Innovation and Changes

Innovation comes with a price. Designers are innovative of creating design that will optimise the resources and enhance the quality. In many occasion creativity involves changes to the existing guidelines and requirement. Not many people like to see changes as it will contradict to the norm in which nobody dares to take the risk and responsibility if something bad eventually happens. Thereby, everybody is so comfortable with the existing situation and do not like to make or even to suggest changes. Sometime people who make the suggestion will be asked to do it or worst be reprimanded for opening his/her mouth. If an organisation contemplates with current situation, then creativity and innovative ideas will not be entertained.

Last week I encountered this on two different occasions. The first one was during an NGO meeting in which I suggested that a permanent secretariat with defined roles and sufficient capacity should be established so that administration of the association can be improved. All presence agreed with the suggestion and I was asked to prepare a paper within 3 months.

The second one was a building plan submission for a bungalow house. The applicant in responding to the call for more greenery and sustainable home has suggested to convert the rooftop of car porch into a landscape garden. However, the car porch is built until the boundary line. According to the current building practice, set back of any structure from the boundary line is required. Building set back is required for uniformity, safety and clearance of sight. Greenery is required for having a better quality of living environment. While the proposal will not jeopardise the requirement for set back, more greenery is created.

So, when it comes to deciding which should prevail, what do we prefer? Setback without much impact on surrounding or more greenery with great impact on sustainable environment? You guess is as good as mine. It is matter of are you a change person or a person waiting to be changed.