We’re highlighting our business’ strongest asset: our wonderful team!

Here at the Canberra Innovation Network, we’re passionate about innovation and are here to help you make an impact and change the world. Our team is full of clever, connected and creative people and we’re excited to introduce you to our Collaborative Innovation Manager, Cameron Ritchie.

Explain what you do at CBRIN in 25 words or less.
I encourage new ideas by putting people into an environment where they are taught to use entrepreneurial skills to solve wicked problems. And table tennis.

Tell us about what you’re working on at the moment.
We’ve got a lot of hackathon proposals out in the world currently, and one that’s really cool is a StudentHack, which will see university students come up with new inventions and innovations. I’m also focusing a lot of my ‘slow time’ on reading more about what I do and how to make it better.

Who or what inspires you?
“Real Gs move in silence like lasagna” stands out — I like the idea of showing people that you have done it.

.@bakermayfield on @MylesLGarrett: "Real Gs move in silence like lasagna." pic.twitter.com/qXiipOOv4v

— Cleveland Browns (@Browns) November 15, 2020

Also? Donald Glover and Pharrell because of how they seem to just disappear into the background and then all of the sudden they come out with a crazy project that no one was expecting (examples include Pharrell opening a hotel in Miami and secretly reunited N*E*R*D, Donald dropping an album out of nowhere after releasing an Adidas collaboration that also dropped out of nowhere).

What’s your favourite book or podcast?
My favourite book is The Great Gatsby — it’s just a crazy rich dude doing what he wants, and I love it because his life is so extravagant and he has no worries (except for the whole ‘trying to win back his old girlfriend’ thing, which is definitely the part of the plot that I don’t agree with — ask me for a link to my year-12 English essay on why I love Gatsby although he’s an idiot). The life of F. Scott Fitzgerald is also really interesting and as crazy as the book, which adds a lot for me. I also think it’s interesting how no one cared about this book until he died, and then they were like, “whoa, we get it now”.

What are you most passionate about?
I’m most passionate about the arts — specifically music, fashion and art.

I love music because there’s so much of it to listen to and I love how it can shape a scenario. Getting off the light rail in the morning listening to “Rich Is Gangsta” by Rick Ross will change your day.

Fashion because of aesthetics. I love seeing what brands are doing and what trends are happening. I really enjoy designer stories as well — where designers came from and what they’re bringing to their new brands. Marketing in the fashion world is really, really cool.

And finally art, because, like music, it can change any scenario. I’m super into Jahlil Nzinga at the moment.

If you could dis-invent one thing, what would it be and why?
Mocks — mobile phone socks. Looking back, I don’t get it. People were putting phones into “socks” … to put into their pockets. It just doesn’t make sense to me, and they look ridiculous. Thankfully, time has moved on (though I definitely had one). Also, the inventor wrote a book about her mock empire, too? That’s crazy.

Drink of choice? 
Currently having a big cognac moment.

What do you work towards in your free time?
In my free time I like to design stuff and make music. One day I want to do a showcase of some sort.

What’s the coolest innovation you’ve read or heard about lately?
Pharell Williams in collaboration with Louis XIII Cognac recorded a song called “100 Years” onto a record made of clay from the Cognac region that is being stored for 100 years. The idea was to highlight climate change – the song can only be played in 100 years (2117) if the human race addresses climate change properly. Scientists have said that in 100 years a lot of the world will be underwater unless change is made, so if that happens no one will be able to hear the song. I think it’s a really cool way to address climate change.

What are you currently watching on Netflix?
I’m so deep into The Sopranos — oh man, what a rollercoaster! *Update: I finished and it was crazy good.*

Tell us something interesting about yourself that we may not know.
Steven Tyler from Aerosmith once tried to buy the jumper I was wearing off of me.

I also really like watches.

If you were a crayon, what colour would you be?
Red, because it’s powerful and fun.

Thanks, Cam! You can connect with him on LinkedIn or meet him at our office in Civic.