Innovation from Necessity Itinerary, January 1 — 14, 2008.

01/01/08: Depart US for Mumbai, arriving early am on the third.
(Travel to India loses one day.)

01/03: Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay, for discussions with designers and faculty and students at the
Industrial Design Center at IIT.

01/04: IIT, Bombay; presentations and dialogues with leading designers, educators, and corporate strategists from throughout India to discuss environmental and economic challenges facing India’s design community, and potential for global impact. Dinner in Bombay.

01/05: Insiders’ tour of downtown Bombay. Indian designers look at Mumbai and reveal their favorite places. Depart for Jaipur in evening.

01/06—07: Jaipur, one of the jewels of Rajasthan; tour city and visit leading design retailers; meet faculty and students at Rajasthan Craft Institute for bookmaking workshop.

01/08—09 : Tilonia in Ajmer district of Rajasthan to visit the Barefoot College, which encourages practical knowledge and skills, training the poorest of the poor to become self-sufficient. We will meet with village residents, and educators finding innovative solutions to provide drinking water, education, health & sanitation, income generation, and solar power.

01/10: Depart Tilonia, tour district, depart for Ahmedabad.

01/10: Ahmedabad; National Institute of Design, the premier design institute of India based on a proposal by Charles and Ray Eames. In the afternoon we’ll meet for an informal colloquium with NID faculty and students. In the evening we’ll proceed to Ahmedabad’s vibrant old city.

01/11: Calico Museum of Textiles. Afternoon, visits to contemporary design stores and their owners.

01/12. Gandhi Ashram, a beautiful complex of buildings designed by Charles Correa, stops at Le Corbusier’s Mill Owner’s building and the Indian Institute of Management designed by Louis Kahn. Afternoon: visit traditional Temple Cloth block printers’ enclave in town.

01/13: Sunday Market of Ahmedabad, one of the world’s great flea markets, Afternoon, tour the famous Step Well of Ahmedabad and Friday Mosque in the old city.

01/14: UTTARAYAN!! The great Kite Festival of India. Celebrating the coming of spring, the entire city goes to the rooftops and sends their kites aloft to “fight” with other kite fliers. We’ll have a group discussion about the trip before we take our midnight departure for the Ahmedabad airport and home.