America Needs Inventivity: What 20,000 Visitors in D.C. Taught Us About Our Next Chapter
At one point, nearly 50 people were packed into our 500-square-foot pavilion at the Great American State Fair, hosted at the National Mall in Washington, D.C. Parents were reading The Great Experiment, our newest traveling exhibit. Kids were launching red, white, and blue scarves through a wind tunnel simulating fireworks. Others were experimenting alongside Cade Educators, learning about energy, electricity, and the atmosphere.
Families from across the nation, all learning, experimenting, and having fun together. I remember looking around and thinking… THIS IS INVENTIVITY. And this summer, we had the opportunity to share it with America.
From Gainesville to Washington, D.C.
As America celebrated its 250th birthday, the U.S. Department of Commerce invited Cade to participate in the Great American State Fair in Washington, D.C. That invitation meant a great deal to our team. The Department of Commerce could have selected institutions and organizations from across the country. They chose Cade.
From late June through mid-July, we transformed approximately 500 square feet at the Department of Commerce pavilion into an immersive, invention-themed experience.
We welcomed more than 20,000 guests, making it the largest event Cade has ever hosted. This event was the national unveiling of the Inventivity Movement.
For twelve straight days, Cade Educators introduced visitors to many invention-themed experiences. Kids used a wind tunnel filled with red, white, and blue scarves to explore airflow while creating something that resembled 4th of July fireworks. They held hand boilers and watched as the heat from their hands caused liquid to rise. They even discovered that Gatorade conducts electricity, creating an unexpected connection between science and one of America's most recognizable inventions.
Kids were experimenting, asking questions, and trying new things. They were practicing the four traits of the Inventivity Mindset: Curiosity, Courage, Resilience, and Humility. And they were having fun doing it.
Cade and the Inventivity Movement in D.C.
‘The Great Experiment’
While kids experimented, parents and families explored our newest traveling exhibit, The Great Experiment.
The exhibit tells a uniquely American story. Our Founders believed so strongly in encouraging creativity and innovation that they included it in Article I, Section 8, of the Constitution: "To promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts, by securing for limited Times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries."
Visitors also discovered that Abraham Lincoln remains the only U.S. president to hold a patent. His invention was designed to help lift boats over shallow areas and obstructions in rivers.
And, of course, they discovered the story Cade celebrates every day. In 1965, Dr. James Robert Cade and a team of University of Florida researchers set out to solve a problem facing football players practicing in the humid Florida heat. Their experiments led to the invention of Gatorade. An invention that ultimately created the category of Sports Hydration and the field of sports science.
For our team, there was something humbling about watching families from across America experience ideas that have been developed in Gainesville for more than a decade. Our educators have spent years developing our Inventivity Framework and curriculum. We've tested, learned, redesigned, tried again, and continued building.
In many ways, we've practiced the same Inventivity Mindset we're trying to inspire in others.
Seeing thousands of people engage with our work in our nation's capital validated something we've believed for a long time: AMERICA NEEDS INVENTIVITY.
Our children are growing up in a world of rapid technological change, artificial intelligence, automation, and challenges we cannot yet predict. We can't possibly teach them every answer they'll need, but we can help them develop the mindset to find those answers.
We can teach them to be curious by asking questions. To have the courage to try something new. To have the resilience to keep going when something doesn’t work.
And to have the humility to ask for help and seek out answers from unexpected sources.
Something else happened during our time in Washington.
People started asking us, “How do we bring Inventivity to our community?” We heard from communities and cultural institutions from around the country interested in the Inventivity Movement. That's exactly where Cade's next chapter is headed. The Cade Museum in Gainesville will always be our flagship, our lab, and the Home of Inventivity, but what our team has built will not stay within the walls of the Cade Museum for Creativity & Invention.
More than 20,000 people experienced a glimpse of that future in Washington, D.C. this summer. Now, we're bringing Inventivity to communities across America.
As our country begins its next 250 years, there's never been a more important time to inspire the people who will invent what comes next.
Ideas Sparked. Inventors Activated. Communities Transformed.
Brad Gamble, CEO
CADE