creates a functional and satisfying union between sculpture, light, and its surrounding environment.

Jake Blend + Alex Toulan

Jake Blend has earned a reputation as a creative, fun, and determined maker/fixer. As the rapid prototype shop lead and manager of the Mixed Reality Lab at Generator, his daily bread is transcribing dreams to tangible joy. Among his many projects are mini arcades, way-finding footprints for a traveling Smithsonian Exhibit, creating the World’s Largest Spirograph, and he is currently working on a secure low latency VR telepresence as part of a National Science Foundation project in collaboration with BTV Ignite. You can find out more at jakeblend.com

Alex Toulan is a software engineer, game programmer and product developer. He likes to dabble in electrical and mechanical engineering as well. In his spare time, Alex enjoys creating illuminated interactive installations. The LED Tetris Wall at Highlights exemplifies a number of his passions.

Thank you to Illumination Collective and Generator Member Jane Adams for the write-up and photos!

January 28, 2019
Meet the 2019 Jump/Start maker-entrepreneurs

[vc_row type=”in_container” full_screen_row_position=”middle” scene_position=”center” text_color=”dark” text_align=”left” overlay_strength=”0.3″][vc_column column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ width=”1/1″ tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default”][vc_column_text]Generator is all about combining art, technology, and entrepreneurship, and no program does that better than our Jump/Start program.

The small product-based business incubator program, facilitated in partnership with LaunchVT, welcomed eight maker-entrepreneurs into the 2019 cohort.

These folks are spending nine weeks at Generator building foundations for their businesses, accessing our workshops and resident tool experts to iterate on their existing prototypes, receiving mentoring from local business leaders, and preparing to launch their small businesses!

We’re thrilled to introduce you to the cohort and their products:[/vc_column_text][divider line_type=”No Line”][divider line_type=”No Line”][divider line_type=”No Line”][vc_row_inner text_align=”left”][vc_column_inner column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ width=”1/2″][vc_column_text]

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1. Todd Taylor and Marble Mundo

“Marble Mundo reimagines the way we play and learn, one fold at a time, through marble run building kits for kids made from cardboard,” Todd writes. Marble Mundo is a toy for children that folds and assembles into interlocking blocks and ramps. Those pieces then connect to form marble runs in an open-ended system of play.

Todd is a Generator member and has been prototyping Marble Mundo for the past year by collecting pizza boxes and cutting them on the Epilog laser cutter. Todd received $5,000 worth of in-kind prototyping services when he won Generator’s 2017 Pitch It, Fab It contest hosted by Generator and UVM IMF. Todd is excited to continue his work on prototyping while focusing more on marketing, distribution, and his business model with the Jump/Start cohort and mentors.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner text_align=”left”][vc_column_inner column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ width=”1/2″][vc_column_text]

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2. Adriana Saipe and Ink with Intent

Adriana is a freelance illustrator who creates customized Jewish wedding contracts (ketubahs) and secular wedding certificates. She’s run her own business (inkwithintent.com) for the past five years and recently joined Generator to start incorporating ornate paper cut elements into the ketubahs

Or participating in Jump/Start, Adriana writes, “The thing that appeals most to me about the Jump/Start program is the mentorship component. I would absolutely love to have an outsider’s perspective on what’s working and what’s not in my business and where I might go from here. And I’d love to get my hands on the curriculum! Given that I’ve trial-and-errored my way through the first stages of my business, it would be wonderful to take a step back and learn some of the basics that I may have skipped at the beginning.”[/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner text_align=”left”][vc_column_inner column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ width=”1/2″][vc_column_text]

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3. Fat Bird Studios and Querent

Fat Bird Studios is a design and game studio consisting of Amila, Kayla, and Mish. Their game, Querent, is a tabletop roleplaying game that uses tarot cards to create a narrative-driven and personal experience.

“We have two products, the first being our guidebook The Cartomancer’s Tome. This is a 250+ page guidebook that will house the rules of our game as well as charts to help players decipher the meanings of tarot cards in relation to certain game-related spreads. Our second product is our custom 78-card tarot deck. Each card will be illustrated by our artist Amila to capture the essence of Querent and the meanings of traditional tarot cards.”

Fat Bird Studios ran a Kickstarter campaign that was funded 820% of their original goal. Now they’re focused on developing on online store to take pre-orders and to conduct on-going business. They’re excited to participate in Jump/Start and receive coaching around finances and business growth.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner text_align=”left”][vc_column_inner column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ width=”1/2″][vc_column_text][/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ width=”1/2″][vc_column_text]

4. Mat Gilbert and Robot Draws You

“Robot Draws You provides a fun interactive ‘photo booth’ experience where people can watch a plotter machine draw their pictures. It can also be used to create pen drawings of existing photos that were shot by more professional photographers.”

Mat’s focus during Jump/Start is developing a business plan that combines his different opportunities to generate revenue, including corporate events, personal sessions, and retail sales of components of the ‘booth’ in the form of kits or 3D printable parts that would be available for purchase via online download.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner text_align=”left”][vc_column_inner column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ width=”1/2″][vc_column_text]

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5. Tessa Hill and Tessa Hill Sculpture

Tessa has 10 years of glass blowing experience — and it shows. Her small and detailed glass jewelry is stunning and she’s sold it through her Etsy shop for the past seven years.

Her focus in Jump/Start will be expanding production and distribution of one of her most popular items: a handblown glass honey bee pendant, the sales of which support honey bee conservation. She’s focused on using Jump/Start to plan for growth, including outsourcing some of her production and increasing the number of galleries and retail outlets carrying her bee necklaces.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner text_align=”left”][vc_column_inner column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ width=”1/2″][vc_column_text]

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6. Kristian Brevik and Starwatcher

Kristian creates illuminated lanterns of whales and other creatures which aim to enhance connection between humans and other species and the environmental issues we face.

Kristian has been making art for years and his beautiful lamps have recently struck a chord with locals. “The whale lanterns were very successful beyond what I was expecting at Art Hop, both in the response from the community, from press, and with sales, but in the months since then, I’ve been bogged down with organizational issues – accounting and taxes, having a clear business plan, developing a cohesive online presence and market,” Kristan wrote.

Kristian is excited to keep up the positive momentum of his art business while getting a solid foundation in place through Jump/Start, which includes deciding on a legal business structure, setting up accounting systems, and figuring out which sales channels to prioritize.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner text_align=”left”][vc_column_inner column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ width=”1/2″][vc_column_text]

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7. Ezra Ranz-Schleifer and Bloom

“Bloom is a beautifully futuristic take on artificial flowers featuring a modern design aesthetic and delightful interactivity possibilities,” Ezra writes. “I want to participate in JUMP/START because Bloom is a unique product that could infuse new ideas into the floral landscape- both aesthetically and from the business side where the model is based on reuse. I feel the focus of JUMP/START is perfect for the current stage of Bloom. Access to Generator would give me the necessary to tools to continue to refine the product and working with the guidance of mentors to hone a suitable business model and marketing strategy.”

Ezra is looking forward to more prototyping, as well as figuring out how and when to integrate more elements into his artificial flowers, including scent and lighting.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner text_align=”left”][vc_column_inner column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ width=”1/2″][vc_column_text][/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ width=”1/2″][vc_column_text]

8. Jaen Carrodine and MAG Bindings

“MAG Bindings simplify the process of strapping into a snowboard. My proprietary design replaces the ratchets of a standard binding. This means that the “feel” of traditional straps is maintained but strapping in becomes faster and easier, ” Jaen writes.

Last year, Jaen participated in the Catamount Innovation Fund Accelerator where he received valuable training in marketing, brand identity, pitching, and other business skills. He excited to continue this work and use Jump/Start to prepare for all aspects of taking his binding to market.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row type=”in_container” full_screen_row_position=”middle” scene_position=”center” text_color=”dark” text_align=”left” overlay_strength=”0.3″][vc_column column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ width=”1/1″ tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default”][/vc_column][/vc_row]

January 24, 2019
Maker in Residence: Michael Zebrowski

Our January/February 2019 Maker in Residence is Michael Zebrowski and his public art and design studio, UP END THIS.

Some may recognize Michael from a couple months back when he was at Generator finishing his project Water Molecules, a temperature sensitive light sculpture installed at Spruce Lodge at Stowe Mountain for their Festival of Lights.

Photo credit: Spruce Peak Lodge

Michael’s work spans art and science with an emphasis on interactive and useful structures and public art. He first ventured into designing products with his project Eclipse Survey, 100 pairs of eclipse viewfinder glasses that he designed and produced for the Gibbes museum of art in Charleston, South Carolina.

Photo credit: Up End This

Photo credit: Up End This

Michael plans to use his 2-month residency at Generator to dive deeper into the product design process.

His goal? To build the first full scale prototype of one of his “satellites,” a mobile and dynamic architectural structure.

Michael asserts that the satellite isn’t like a tiny house. “It’s more in line with an inspired by the motor vehicle,” he said. He aims to make his beautiful and simple satellites DOT approved so they can be transported, and to add casters on the bottom that will allow them to spin in their locations so they take advantage of sun, shade, or different views. This will also help maximize the satellite’s solar power potential.

While it’s easy to picture the satellite as a mobile living space, Michael can also see them being cafes, shops, and meeting places. He’s curious to see what uses people may have for the structures and to develop a business that serve’s peoples’ needs.

Michael prefers basswood and foam board to 3D modeling programs, and we’re enjoying watching his colorful studio space pile up with different models. He plans build the first satellite over the next two months behind Generator. He’ll spend time in the wood shop with the CNC router which he’ll use to develop a radiant floor heating system. Michael also plans to use the plasma cutter and the electronics lab for outfitting the satellite with mechanical and electrical elements.

Want to follow Michael’s residency? Subscribe to our newsletter and follow us on Instagram at @generatorvt.

January 11, 2019
18 highlights from 2018

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It’s been an amazing year at Generator!

In an attempt so sum up the innovation, collaboration, and maker magic, we’re sharing these 18 highlights from 2018:

1. Generator is bustling with over 500 members in 2018. We served over 2,500 people in Chittenden County and beyond through our classes, workshops, and over 80 free events, including public lecture series, meet-ups and targeted programs such as our public, early-stage entrepreneurship incubator program.

2. Generator has grown to over 11,500 sq. ft! This fall in partnership with Champlain College we added 3,000 sq. ft. of creative making “Flex Space.” The new space includes spaces for large scale project fabrication, a larger event space able to host an audience of 200+, dedicated workspace for students, and a home for exploration of future technologies including motion capture.

3. Four colleges are now teaching classes out of Generator, taking advantage of our advanced tool set and supportive community of mentor professionals. This includes CCV’s new Fundamentals of Engineering and Design as well as the fourth year of UVM’s innovative, NSF-funded BioFabLab alternative curriculum for freshman biology, which features hands-on fabrication projects in collaboration with graduate students working on real research projects. Learn more here.

4. 360 entrepreneurs took part in our highly successful JumpStart founder education program lecture created in collaboration with LaunchVT for very early stage entrepreneurs. Heavy hitting speakers included Michael Jager of Solidarity of Unbridled Labour, Cairn Cross of Fresh Tracks Capital and Justin McCabe of Dunkiel Saunders. Videos of the lectures are on our website.

5. We are extremely proud to have received the Burlington Mayor’s Prize for Entrepreneurship from the Kauffman Foundation to expand our Jumpstart early stage entrepreneurship program for 2019. This means we will be doubling the size of our winter entrepreneur incubator cohort, launching a summer JumpStart Collegiate incubator featuring teams from three colleges, as well as an Artist Business Boot Camp incubator program in the fall. Read the full article here.

6. Generator launched two new community outreach programs for teens: DesignLab and Spark. Since June, we have connected over 400 teens to Generator’s creative and technical professionals to explore careers in technology, science, engineering, digital fabrication, and entrepreneurship, through collaborative, project-based workshops using cutting edge technologies including electronics, computer-controlled fabrication, robotics, and drones. Learn more about Design Lab here.

7. Spark’s unique, weekly, mentor-driven programming designed for girls and marginalized genders engages teams from three Vermont high schools in the STEM careers and the design process as they invent solutions to community problems over the course of an entire school year.

8. Generator became home to “the first permanent indoor drone racing track in the USA” and received national buzz. Join the Drone racing fans who meet and compete every month. Check out the NBC coverage here.

9. We are now in our second year partnering with Spaulding High School (Barre, VT) on a career-focused, advanced manufacturing boot-camp to support non-college bound students. This curriculum helps students gain access to careers in CNC operation, which pay upwards of $50,000 per year. Generator is planning an expansion of this program with CCV and the Vermont Talent Pipeline.

10. 480 people took part in the inaugural year of our Reckless Ideas speaker series featuring Burlington’s top thinkers and innovators working at the intersection of design and science, embracing big ideas and pushing disciplinary boundaries. Created in collaboration with UVM’s Complex Systems Center and Champlain College’s Emergent Media MFA Program, topics ranged from autonomous robots to the spread of ideas and viruses, to the Internet of Things, to the conflict between creativity and commerce. Check out videos of the lectures on our website.

11. We are thrilled to welcome three new board members: Lee Bouyea, Managing Director at Fresh Tracks Capital, Champlain College Provost Laurie Quinn, and Juniper Lovato from UVM’s Complex Systems Center. You can see all of our beautiful board members here.

12. Champlain College’s MakerLab has merged with Generator. As part of the partnership, we now have a team of dedicated Lab Technicians available to assist members on their projects 5 days per week, as well as a second laser cutter! Over 200 Champlain students are already taking advantage of Generator’s sophisticated tool sets and are collaborating with our community of creative professionals.

13. Pitch it, Fab it! — our fast and interactive evenings of competitive pitches — provided budding entrepreneurs with $10,000 worth of prototyping services by UVM’s Instrumentation and Modeling Facility to develop a working prototype of their projects. To date Pitch It, Fab It! has resulted in 8 winners and 6 completed, working prototypes. Learn all about Pitch it, Fab it! here.

14. Now in its second year, the Somali Women’s Sewing Circle has graduated 20 micro-business entrepreneurs to date. With our program partner, CVOEO, we have provided New American women with textile fabrication skills, and professional sewing equipment to help them make hard-to-find traditional clothing and support starting their own businesses. Check out this Seven Days article about the program.

15. The hardworking Generator team grew by three: Jon Weisbecker as Outreach Coordinator, Christine Hill as Communications Manager, and Elliot Katz as Shop Operations Manager. You can meet all of our staff on the website here.

16. Generator collaborated with 32 non-profit partners including: AARP, Champlain College, UVM, Edmunds Middle School, Flynn School, Spaulding HS, Big Picture South Burlington HS, King Street, Spectrum, CVOEO, Launch VT, SEABA, Flynn School, BTV Ignite, The Peace Paper Project, Middlebury College, The Vermont Woman’s Fund, Governor’s Institute, TechJam, Winooski High School, The Lund Center, Vermont Works for Women, CEDO, RETN, and the Center for Women and Enterprise.

We’re looking forward to even more collaborations in 2019!

17. We opened our new Mixed Reality Lab to support Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality software development. A team of Champlain College graduate students used it to create an augmented reality application for the fast-growing start-up, Mamava, and new Virtual Reality Kayaking simulator game, “Squid Hitcher.”

18. Four Generator members are now employed at the exciting Beta Air aviation technology electronic aircraft project at Burlington Airport as part of their prototyping/engineer team. We are proud that three of these members gained this opportunity thanks to their advanced manufacturing and CNC training and experience at Generator. Learn more about the Beta Air project here.

Response to our end-of-year campaign has been just wonderful. We’ve raised $12,250 of our new $15,000 goal.

Join us today by making your gift today!

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December 27, 2018
Maker in Residence: Hilton Dier III

Our November/December Maker In Residence is Hilton Dier III, a renewable energy expert and designer (and man of many talents and areas of work), who had this to say about his project:

“The birth of this idea came during the Fukushima nuclear accident in 2011. I was contacted by a friend of a friend who was involved in radiation monitoring in that part of Japan. Their battery powered radiation monitors required Blackhawk helicopter flights (at $$$/hour) to replace batteries and he wanted a ruggedized portable solar power pack that could be deployed by non-expert soldiers. The Japanese government restored power before I had finished the design but the idea stayed with me. I have designed and prototyped a similar system for powering a network of medical clinic communication nodes in Malawi. I’d like to fabricate a working prototype of a single-person portable, rugged solar power pack. My rough estimate is that the major electrical parts (PV module, charge controller, inverter, battery) would cost around $450. There would be incidental costs for connectors, wire, adhesives, and similar supplies. The finished device would produce 12 volt DC and 120 volt AC power.”

We’re looking forward to sharing more about what Hilton accomplished at Generator during his residency. If you’d like to hear more about Hilton, his work, and our Maker In Residence opportunities, sign up for our newsletter.

December 20, 2018
Generator Stories: Meet David

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Meet David.

David is a super creative teen who usually dabbles in film. “Making a movie has always been my go-to for school projects,” he said. “Until now.”

David found his way to Generator thanks to our Design Lab program.

Design Lab, conducted in partnership with schools and other non-profits, provides hands-on STEM workshops to students in grades seven through twelve.

The design-thinking process begins in the classroom and culminates at Generator where students use the same software, tools, and processes used by professional engineers, artists, and designers to bring their ideas to life.

“When I walked into Generator I was like, whoa,” David exclaimed. He has long been curious about product design and engineering and he considered this his chance to learn more.

“For this project, I decided I wanted to try making something because all the stuff is here to do it,” he said. This decision was a major departure from his normal film go-to strategy.

David’s Design Lab workshop designed and made simple phone stands. The workshop taught the students about product design and empowered them to use Adobe Illustrator and the Epilog laser cutter.

After receiving that training, David decided to take the phone stand idea to the next level: a solar-powered phone stand. “You could place it near a window, or on the dashboard of a car, ” he explained.

David’s project gave him the opportunity to deepen his experience with the tools he learned, especially the powerful design software and the ever-popular laser cutter. He also spent time in Generator’s electronics lab with designer and staff member Pete Moore who taught him how to wire and solder a USB port and solar hook-up.

David’s project also led to a conversation with Hilton Dier III, an engineer and solar expert who is Generator’s current Maker-in-Residence. Hilton is spending his two-month residency at Generator fabricating a rugged, single-person, portable solar power pack to be deployed in remote areas and during weather events and emergencies.

Hilton and David chatted about their project similarities and David’s design challenges. At Generator, we value collaboration and a culture of support, so there are always folks around to lend a hand or give advice. Hilton gave David some pointers on how to design his solar-powered product.

By the end of the day, much to his delight, David had conceived of a product, designed it, and made it himself. Along the way, he received one-on-one mentoring and encouragement from the Generator community, including from an expert solar product engineer.

Empowered, David is already contemplating his next project. “I have so many ideas now,” he said. “It’s so cool here, and everything seems possible.”

We are grateful to our 2018 Design Lab partners who have included Dealer.com, the Winooski School District, Hunt Middle School, Spaulding High School, King Street Center, Lund Center, Vermont Refugee Resettlement Program, the Governor’s Institute of Vermont, Essex Junction Middle School, UVM’s Mansfield Hall, Spectrum Youth and Family Services, Peoples United Community Foundation and many more.

You can learn more about Design Lab here.

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Generator wants to expand Design Lab and empower more young people to design, create, and innovate.

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Will you make an end-of-year gift to help young people like David expand their horizons?

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December 11, 2018
Generator Stories: Meet Clay
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Meet Clay.

Clay Mohrman started playing with lighting and driftwood while he worked for an industrial light supplier in the greater Boston area. He was a hobbyist in those years, refining his craft and making one-off light sculptures for friends and family.

When Clay moved to Vermont, he rented a small studio on Pine Street. He meticulously sawed, sanded, and assembled his pieces with hand tools.

Despite growing interest in his light sculptures, Clay’s time-consuming, labor-intensive process prevented him from pricing his work to sell.

Clay knew he had a unique idea and that there was a market for his original, elegant work, but needed help turning his art practice into a sustainable art business.

Enter: Generator’s Jump/Start program.

Jump/Start is a business accelerator program developed by Generator in collaboration with LaunchVT. The 11-week program consists of weekly lectures on topics ranging from accounting, to intellectual property protection, to marketing. The program also facilitates in-depth tutoring with business professionals and mentors.

Clay and three other talented makers were given the use of free studio space, 24/7 access to Generator, a stipend, and free tool training classes to help them refine their product prototype.

“I couldn’t afford the kinds of woodworking tools I needed to be efficient, let alone a full wood shop, so having access to these things at Generator was amazing,” Clay said. “The pneumatic nail gun alone was a game-changer.”

Through the Jump/Start program, Clay received support in developing a foundation for his business, including bookkeeping, branding, pricing, scheduling, and more.

He received personal mentoring from Burlington’s lighting legend, Steve Conant.

Clay also met with manufacturing experts M&E Design to improve his production process.

Clay cited Generator’s network of makers, entrepreneurs, and business professionals as a huge asset to his business.

“Starting a small business takes so much support, both emotionally and physically,” Clay said. “Having people around you going through the same process is invaluable.”

At the conclusion of the Jump/Start program, Clay became a Generator studio member.

“Generator keeps feeding me and my business,” Clay said. “I couldn’t be doing what I’m doing without the ongoing support and expertise of so many people here.”

Clay cites his participation in Jump/Start as the source of his confidence to launch his business, Clay Mohr Lighting.

The business has had numerous successes post-Jump/Start, including:
- month-long shows at Karma Birdhouse and Frog Hollow Gallery where his sales far exceeded expectations
- a 2018 Seven Daysies nomination for Best Sculptor followed up by a feature article in their “Nest” issue
- a collaboration with local musician Ivamae, Casting Coalescence, a traveling art installation that combines his lights with her music
- wholesale orders from shops as far away as Colorado
- and most recently, a winning bid for a light installation at Stowe’s Spruce Lodge for their Festival of Lights. Clay built and installed his largest piece yet — four feet in diameter. The piece was built in Generator’s common space.
“My business is continuing to evolve.
Jump/Start gave me a foundation to build on.”

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With your support, we can help more people like Clay access opportunities to learn, create, and launch themselves and their businesses at Generator.

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Will you make a year-end gift to support innovation?

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November 27, 2018