Inclusion Factory & XJTLU for Tech and Social Impact
Collaborating with domestic and international educational institutions to raise awareness about disability equality among young people, while welcoming individuals from various backgrounds to contribute their expertise to social issues, are the core missions of Inclusion Factory.
In May 2024, Inclusion Factory and Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University (hereinafter referred to as XJTLU) officially signed a cooperation framework agreement to jointly establish the “Taicang Social Innovation Lab”. The two parties will engage in in-depth collaboration in areas including building practical bases, providing student internship opportunities, supporting activities, and expert cooperations. Together, we aim to drive both social and commercial impacts through innovative thinking.
During the summer and autumn semesters of 2024, Inclusion Factory joined classes at Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University for the first time, sharing practical insights on how technology can assist social issues with university students from both China and abroad.
Exploring the Factory:
How Can Technology Help Address Social Issues?
In July 2024, during the XJTLU Entrepreneur College (Taicang) Immersive Technopreunership Summer School, Inclusion Factory hosted 40 university students from 8 countries.
Ziye Chen, Senior Consultant of Inclusion Advisory, introduced the development of Inclusion Factory, starting from a small workshop with fewer than 10 employees, and gradually growing into a manufacturing factory with over 40 employees with disabilities. However, challenges and opportunities coexist, and we invite students to think about future possibilities of the Factory over the next ten years.
Students learned about the development of Inclusion Factory
Meanwhile, Operations Director Qing Di introduced how to implement management practices concerning the characteristics of employees with disabilities. “Respect each person’s uniqueness” and “change the environment, not the person” are the core principles of the Factory’s environment and system design.
Students visited Inclusion Factory
In-Depth Exploration:
How Can Technology Addresses the Needs of Diverse Groups?
In November of 2024, Inclusion Factory was once again invited to participate in XJTLU’s “Cutting-edge Practice in Innovation and Entrepreneurship” autumn course, where we used the Factory as an example, sharing how to conduct design on “empathy”.
In the class, Ms. Chen first guided students to reflect on the relationship between “disability”, “intellectual disabilities” and themselves, with relevant background and data as supportive materials. Then, students had the opportunity to personally experience the actual product assembly process at the Factory–screwing bolts into a product and thinking about how to control the length of the protruding bolts to within 10 centimeters.
Students reflected on the relationship between disability and themselves through interactive boards and videos
During the process, students were introduced to the concept of “jigs and fixtures”, it is a type of tool used in manufacturing to accurately position devices, ensuring precision and reducing errors, thereby increasing work efficiency. The support of jigs and fixtures allows many individuals with intellectual disabilities to participate in the manufacturing process, and complete tasks with quality.
Students experienced “jigs”
Students with various academic backgrounds—such as intelligent manufacturing, IoT, chips, big data, supply chains, and cultural technology—offered multi-angle insights and suggestions for the development of the Inclusion Factory over the next decade.
As the class neared its end, Dr. Sophie Tong He, Assistant Professor at XJTLU, introduced the concept of “appropriate technology,” opening up a new dimension for students to consider.
First proposed by British economist E. F. Schumacher in 1973, as opposed to alienating, dehumanizing technology, appropriate technology emphasizes promoting human creativity. In the rapidly developing field of artificial intelligence, professionals across industries are concerned about being replaced or alienated by machines. In this context, how can technology fully embody humanistic values and support diverse groups in a sustainable and appropriately scaled manner? This has become an urgent research topic for students to explore further.
“We sincerely appreciate Inclusion Factory for providing students with a high-quality platform for industry-academia-research cooperation. Through our collaboration on Syntegrative Education, we hope to guide students in reflecting on the cutting-edge research topics of society. These topics will bring new perspectives to students and open up more possibilities for them in the fields of technology and business research.”
——Dr. Dr. Sophie Tong He
Conclusion
Group photo of all participants
