2020-2021 Workshop
I’ve never felt that supported and safe in an environment to try out new approaches and new ways of finding solutions. It’s the luckiest situation you could find yourself in as a young designer or scientist, being in an environment where you feel comfortable to fail and move on and learn.
Karo Buttler, FIT ‘22
Over the last three years AFFOA has worked with MIT and FIT to produce the MITANDFIT Advanced Fiber and Fabrics Workshop. It is an interdisciplinary program that brings undergraduates students from design and science together around an industry challenge that incorporates real world issues. In short, the workshop can be compared to a two week “hackathon” where students receive support, instruction, and mentoring from MIT scientists and FIT industry-focused faculty.
This workshop exposes the next generation of engineers, product designers, textile specialists, etc., to the exciting landscape of advanced textiles, fabrics, and fibers, and aims to inspire them to want to work in that interdisciplinary environment.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the workshop was transformed into a fully virtual experience, bringing the interdisciplinary experience directly to the student. Despite the adjustment, the team found that this created a more versatile and scalable version of the workshop, and did not diminish any part of the student experience.
