For the first year since 2010, Oklahoma City and Creative Oklahoma host the Creativity World Forum.

The event brings international entrepreneurs and innovators together to present on the need of evolving societies and businesses to ideate creative solutions to local and global issues.

This year’s event features an array of presentations and interactive opportunities and operates under the theme All Our Futures.

“It’s the idea that we’re all connected in this global society and how we’re all facing common issues,” said Susan McCalmont, president of Creative Oklahoma. “Every idea counts and everybody was born with creative capacity.”

The Creativity World Forum is the annual forum event of the Districts of Creativity Network, a collection of 13 of the most creative and innovative regions around the world. This year’s event will involve speakers and attendees with a variety of different backgrounds and occupations from 23 states in the U.S. and 10 countries.

“I think the misunderstanding is that creativity just applies to a few people who might be artists or who have that as their day-to-day job,” McCalmont said. “At the end of the day, it’s solely about problem-solving; how do you bring these creative capacities to bear on solving problems you’re facing every day and the bigger societal issues as well?”

For the event, Creative Oklahoma brought on OKC artist Chad Mount as a creative adviser. His task is to oversee the spacial design and flow and create a unique atrium atmosphere for attendees. In collaboration with the Academy of Contemporary Music at the University of Central Oklahoma (ACM@UCO), Mount is projection-mapping and lighting the architectural elements of the atrium.

“Especially since presenters from Disney and Lego will be there, there are so many components dealing with kids and education,” Mount said. “As an artist, I wanted to play to the sense of imagination and innovation that comes from the mind of a child. What we want to do is — through light and color and through custom video footage — create a sense of wonder, mostly upwards.”

The day’s events are organized into several presentation sessions and will also involve a period for workshops and in-depth speaker conversations, allowing attendees to engage the ideas presented.

Session I will set the stage for the rest of the day, with Sir Ken Robinson, a successful TED presenter and creative personality, and Suzy Amis Cameron, founder of MUSE School, leading talks and discussions around building creative capacity.

Session II includes four keynote presentations and a panel discussion on psychology, business and education that emphasizes the cultivation of creativity.

Session III explores the roles of imagination, creativity and innovation in the evolving workforce of today. Deborah Wince-Smith, president and CEO of Council on Competitiveness, will open the presentations with a look at the transitioning world order of technological innovation and need to build a “Creation Nation.”

After Session III, there will be workshops and suite conversations held at Civic Center Music Hall and Oklahoma City Museum of Art. Topics of discussion range from utilizing failure in creative enterprise to Rwandan economic development.

Session IV focuses on the tangible impact of creativity and innovation, highlighting how ideation catalyzes community regeneration such as the redevelopment of the Oklahoma River.

The closing session offers a discussion of international creative solutions by global initiative leaders.

As a build-up to the forum, seven public meet-up discussions will be held at various locations in the metro. Focusing on topics of education, energy, water, mental health, hunger, violence and livable communities in Oklahoma, the meet-ups offer an avenue for public input. The most compelling meeting ideas will be discussed by industry leaders during the forum. Join the ongoing discussion on social media with the hashtag #YourIdeasMatter.

There will also be an outdoor festival on the Civic Center plaza lawn, which features musician performances, food trucks and a virtual simulator.

World Creativity Forum

Monday

Meet-ups

9 a.m. to 12 p.m.

Topics

Hunger

Dunlap Codding conference room

609 W. Sheridan Ave.

Energy

MetroTech Career Tech

Chase Tower

100 N. Broadway Ave. (third floor)

Violence

Studio 404

704 W. Sheridan Ave.

Livable Communities

IAO Gallery

706 W. Sheridan Ave.

Education

UCO Downtown at Carnegie Center

131 Dean A. McGee Ave.

Mental Health

UCO Downtown at Carnegie Center

131 Dean A. McGee Ave. (basement)

Water

MetroTech Career Tech

Chase Tower

100 N. Broadway Ave. (third floor)

Tuesday

Session I

8:30 a.m.

Thelma Gaylord Performing Arts Theater

Civic Center Music Hall

201 N. Walker Ave.

Session II

10 a.m.

Thelma Gaylord Performing Arts Theater

Civic Center Music Hall

201 N. Walker Ave.

Session III

1:15 p.m.

Thelma Gaylord Performing Arts Theater

Civic Center Music Hall

201 N. Walker Ave.

Workshops and Conversations

2:55 p.m.

Various Locations

Session IV

4 p.m.

Thelma Gaylord Performing Arts Theater

Civic Center Music Hall

201 N. Walker Ave.

Creativity Salon and After-Party

6:30-9:30 p.m.

[Artspace] at Untitled

1 NE 3rd St.

$25