The DIF2022 Festival is back to delight with debates, pitch nights and more! One of the things we’ve discovered over the last couple of years is that flexibility is crucial, and so the DIF2022 Festival offers a hybrid events program. Drawing from experience combining the benefits of remote access and in-person networking, this year’s program will offer a combination of in-venue, live-streamed and on-demand events, ensuring everyone can participate. The Festival will see the return of in-person events at DIF Hubs across the state in coworking spaces, local libraries and corporate suites. More details will be announced soon. From 24 August to 7 September, DIF2022 will showcase and celebrate Victoria’s digital and tech ecosystem, bringing together visitors from across the state and the region to share ideas, network and learn new skills. The DIF2022 Festival is the highlight of the Digital Innovation Futures annual program of events. Discover some of our feature events The DIF2022 Festival program is now live with more events being added daily. Below are just a few of this year’s feature events: The in-person Women in Emerging Tech Conference [has been so popular it is almost sold out and will now be live-streamed by Deloitte Digital so no one will miss out on the fantastic line-up. As DIF is all about the intersection of digital technologies and innovation, the inspiring Melbourne Connect precinct is the perfect venue for the Festival’s opening and closing events. The Festival Opening Debate will focus on the critical topic of cyber security, hosted by the Australian Information Security Association as part of the annual Cyber Day on 24 August. The Festival will wrap up on 7 September by looking to the future with the ever-popular Top Tech Trends Debate, hosted by The Churchill Club. ACS Victoria hosts our first DIF Hub Day at their Tech Innovation Hub Docklands. Opening morning with Bradley Deacon on Cyber Jobs and The Pearcey Foundation Roundtable will also explore the challenges of the future of work. The Emerging Innovation Summit 2022 (EIS'22) is a future-shaping event that offers the attendees a rare opportunity to learn from the world’s best innovators and thinkers with 35 speakers and 20 expert panelists. Opening on Sunday 28 August via Zoom then into the CBD for some interactive fun at Foy's Arcade hosted by ISPT. Why not spend a weekday exploring outdoor emerging innovation at Yering Station, in the Yarra Valley on Tuesday 30 August. We love a pitch night, and this year we have three! Startup Victoria is on the lookout for Inspiring Young Founders for their August Pitch Night. Silicon Beach will host two pitch nights, one virtual and one in-person. Infoxchange and Connecting Up are back with a dedicated webinar series for not-for-profits to support their digital transformation journey. The Committee for Melbourne is bringing its members together to tackle the opportunities and challenges of the digital economy. The Committee will host the Smart Cities Summit with nbn co, and an online forum with Public Libraries Victoria showcasing makerspaces from Docklands to Wodonga. Future jobs are in the spotlight with the return of the Victorian Engineering/IT Careers and Startup Jobs Expo on the closing day Wednesday 7 September via livestream. Enjoy DIF2022 in three ways Everyone is welcome and to make it easy to access, you can participate in one of three ways: 1 / Online 2/ In-person 3/ On-demand Join a DIF Live event online at set dates and times Attend an in-person event at a local DIF Hub or partner venue Engage with on-demand content on the DIF Online Event Hub anywhere, anytime It's not too late to #MaketheDIF The DIF2022 Festival has been launched but there are still opportunities to be involved by posting a session as part of the DIF On Demand program by the deadline 20 August. It’s FREE to be a DIF Event Partner! All are welcome to attend events and we encourage you to create your shortlist and register early so you can make the most of your DIF2022 experience. Interested in being part of this year's DIF2022 Festival? START HERE
By Georgina Jerums Let the networking begin! Join in the state-wide Digital Innovation Festival. The Digital innovation Festival (DIF), has officially kicked off for 2019 with events being held right across the state until 6 September. From Swan Hill, Sale and Ararat to Wodonga, Bendigo and Ballarat the DIF has something for everyone. The festival has grown rapidly since it started in 2016, when it played host to just 70 events. This year it’ll be big. Very big. More than 15,000 people are expected to attend over 400 events to hear speakers from tech companies, universities, government agencies and businesses from across Australia and around the world. Kathy Coultas, Director, Strategic Technology Partnership Team, Department of Jobs, Precincts and Regions. Heavy hitters in the line-up include Google, which is supporting an event for regional tourism operators; Zendesk (a $2.1 billion San Francisco-headquartered publicly-listed software company with 12 global offices including one in Melbourne), hosting an innovation roundtable; and DXC Technology (an American B2B IT multinational with 130,000 employees) hosting an artificial intelligence event with Swinburne University. So, who exactly is the Festival aimed at? "Everyone," enthuses Kathy Coultas, who heads up the Victorian Government’s Strategic Technology Partnership Team, which manages the festival. "There’ll be games development workshops, YouTube creator sessions, school student conferences and career expos, water innovation days, hackathons, artificial intelligence and cyber security conferences and awards, discussions on technology ethics, and more. Each of these activities enables businesses to learn, to understand the opportunities for technology-enabled innovation, to meet others on the same journey, and to help their business grow strongly into the future." "DIF is for every business, organisation, government agency, local council, community group, educational institution and individual because technology-driven innovation is impacting us all, creating both challenges and opportunities. The aim is to help Victorians understand that digital innovation is about our state’s future and that it involves and creates opportunities for everyone. DIF’s all about collaboration; we can do so much more in partnership than we can alone." Where the Festival really comes into its own is in giving homegrown tech go-getters a platform. "DIF 2019 promises to celebrate Victoria’s technology successes, showing the creativity of our grassroots innovators as well as our global success stories." Agricultural innovation also gets a big nod in this year’s DIF program as Victorian agtech is on the rise - unlocking opportunities for regional growth, local business development and global trade. Many events will help agricultural businesses apply technology to finesse products and services. "DIF will include blockchain workshops for the dairy and viticulture industries and their supply chains, plus demonstrations of drones, artificial intelligence and the Internet of Things (IoT) on farms," says Kathy. At a broader level, the spinoffs are many because you never know who you’ll meet: the DIF 2019 will be a business networking event like no other. "We believe that DIF’s globally unique in ambition and approach, to catalyse awareness and engagement with technology-driven innovation across an entire economy and community," says Kathy. "Not only does the huge range of events create opportunities to learn new things and meet new people, they also encourage a positive mindset and stimulate problem-solving, promoting technology innovation to every business." Originally published by the Victorian Connection.
<blockquote> <p class="MsoNormal">Victoria is set to host its fourth Digital Innovation Festival celebrating technology and Victoria’s culture of innovation. </p> </blockquote> <p class="MsoNormal">From 23 August to 6 September, the<a href="https://dif.vic.gov.au/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> Digital Innovation Festival</a> (DIF) will bring together visitors and digital experts to share ideas, network and learn new skills, with hundreds of events staged throughout the state.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Over the last few months, the DIF team has hosted a monthly 'mixer style' event at the Victorian Innovation Hub thanks to <a href="https://launchvic.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">LaunchVic</a>. The official launch was held on 6 August to showcase the inspiring events for this year’s program. <a href="https://youtu.be/lY3uiKwDZ34" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Watch the video</a> to see all the action.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/lY3uiKwDZ34" width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe></p> <h2 class="MsoNormal">So what is the DIF?</h2> <p class="MsoNormal">The Digital Innovation Festival is a 'grassroots' style of festival that encourages local organisations and individuals to host events throughout Victoria. It’s grown rapidly since it started in 2016, when it hosted just 70 events, to this year’s festival, with more than 15,000 people expected to attend over 400 events across the state. DIF will truly have something for everyone.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">To help you navigate the <a href="http://bit.ly/DIF2019program" target="_blank" rel="noopener">DIF2019 Program</a> you can search by topic <a href="http://bit.ly/DIFlistDigitalInclusion" target="_blank" rel="noopener">digital inclusion</a>, <a href="http://bit.ly/DIFlistEmergingTech" target="_blank" rel="noopener">emerging tech</a>, and <a href="http://bit.ly/DIFlistFutureJobs" target="_blank" rel="noopener">future jobs</a> or by audience groups: <a href="http://bit.ly/DIFlisBusinessIndustry" target="_blank" rel="noopener">business and industry</a>, <a href="http://bit.ly/2Z29m4N" target="_blank" rel="noopener">entrepreneurs and startups</a> as well as <a href="http://bit.ly/DIFlistCommunityPublicSector" target="_blank" rel="noopener">community and public sector</a>. There are a lot of <a href="https://dif.vic.gov.au/search-results/all/free/none/0/0/5/none/none/none/date/all/none/none/false/1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">free </a>or low-cost events to enable everyone to attend. Our event partners have worked tirelessly to bring an amazing lineup of speakers. If you do book a free ticket and can't go for whatever reason, please let the organisers know so they can offer the spot to someone else.</p> <h2 class="MsoNormal">Regional innovation boom</h2> <p class="MsoNormal">Regional Victoria will host over 100 events thanks to the Victorian Government's <a href="https://djpr.vic.gov.au/connecting-victoria/connecting-regional-communities-program" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Connecting Regional Communities Program</a>.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Victorian agtech is booming and there is so much opportunity for regional growth, local business development and global trade. There are workshops exploring blockchain in <a href="https://dif.vic.gov.au/event/9964512-a/trust-transparency-in-the-viticulture-supply-chain" target="_blank" rel="noopener">viticulture </a>and <a href="https://dif.vic.gov.au/event/9964673-a/trust-transparency-in-the-dairy-supply-chain" target="_blank" rel="noopener">dairy </a>and other <a href="https://dif.vic.gov.au/search-results/all/none/rural-agtech-ag-agriculture-farm/0/0/0/none/none/none/date/date-range/23082019/06092019/false/1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ag-related events</a>. <a href="https://dif.vic.gov.au/event/9565745-a/global-table-feeding-our-future" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Global Table</a>: Feeding Our Future and <a href="https://dif.vic.gov.au/event/9878854-a/seeds-and-chips-down-under" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Seeds & Chips</a> are bringing thousands of innovators together from over the world to build a better food system for all. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">Regional development will need to embrace technology to create the jobs of the future. the Benalla <a href="https://dif.vic.gov.au/event/9811119-a/future-work-regional-summit" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Future Work Regional Summit</a>. <a href="https://dif.vic.gov.au/event/9705791-a/binary-shift-conference-2019" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Binary Shift </a>Gippslands leading tech conference is back for the 3rd year further east in Sale. A series of <a href="https://dif.vic.gov.au/search-results/all/none/springboard/0/0/5/none/none/none/relevance/all/none/none/false/1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Digital Springboard</a> events in Geelong and Shepparton that help people learn the digital skills they need to thrive in work and life.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Regional towns are embracing DIF with local festivals booming. Albury-Wodonga Innovation Summit & Expo (AWISE) is the feature of the 3rd annual North East Digital Innovation Festival (NEDIF) in <a href="http://bit.ly/DIFlistWodonga" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Wodonga</a>. This year the Swan Hill region is hosting its inaugural <a href="https://malleerising.com.au/digital-innovation-festival-mallee-2019" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Mallee Digital Innovation Festival </a>and</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Bendigo is a hive of innovation these days and the 2nd<a href="https://dif.vic.gov.au/event/9726028-a/bendigo-invention-innovation-festival" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> Bendigo Invention and Innovation Festival</a> or BIIF runs for the second week of the festival including the Symposium and the Festival of Failure. Whilst <a href="https://dif.vic.gov.au/search-results/all/none/futureaus/0/0/5/none/none/none/relevance/all/none/none/false/1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">futureAUS</a> has a weeklong program on South Coast, Torquay and Jan Juc where you can embrace a different way or working, on an art farm or in a tiny house.</p> <h2 class="MsoNormal">Techs give back</h2> <p class="MsoNormal">The DIF helps foster new ideas, perspectives, capabilities and ways to solve problems. It also creates opportunities for women, Indigenous Australians and those in rural and regional areas to develop a strong and inclusive tech sector. Techs like to give back and they of if you purchase a ticket to the <a href="https://dif.vic.gov.au/event/9824200-a/digital-ai-summit" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Digital AI Summit </a>or the <a href="https://dif.vic.gov.au/event/10027269-a/social-innovation-summit" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Social Innovation Summit </a>via <a href="https://www.humanitix.com/au/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Humanitix</a> the profits from all booking fees will be donated to literacy programs for young girls.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Another initiative sees 100% of proceeds from ticket sales for the <a href="https://dif.vic.gov.au/event/9932498-a/technology-for-geelong-regional-innovation-summit-supporting-elf-squad-inc" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Geelong Innovation Summit</a> donated to regional tech charity <a href="https://www.facebook.com/elfsquad" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Elf Squad Inc.</a>, to develop a much-needed bit of tech that will empower dozens of local charities and community groups to support more local families in need at Christmas than ever before. Now that's #tech4good. </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://dif.vic.gov.au/event/10130965-a/dif-back-to-school" target="_blank" rel="noopener">DIF Back to School</a> is designed to encourage students, parents and teachers to engage with technology and innovation and to build awareness of the many future career opportunities. Over 30 tech professionals will volunteer their time to give back to their local community and help inspire the students of today to become the tech leaders of tomorrow. </p> <h2 class="MsoNormal">Celebrating homegrown innovators</h2> <p class="MsoNormal">Ingenuity is at the centre digital innovation and the creators of technology need to be recognised. Celebrating success is important if we are to keep moving forward and awards provide us examples of what we can achieve.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">The flagship event is the national <a href="https://www.aiia.com.au/iawards" target="_blank" rel="noopener">iAwards</a>, hosted by the Australian Information and Industry Association (<a href="https://www.aiia.com.au/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">AIIA</a>), recognising and rewarding excellence in Australian innovation, held on 29 August. The iAwards Pitchfest in the morning is a great showcase of the finalists.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">The winners of the <a href="https://dif.vic.gov.au/event/9696930-a/2019-national-iawards-gala-dinner-and-awards-ceremony" target="_blank" rel="noopener">iAwards</a>, the <a href="https://dif.vic.gov.au/event/9913943-a/be-bendigo-invention-innovation-awards" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Be.Bendigo Invention and Innovation Awards</a>, <a href="https://dif.vic.gov.au/event/10069914-a/2019-women-in-security-awards" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Women in Security Awards</a> and Australia, the New Zealand Sports Technology Awards (ANZSTA) <a href="https://dif.vic.gov.au/event/9934535-a/spatial-excellence-awards-victoria" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Spatial Excellence Awards Victoria</a> and the <a href="https://dif.vic.gov.au/event/9938727-a/pearcey-oration-victorian-entrepreneur-of-the-year-award" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Pearcey Victorian Entrepreneur of the Year Award</a> are a testament to our entrepreneurial spirit.</p> <h2 class="MsoNormal">#DIFhub19 Victorian Innovation Hub</h2> <p class="MsoNormal">The <a href="https://dif.vic.gov.au/search-results/all/dif_space_hub/none/0/0/5/none/none/none/date/all/none/none/false/1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">DIF Hub program</a> is back for one week this year running from Monday 2 to Friday 6 September 10.00am – 4.30pm. feature over 30 speakers across the 2nd week of the festival. Each day creates ‘mini-conference’ that people can join for one or all of the sessions and stay for the day and co-work between the sessions. Each session will be unique and will provide opportunities to connect and explore how technology is making a difference in Melbourne. But more on that next time!</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Mon 2 Sep - <a href="https://dif.vic.gov.au/event/10136494-a/difhub19-digital-economy-day-free" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Digital Economy Day</a> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">Tue 3 Sep - <a href="https://dif.vic.gov.au/event/10136496-a/difhub19-ai-futures-day-free" target="_blank" rel="noopener">AI Futures Day </a> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">Wed 4 Sep - <a href="https://dif.vic.gov.au/event/10136493-a/difhub19-connected-world-day-free" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Connected World Day </a></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Thu 5 Sep - <a href="https://dif.vic.gov.au/event/10136497-a/difhub19-inclusion-impact-day-free" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Future of Work Day</a></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Fri 6 Sep -<a href="https://dif.vic.gov.au/event/10136497-a/difhub19-inclusion-impact-day-free" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> Inclusion & Impact Day</a></p> <p class="MsoNormal">For more information about #DIF2019 visit the Digital Innovation Festival website <a href="https://dif.vic.gov.au/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">dif.vic.gov.au</a> or contact me to talk about how you can make the DIF.</p>