School of Machines, Making & Make-Believe, founded in Berlin, Germany in 2014, creates one-of-a-kind hands-on learning experiences in the areas of art, technology, design, and human connection. Our programs examine contemporary cultural issues while exploring latest technologies as a catalyst to question their usage, the world around us, and ourselves.

As a female-led initiative, we actively encourage women and participants from underserved communities to join in our activities. Thus far, we've held 25 unique four-week full-time programs with 300+ participants, coming from 52 countries, 60% are women. Classes are small and intimate, generally between 10-15 participants. They are hands-on project-driven and conclude with a public exhibition of work.

Our programs are designed to encourage students' curiosity, confidence, and the enthusiasm to say something with their work. Our philosophy is centered around the idea that we are all lifelong learners. We love it when our students leave programs activated; equipped with technical and hands-on tools and skill sets, but also critically-minded, more deeply engaged with their surroundings and with themselves.

We also run shorter workshops, online classes, and community-events open to the public year-round. In 2019, we started "Cake & Conversation" evenings, serving cake and inviting speakers to discuss interesting topics affecting humans and the process of creativity. Similarly Pancake Society is a Saturday morning gathering open to all where we cook and eat pancakes together and actively discuss current issues in society and how we might improve upon them. The Hong Kong protests and sexual harassment and assault were recent topics.

These programs are developed organically in response to the needs of and direct requests from our community. An interest in technology is what brings us together but our communal discussions and what we care about extends far beyond that.

Links: http://schoolofma.org/

School of Machines, Making & Make-Believe is a uniquely curated school, founded by artist Rachel Uwa in Berlin, Germany in 2014, keen on inventing one-of-a-kind hands-on learning experiences in the areas of art, technology, design, and human connection. It embraces art, creativity, and exploring the latest technology and ourselves with openness, humility, and curiosity. The school's philosophy is centered around the idea that we all are lifelong learners.