Cochin university was established in 1971. And since then there hasn't been a 24/7 space. Neither a library nor a workspace nor a restaurant which is open all the time. These things are very basic and almost every college out there has one. Startup Village 'was' a 24/7 space but that doesn't work for us because its too far and conveyance is costly. The energy dies on the way. We have Technology Bu
siness Incubation on campus but that too closes at about 7 pm. "If innovation doesn't happen by 7, it won't happen at all. A student has a dream, wants to make something; he wants to learn. After a long 9-to-4 day, he makes up his mind that today he will learn something. But by the time he does the office-paper works and hangs out with his friends,
its already 5. Now, at 5, he wants some snacks and some rest- it has been a long tiring day. Its 6.30-7 by the time he wakes up. And that's when he has to do the assignments and records. By the time he/she has food and sits down to do something productive,
its already ten. A very few sleep before 2. So the possibility of productivity is between 10 to 2 which,
for the lack of good company, environment and purpose, goes to surfing Internet uselessly, Facebook and porn. This is the time, when some people sit back and discuss politics, whom to beat-up, who did what,
bitching and other such nonsense. People coming to Cochin University are mostly the people who just fell short of the IIT/NIT/IIITs
They just didn't study well at the right time, but are talented nonetheless. But all this precious energy is flushed down the toilet everyday. People indulge in 'dark activities' because they have nothing better to do. There are no hostels, there are no workspaces or libraries to collaborate or compete. Life in Cusat is lifeless. So, InnovaDen is a space where we have 24/7 Internet, its always open. We like to call ourselves- 'Self Financed 24/7 Co-learning Co-working Space'. Yes, you heard it right. Its self financed. We, the students, have put in our money to pay the rent. We have put it in so that we can have our own space where we can learn, collaborate and work. This is our 'hard-saved' money. Many of us haven't even told our parents about it 'cause they might not understand. And everything is going fine so far. we are trying to come up with a financially sustainable revenue model. But until we solve the financial challenge and get stable, we will pay from our own pocket. We collected 1400 per head pay for security deposit and the first month's rent. We are going to shell out 500pm to pay the rent of 10500. For its 'our problem. our solution'. We have created a democratic environment for us,
Where there is space for everyone who is passionate about what they do. We support each other and we work together and learn. We believe that when about 30 brains are working on solving one problem, it has to be solved in the best possible way. People, here, have a very different culture, we share knowledge. Everybody teaches everybody. Nobody is a senior or a junior. People often think we need a coffee machine, bean bags and table and chairs. But we need a water filter, white boards and projector, good WiFi, a strong router. Some think that the space must look good and inspiring. But we need extension chords and USB cables. We are ready to sit on the floor to learn (people sat for 50 hours on the cold hard ground for the android Hackathon) if we have someone ready to share knowledge with us. And we need a fan in the kitchen. And above all that, we want more space. Many people are there who don't have enough money and are waiting as we are almost full. We hate to say no to someone who wants to learn. we believe its a sin. And we are constantly saying no to the girls as we don't know what social problems that will bring. Tesla said- 'The society accepts only one change at a time'. Let us get stable, then we will definitely have the girls on board. We have bigger plans and we are moving organically. And we are not going to stop. A collaborative environment has been the problem since decades. But nobody solved it. All these years we have been waiting for the college authorities to come solve it for us. But ah, we forgot that they were the same old bureaucracy that has always stopped us from learning. But no more. These were the same people who have denied WiFi access to all of us on campus. That was stupid of us to expect from them. They are outdated. Along with the desperate need for a space we have an angst that keeps us going. To show these people that technology is unstoppable. We wanted a space which has not authority, no bureaucracy. A space which we could call- 'our own'
So we started with the motto- 'our problem. our solution.'
And we don't need them to validate us or tell us what we can do and what we cannot. We are not bound by their outdated syllabus and their inertia to grow. At InnovaDen we are free. For knowledge is free. We are told that we are one of a kind, maybe the first self financed community at least in Kerala. We are not organized office goers or adult people. We don't have any income. We are mere students. Irrational and unorganized. Saving money to save our creativity and intelligence. What brings us together is our hunger to learn and learn more.
