Category: News

Burlington is a powerhouse for innovation, creativity, and art. The Generator community is composed of people from all demographics, backgrounds, interests, and goals. These articles highlight different members stories and how Generator is part of a bigger creative community.

  • Maker In Residence: Peace Paper Project

    Maker In Residence: Peace Paper Project

    Drew Matott and Peace Paper Project was our Maker In Residence for August and September 2018.

    We asked him to share a little bit about his residency and he shared a summary of his work below. Thanks so much for being part of Generator’s community, Drew!

    —

    Peace Paper Project is an international organization of hand papermakers, art therapists and social activists. We set up hand papermaking studios around the world that in turn engage with the communities addressing specific issues.

     

    Since 2011, when Peace Paper Project was founded, we have established over 40 studios and worked with more than 30,000 survivors of war, terrorism, human trafficking, incarceration, mental illness… transforming clothing into paper, transforming associations of trauma & loss into the building blocks for healing.

     

     

    While Peace Paper Project is currently based out of Hamburg, Germany, we spend most of our time traveling the world conducting workshops and setting up papermaking as art therapy programs.

     

     

    The extreme portability of our studio and the transient nature of our operation allows us to have a wide impact with communities affected by war & terrorism and trauma & loss. The trade-off is that we rarely are able to spend quality time off the road focusing on developing specific projects. Our residency at the Generator afforded us with this much needed time and space to make innovations to, not only our program but also our tools.

     

     

    For our Maker-In-Residence at the Generator, we set out to make improvements on the tools that we use. Specifically, we focused on the Hollander beater, the machine that transforms the old textiles (rags) into paper pulp.

     

     

    While hand papermaking field is growing in popularity and practice around the world, there are only a few individuals who make Hollander beaters for sale. Since there are so few individuals making these machines, they are extremely expensive, which presents challenges to Peace Paper Project operations when setting up studios in countries that are often disaster-torn.

     

    With our time at the Generator, we set out to design and build a DIY Hollander beater that could be built for less than $1,000, using locally sourced materials and labor.

     

     

    The finished result will be published as an open source file on Peace Paper Project’s website, with a complete step-by-step to the process. It is our goal to make papermaking more accessible to communities in need and to inspire a new generation of hollander beater builders.

     

    The Generator wan the perfect location to embark on this journey; for over two weeks we were able to take classes and personal tutorials to learn how to use the tools and equipment needed to conceptualize, engineer and construct our DIY Hollander beater. The staff were incredibly helpful and the maker community offered fresh insight, inspiration and were always willing to lend a hand.

    Learn more about Peace Paper Project at peacepaperproject.org.

  • Generator wins Mayor’s Prize for Entrepreneurship

    Generator wins Mayor’s Prize for Entrepreneurship

    Burlington Mayor Miro Weinberger announced that Generator is one of the three winners of this year’s Mayor’s Prize for Entrepreneurship.

    Generator received $50,000 to expand its successful JumpStart program. This program provides high-quality founder education and support for early stage entrepreneurs.  

    Thanks to this grant, Generator can add a summer incubator to help college students launch and grow businesses in Vermont. Generator also plans to launch a new business bootcamp for artist entrepreneurs next fall.  

    JumpStart is created in partnership with Lake Champlain Regional Chamber of Commerce’s LaunchVT.

    Generator begins accepting applications for the Spring 2019 session of JumpStart in November.

    The goal of the Mayor’s Prize is to foster the growth and development of entrepreneurship in the city and encourage outside-the-box thinking about how best to achieve this. The Mayor’s Prize is entirely funded by a grant from the Kansas City-based Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation.

    Other winners include Mercy Connections and the Center for Women and Enterprise.  

    You can find more information about the Mayor’s prize and winning programs on City of Burlington’s website.

    We’re proud to be selected for this competitive award and excited to have this additional support as we promote entrepreneurship in Burlington.   More information about JumpStart will be released in the new future and we look forward to helping companies stay and grow in our community!  

     

  • Generator Announces Fall 2018 Season of Reckless Ideas Speaker Series featuring Burlington Innovators Embracing Big Ideas

    Generator Announces Fall 2018 Season of Reckless Ideas Speaker Series featuring Burlington Innovators Embracing Big Ideas

    [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”][image_with_animation image_url=”5295″ alignment=”” animation=”Fade In” box_shadow=”none” max_width=”100%”][/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]BURLINGTON: Generator, Burlington’s makerspace, announces the fall 2018 season of Reckless Ideas, a speaker series featuring a diverse mix of Burlington’s top thinkers and innovators at the intersection of design and science. Created in collaboration with UVM’s Complex Systems Center and Champlain College’s MFA in Emergent Media, Reckless Ideas features speakers who push disciplinary boundaries with topics including artificial Intelligence and creativity, data privacy, and the tension between creativity and profit for entrepreneurs.

    The speakers: Lisa Soros, Paul Budnitz, Randall Harp and Julia Vallera.

    “We are excited be able to introduce our audience to some of the most intriguing, high-impact research and design being created right here in Burlington.” Said Chris Thompson, Generator Executive Director. “The Reckless Ideas lectures aim to inspire audiences from many backgrounds to come together, share big ideas, discuss and collaborate.”

    All lectures are free and open to the public at 7pm at Generator, 40 Sears Lane Burlington VT. Liquid libations and light snacks will be served. See Full Schedule>>[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

  • Dealer.com & Generator Brings Maker Education to Vermont Students

    Dealer.com & Generator Brings Maker Education to Vermont Students

    Dealer.com and Generator are launching: Design Lab innovative STEM workshops for 7th-12th grade students. Working closely with area teachers Generator has developed programming that offers students unique hands-on learning experiences that focus on collaboration, prototyping, and flexible thinking. Rachel Hooper, Director of Community Outreach at Generator says, “I see maker education as a way to engage all kinds of learners in STEM, especially those who have struggled with science or math, by exposing them to a new kind of creative problem-solving.”

    Design Lab workshops start with design thinking, a creative problem-solving method that embraces human-centered design. Students work with design thinking specialist in the classrooms to design projects. When it’s time to prototype, students head to Generator where they will build and test their projects. Hooper says, “Students drive the design process and our maker educators guide them while teaching them how to use tools such as laser cutters, 3D printers, and other CNC tools.” When projects are collaborative, the opportunity to unite around a choice-filled creative project often helps students who had previously struggled to work in groups.

    Design Lab itself is an iteratively developed program. “This is our pilot year and we will be observing, testing and improving our offerings as we move forward,” Hooper says. Featured workshops for the year include:

    • Parklet with Purpose – Collaborating with Winooski School’s iLab and Burlington Parks and Recreation the Design Lab team will help students create a mini-park inside a parking space for Winooski residents.
    • Marble Run – What does it take to make a gigantic marble run? Middle school students learn prototyping skills as they design and build a gigantic marble run.
  • FreshTracks Road Pitch Opportunity for Generator Members

    FreshTracks Road Pitch Opportunity for Generator Members

    [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”][image_with_animation image_url=”5684″ alignment=”center” animation=”Fade In” box_shadow=”none” max_width=”100%”][/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”][heading]Call to members![/heading][/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]To be a candidate in the Champlain Mini Maker Faire FreshTracks Road Pitch competition, Generator members must submit a product or an invention pitch to Chris Thompson at [email protected] by August 15th. This is a great opportunity to get connected to the sponsors and support your product needs!

    Two Generator members will be finalists in the September 22nd pitch
    off at the Champlain Mini Maker Faire between 2 teams from each of the
    3 maker spaces (Mint, The Foundry, and Generator)

    CHAMPLAIN MINI MAKER FAIRE
    Shelburne Farms Coach Barn
    1611 Harbor Rd
    Shelburne, Vermont 05482
    SEPTEMBER 22 @ 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM

    More info at-
    https://champlain.makerfaire.com/
    https://www.roadpitch.co/schedule/champlain-mini-maker-faire-2/[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

  • Generator Rolls Out New Opportunities With Marble Coasters

    Generator Rolls Out New Opportunities With Marble Coasters

    [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]Vermont Refugee Resettlement Program (VRRP) hosts a free annual summer camp for youths of refugee and recent migrant families. This year, 12 VRRP youth visited Generator with CEDO AmeriCorps team members, Saylia Moo and Elizabeth to see STEM concepts in action. Generator’s AmeriCorps Outreach Associate, Jon Weisbecker, led a marble coaster workshop exploring how makers prototype, collaborate and fabricate ideas into reality. By the end of their time,  students minds were racing as fast at the marble coasters. One student said, “This was awesome! I really want to come back here and create a portable weightlifting system. When can we come back?” Others hope to return to use the woodshop and laser cutter down the road. Generator is looking forward to expanding programming to serve refugee and recent immigrant families.[/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=”1/1″ tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default”][image_with_animation image_url=”5666″ alignment=”” animation=”Fade In” box_shadow=”none” max_width=”100%”][/vc_column][/vc_row]

  • Middle Schoolers Rock Out Their Rockers At Generator

    Middle Schoolers Rock Out Their Rockers At Generator

    [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”][heading]Middle Schoolers Rock Out Their Rockers At Generator[/heading][vc_column_text]Edmunds and Hunt Middle School are having their summer school program join Generator for a week-long Chair Design Workshop. Gaining inspiration from past designers, such as Charles and Ray Eames and Jean Prouvé, students will imagine, prototype and build their own chairs from a  single piece of plywood. Making furniture requires skills in design, planning, and fabrication. Students will work with talented artists and designers to learn how to blueprint, use adobe illustrator, and laser cut their creations to reality. The first session of the Chair Design Workshop is launching July 30th to August 3rd, dedicated to women’s education. Students will learn how to use the laser cutter to prototype their chair in cardboard. The final product will be laser cut plywood, hardware independent chair, painted or stained with a finish of their choice. The plywood chairs will be utilized in students’ schools; so they can share their final products with friends, family, and future persons.[/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=”1/1″ tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default”][image_with_animation image_url=”5638″ alignment=”” animation=”Fade In” box_shadow=”none” max_width=”100%”][/vc_column][/vc_row]

  • Artist Elliott Katz Is New Shop Manager at Burlington’s Generator

    Artist Elliott Katz Is New Shop Manager at Burlington’s Generator

    [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”][heading]Seven Days[/heading][/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]

    Artist Elliott Katz Is New Shop Manager at Burlington’s Generator

    POSTED BY  ON FRI, JUN 8, 2018 AT 3:24 PM

    On Thursday afternoon, Generator announced the newest addition to its team:  Elliott Katz, who will be the new shop operations manager. Katz is an artist who previously worked as an adjunct professor and sculpture technician at the University of Hartford and managed the Seven Below Arts Initiativeresidency — a collaboration between Phish’s Trey Anastasio and Burlington City Arts that ended last year.

    That gig also brought Katz into contact with then-BCA curator and current Generator director Christopher Thompson. Additionally, Thompson included Katz in the BCA show “Human = Landscape” in 2009. Thompson was the chief curator at BCA from 2008 to 2012, and joined Generator in August last year.

    In a recent phone interview, Katz said he’s excited to get started in the Generator shop facilities, which currently include basic wood and metalworking.

    “Everything needs a deep reordering and cleaning,” he said. After that, he plans to build out the forge and add a foundry — a facility for melting and shaping metal.

    Read Full Article>>[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

  • Design Thinking- Fail Faster to Succeed Sooner

    Design Thinking- Fail Faster to Succeed Sooner

    [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”][heading]YES Program at Generator[/heading][/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]Generator is helping Community & Economic Development Office (CEDO) and Burlington High School (BHS) give 18 students the opportunity to explore entrepreneurship and different career paths through a design thinking workshop on Friday, June 1st.  High school is the time to try different fields and start a career. That can be a daunting task if you don’t know what you want to do. Burlington High School Year End Studies (YES) program offers all students of the BHS community exciting alternatives for learning. These non-traditional courses expand student understanding and inspire new student interests. Generator will be guiding students through prototyping exercises that encourage failing fast to succeed sooner. Intensive, interest-driven opportunities like the design thinking workshop enhance enthusiasm for learning.[/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=”1/1″ tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default”][image_with_animation image_url=”5586″ alignment=”” animation=”Fade In” box_shadow=”none” max_width=”100%”][/vc_column][/vc_row]

  • One Year in Burlington’s South End

    One Year in Burlington’s South End

    [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”][image_with_animation image_url=”5562″ alignment=”” animation=”Fade In” box_shadow=”none” max_width=”100%”][/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”][image_with_animation image_url=”5566″ alignment=”” animation=”Fade In” box_shadow=”none” max_width=”100%”][/vc_column][/vc_row]