Inspiring Innovation Visually

There are many resources that inspire innovation. Each of us have tools that help us see the world differently and think in new/creative ways.

One cateogry of tools that I have found to be very helpful are visual ones. It is amazing the difference that it makes when you look at a problem from a different perspective. Sometimes if you have been reading articles about a specific issue and the you see a good chart, it can make it come clear.

As we strive to look at our world in innovative ways as we work in missions, there are several vrey good tools that are a big help in our Great Commission Work.

Here are a few:

World Mapper: This site creates maps that change the proportions to represent the statistic they are focused on. This means that a map of the world representing HIV/AIDS prevalence shows Africa as very large while Russia is shrunk significantly. These maps help you look at statistics in a new way and have the opportunity to provide new insights.

Dynamic Data: Justin Long from Strategicnetwork.org has taken the data about world religions between 1800 and projections through 2050 and created a dynamic graph that allows you to see the growth of religions, and compare specific ones to each other.

Globe Trotting: The Joshua Project team has taken their people group data and repurposed it into Google Earth. This lets you navigate the world using Google Earth and see where the people groups of the world live. It brings a very different perspective to the information.

Mission InfoBank: Global Mapping International is an organization that helps to take mission data and represent it visually. One example is this map of the Bible translation need around the world. When you look at the world in this way, it helps you understand the reality of ministry in these parts of the world. It will change your perspective on church planting, leadership training, evangelism, and on and on.

As you look at your specific efforts in innovation, consider how visual data can help you find breakthroughs.