Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1276973
AUGUST 2020 I DESIGN007 MAGAZINE 83 Crawford: I couldn't agree more, and that's why I'm so invested in this. I'm really happy to see that you are invested in this, too. Can you share some of your goals for your chapter? Vergine: Of course. I have a lot of ideas and expectations about the chapter, but I'd like to start working with the affiliates and discover their needs. I realized that what makes a lot of sense to me is not always exactly what others are looking for, or at least they know that they have a specific need but they might not admit it. Personally, I am coming from a place of the electrical design, so for me, the design is the place to start to create culture, methodology, standards, etc. Last but not least, I would like to involve schools and universities, but prob- ably in a way that is different from the STEM programs that work great in the United States but are difficult to implement here. There is a different culture in Italy. Crawford: Being adaptive to the needs of your area is what we're looking for, so that's great. As to your last point, what works within the United States even varies from state to state and across colleges and universities, so we're constantly trying to adapt to those sub-cul- tures. I think that the IPC Education Founda- tion (IPCEF) does a really good job at that, and I am working on integrating IPC Design into those IPCEF student chapters. I think that something similar can work in Italy, where we adapt even at the university level. Speaking of adapting across cultures, how do you envision the Italian IPC Design Chapter will interface with designers across the world? Vergine: That is actually something that I hope IPC can implement in cross-linking different chapters. I'd like to create a twinning with other chapters that might have very similar needs to Italian designers. Of course, we don't just "do anything for anything," as we say, and in the end, this also represents a business opportunity for everyone involved. Crawford: Absolutely. If we make every- one more competitive, then their businesses become more competitive, and hopefully more successful. I hope the same for all involved. With that, I want to thank you for your time and for the insight that you've provided into what's going on in Italy. I really look forward to what we can do and where we're going. Expect another one of these conversations soon. Take care, Pietro. Vergine: Thank you, Patrick. DESIGN007 Patrick Crawford is the manager of design programs and related indus- try programs at IPC. To read past columns or contact him, click here or email PatrickCrawford@ipc.org.