For the first time in the history of the Masters of Design and Innovation, the students of the four programs travelled together, inaugurating, in this way, the cross-curricular unit coordinated by Pablo Jarauta.

Barcelona, with its great cultural wealth, became the meeting point of the students, who immersed themselves in it through the common and individual experiences of each master.

The exhibition Metropolis Barcelona of the Disseny Hub Barcelona, for example, served to illustrate the concepts of globalization and complexity in the city, discussed in the collective seminars of the teaching unit.

A group of students made specific visits to companies like *S.C.P.F… or Design it! and carried out activities with IRON HACK, papabubble and NUTCREATIVES.

Stockholm, Sweden’s capital and biggest city and the engine of innovation and economic development of this Scandinavian region, was the perfect setting for soaking up a fresh, modern and creative atmosphere. The new Swedish pioneers come from the most innovative sectors, from the man behind the creation of Skype to the creator of Spotify: the Scandinavian creative industry is booming and overflows with innovation.

The students were in contact with companies in the sector, like FJORD, Transformator Design, Googol and Doberman, with a vision that is far in advance of the rest of Europe and America, and also with the most traditional and most contemporary Swedish culture, visiting emblematic places like the Nobel Museum and the Moderna Museet and immersing themselves in the activities taking place on Sweden’s National Day, which coincided with their visit there.

At a crucial moment of advances in innovation and new technologies, favourable business communities and environments are being formed worldwide. We are talking about places aimed at promoting the growth of start-ups: innovation ecosystems. On the trip to New York, the students spent most of their time in Silicon Alley, one of these places, with the aim of finding out as much as possible and applying it to their business projects.

During the trip, they were surrounded by incubators, consultancy firms and accelerators, visiting companies like Doberman, NY Designs or Frog Design and technological businesses such as ESI Design, Code&Theory and Local Projects. They also visited Rosa Clará and Curve ID and had the Centre for Social Innovation and The New School Parsons’ doors opened. And, of course, they did not leave New York without enjoying its cultural and gastronomical richness.

Dutch design stands out internationally for its functionality and creativity, which have turned it into an example of divergent thinking, and for always being at the forefront of the application of new technologies.

For ten days, students travelled to the cities of Amsterdam, Tilburg, Rotterdam and Eindhoven. Among other activities, they visited the studios of renowned designers as Lex Pott’s, Makkink & Bey’s, Minale&Maeda’s, Vincent de Rijk’s or Piet Hein Eek’s.

A part of visiting several cultural centres and museums such as the Arcam Center or the Textiel Museum the went to Micropia as a prelude to the BIO-Workshop they carried out at Mediamatic where they got to know the tiny world of the creatures that make up two thirds of the living matter in the world, and which cannot be seen by the naked eye.