Melbourne's best and brightest minds will converge this week to explore smart, innovative and unique solutions to improve the city as part of Melbourne Knowledge Week (MKW).
Celebrating its 10th year, the 2019 event will run until Sunday 26 May and see North Melbourne's Meat Market transformed into a Festival Hub, featuring hundreds of exhibits, talks and experiences.
Deputy Lord Mayor Arron Wood said MKW 2019 is about discovering bold ideas, inspiring creativity and using smart technologies to shape Melbourne's future.
"This week is dedicated to celebrating and showcasing the amazing wealth of talent and innovation in Melbourne. Our city's knowledge sector contributes more than $58 billion in Gross Local product to the City of Melbourne economy," Cr Wood said.
"Think virtual reality, artificial intelligence, advanced robotics, food innovation, sustainable living and much more. A key highlight will be the Prototype Street at the MKW Hub where you can ride on a driverless bus, share the street with drones and play on an artificially intelligent see-saw.
"Last year more than 22,500 people engaged with Melbourne Knowledge Week and we want even more people to experience the fantastic events on offer this year."
The 2019 MKW keynote speaker is Raina Kumra - Director of the Omidyar Network and previously employed by the U.S Department of State under President Barack Obama.
The 2019 MKW Ambassadors include Dr Collette Burke (Victoria's first Chief Engineer), Akec Makur Chuot (VWFL player), Cameron Mackenzie (Former Olympian and Four Pillars gin co-founder), Tamara Baker (14-year-old coder), Simona Castricum (Musician, designer and architect) and Davey Thompson (ILBIJERRI Theatre Company and Bidjara, Inningai, Wakka Wakka and Gubbi tribes descendent).
Chair of the Knowledge City portfolio, Councillor Dr Jackie Watts, said this year's line-up is proactive as well as outstanding.
"Our MKW are a marvellously diverse mix of people from varied backgrounds and generations with diverse skills and expertise," Dr Watts said. "All have achieved much in their areas of endeavour. Most significantly, all have generously agreed to share their insights, experiences and knowledge with the people of Melbourne.
"The theme for MKW 2019 is 'So, what if…?', a series of thought provoking hypotheticals designed to empower and encourage action. Our keynote speaker Raina Kumra in particular has flown in from the US and will discuss a fascinating and challenging aspect of our lives today and in the future - the interplay between technology and ethics.
"Through MKW we want people to question the world around them, think critically and collectively to reflect upon the form of future they want and how we might all achieve it together," Dr Watts said.
