{"id":28544,"date":"2010-08-18T08:11:29","date_gmt":"2010-08-18T08:11:29","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/euvolution.com\/futurist-transhuman-news-blog\/search-for-launchhealth-innovators\/"},"modified":"2010-08-18T08:11:29","modified_gmt":"2010-08-18T08:11:29","slug":"search-for-launchhealth-innovators","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.euvolution.com\/futurist-transhuman-news-blog\/nasa\/search-for-launchhealth-innovators.php","title":{"rendered":"Search for LAUNCH:Health Innovators"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>We’ve been super busy planning our next LAUNCH<\/strong> sustainability forum. The topic for our second forum is “sustaining human life.” LAUNCH<\/strong> is our incubator program that searches for visionaries, whose world-class ideas, technologies or programs show great promise for making tangible impacts on society. At each LAUNCH<\/strong> forum, ten innovators and 40 thought leaders come together to address these sustainability challenges.<\/p>

Often health isn’t considered a sustainability challenge, but think about it. What good is sustaining air quality, clean water supplies, and renewable energy sources if humans aren’t here to enjoy it? What happens if we’re not around to tell the story of humanity?<\/span><\/p>

Sustaining quality of life for the human race is the ultimate challenge.<\/strong><\/p>

\"Astronaut<\/a><\/p>

Human health is an important part of NASA’s portfolio. We strap human explorers (otherwise known as medical test subjects) to incendiary devices (otherwise known as rockets) and blast them outside our protective atmosphere.<\/p>

Keeping astronauts healthy and safe = CRITICAL mission requirement.<\/strong><\/p>

Right now, our astronauts live off planet Earth for missions that last half a year. How the human body reacts to changes in gravity, radiation, and even psychological isolation, mirrors health issues faced by the rest of us who never leave the planet. For instance, we’ve learned the value of daily exercise in keeping bones strong during space missions — just like the need for exercise at home.<\/p>

How we use technology to monitor and address health issues in the extreme environment of space has direct applications for use by communities living in remote locations on Earth — in developing countries or isolated regions.<\/p>

\"@Astro_Wheels<\/a><\/p>

Someday, we’ll leave this planet for longer periods. We’ll travel around the universe. We’ll set up colonies on other planetary surfaces. We already monitor maternal health concerns, with so many females in the astronaut corps. At some point, we’ll concern ourselves with child health — once they’re born on long-duration missions. Yes, it will happen.<\/p>

The real question is: when.<\/strong><\/p>

\"Astronaut<\/a><\/p>

Fun Fact: I’ve been part of a long-term health study for the last 25 years. I’m a “control subject” for female astronauts.<\/em><\/p>

LAUNCH: Health<\/strong> will be held in conjunction with the STS-133 <\/a>Space Shuttle launch down at the Kennedy Space Center. We’ve been working closely with our founding partners USAID<\/a>, State Department<\/a> <\/a>and NIKE<\/a>, and our forum partnersVestergaard Frandsen<\/a> and IDEO<\/a>, to develop criteria to select the LAUNCH: Health innovations.<\/p>

We posted the LAUNCH: Health<\/strong> call for innovators on InnoCentive <\/a>as an ideation challenge.<\/a> We’ll have the challenge open for 30 days. Your solutions can be social, policy or technology innovations that have potential for disruptive impact — in a positive way, of course. You will need to sign up as an InnoCentive Solver to post your solution.<\/p>

\"Toms<\/a>Social Change:<\/strong> Personally, I think TOMS Shoes<\/a>, as a business concept, is an amazing example of social innovation<\/a>. For every pair of TOMS shoes purchased, a second pair is donated to a child. The simple act of wearing shoes prevents cuts that expose children to tetanus, as well as diseases like human hookworm and podoconiosis. My daughter Steph<\/a> and all her friends wear TOMS, and request TOMS for birthdays and holiday gifts. They believe wearing TOMS makes a statement that they care about making the world better, one pair of shoes at a time.<\/p>

TOMS One for One business model succeeded in:<\/p>