Back in the 80’s, there was a name/label given to those who appeared to be different to the “Norm”. Geek, Nerd, Brainiac, Genius and Egghead were often used to describe people who may look different, speak different, dress different or who might be socially awkward and shy. Back then, it wasn’t such a nice name to be called, despite this actually meaning that a person fitting this description, may essentially be smarter than the average person.
In this era, computers were science fiction and phones were as dumb and as difficult to carry as a house brick. Some might even say, life was simpler back then. The so-called Geeks often loved everything about science fiction, space travel and electronics or might have hobbies such as rock collecting.
In modern times, being labelled a Geek or a Nerd is not such a derogative term, as most people carry a smart phone that has more computing power than a 1970’s mainframe computer. The way we exist in this world, the way we gain knowledge and world news events, are now at our fingertips and newspapers are almost a thing of the past. This has been a massive shift in just one generation and less than 50 years.
There is however, still a minority of people who love to pull things apart, and this often starts at a very young age. These young people have this thirst for knowledge, the inquisitiveness to want to know how something ticks or moves or switches on or off. In our modern age, computers are part of over 90% of households, so they are nothing special and everyone knows the basics of how to use them.
Eric is a young teen with a bright future ahead of him. Coming from a loving family and living outside of the metropolitan area, he loved his life and being home-schooled. But a terrible car accident left the family in very difficult times, both financially and emotionally. His mother working tirelessly to keep the family together, while taking her husband to constant medical appointments due to a new diagnosis that the accident had uncovered. Her friends from the home-schooling community knew that she wanted to find something to take Eric’s mind off the trauma and refocus his attention on something that would give him joy and yet still be educational. But financial constraints made any such activity almost impossible.
Don, the big-hearted founder of Techspace Learning, has been a strong advocate for kindness and inclusivity from the beginning. When he heard of Eric’s change in circumstances, it was only natural that he would take action to help.
Techspace Learning has had long-term relationships with charity organisations such as the Lions Club, but more recently a local engineering and manufacturing organisation called Lightforce, expressed an interest in wanting to support Techspace Learning and the people that it inspires. A young teen, who’s family is part of this incredible Australian success story, found an intellectual home at Techspace Learning, and this gave Lightforce the opening to discuss a Scholarship arrangement.
The Lightforce Group are an organisation with more than 35 years of experience in precision manufacturing and has been a global enterprise since the 1980s. Lightforce is an Australian made, owned and operated subsidiary of the Group, specialising in off-road heavy duty driving and utility lighting. Their products are manufactured and assembled in Hindmarsh, Adelaide, with stockists in over 750 locations worldwide and their award-winning designs keep them in the top of their field.
Lightforce generously donated funds to Techspace Learning, to allow young folk like Eric to have access to the high-quality teaching provided by Techspace facilitators, who may otherwise not have the funding to participate. Scholarship agreements allowed Eric to complete three workshops in quick succession and before long he was enthralled in this new robotic world that he had been exposed to. He began attending the Adelaide City Robotics Club on Saturday afternoons, which allowed him to meet folk who also loved to pull things apart and try to get them working again or create new projects from the parts they had. An eWaste bin conveniently located nearby, a favourite place to visit, as new adventures and opportunities often lay within.
Eric’s Mum was a little nervous at first, leaving him somewhere unaccompanied, not because she feared for his safety, but more due to his shyness. But she didn’t need to worry, as this young teen soon found this inclusive club fun and easy for him to communicate with other members who made him feel welcomed. Having common goals of pulling things apart, building something new or fixing something that was broken, soon taking away any social awkwardness.
This entire experience took a lot of weight of Eric’s Mum’s shoulders, as she could see her son happy and engaged in something fun. He now speaks a language that she doesn’t understand, and never saw her son as a Geek or Nerd, despite this desire to pull things apart from a young age. She is so grateful to Don for entering their lives at a time when nothing made sense, and she sees the blessing that Techspace Learning and the Adelaide City Robotics Club is for her son who was somewhat lost, but has now found a group of people who understand him and can have fun in ways that sparks his inner Geek.
While Eric does not yet feel comfortable enough to work at Science Displays, his Mum is confident that given more time with these incredible people at the Robotics Club, he will soon embrace and be proud of his inner Geekiness and be ready to show the public just how fun robotics can be. It is not uncommon for these young folk to feel socially awkward and shy, and yet have all the confidence in the world when they talk about their robotics projects. This unique way of bringing people together and showcasing to the public is very rare and very special, and just one of the many qualities that makes Techspace Learning such an incredible organisation to be involved in.
Discovering one’s inner Geek