Sabbatical Leave 2019

– Complete Report –

FAQs

Who is talking?

Ursula Stalder is a professor for Digital Marketing at the Lucerne University of the Applied Sciences and Arts – School of Business. My work focuses on the intersection of business, technological and cultural dynamics, in particular on new modes of connecting with the digital customer through data, automation and transformation of brand experience.
I’m not only work as an academic, but also a strategic consultant, being a managing partner of Achtgrad AG and board member of IG Digital Out-of-Home (both in Zürich) and associate researcher of the Connecting Cities Network (Berlin). In cooperation with a large number of practice partners, I has been working on «digital projects» for more than 20 years on current challenges arising from creating value through digital services and infrastructures.
What was the plan?

Starting in August 2019 until end of the year, I took a creative sabbatical to further expand my digital media knowledge and intercultural horizon. My journey brought to the most exciting cities in China (October/ November), South Korea, Taiwan and Japan (November/ December) and allowed me to follow the projects, ideas and interests I’m passionate for – from urban regeneration projects, media architecture to Urban Screens, Customer service platforms and site-specific art installations.
How was it?

The least to say, getting out of your job for more than just a couple of days-off, is pure luxury. You get back a sense for the quality of time and the devotion to activities you enjoy. As I was travelling mostly alone, I decided before leave experiment with systematic photo blogging. To do so, I set up an OpenStreetMap project that allowed me to map each picture taken on a daily base by using it’s geo tag. This allowed me to put emphasis on pursuing activities that produce enjoyment and a sense of mastery.
Blogging while on the move is an excellent way to reflect your own digital ecosystem – especially while traveling in China (consider the firewall!). By making immediate use of the «artefacts» (photos, waypoints, tracks) generated while travelling, you dive in a kind of «cognitive mapping» process, that not only helps you to hold tight what you experience in the very moment, but also to see the connecting lines and patterns that underlies the here and now.
How did it work?
Do you provide 1-on-1 training for Mapping-Projects?

Your question not here?

Email me!

Itineraries

Metropole Ruhr

Stage 1: Industrial Heritage & Planning
August 4 – 23, 2019.

With kind support of:
– FoamPartner (Europe), Wolfhausen ZH
– FoamPartner (Germany), Leverkusen

Full-screen map
(Not optimized for mobile!)

South Palm Beach

Stage 2: OpenStreetMap & Binge Reading
August 26 – September 25, 2019.

With kind support of Carole & Nicholas.

Full-screen map
(NOT optimized for mobile!)

Shanghai

Stage 3: Customer Experience 4.0 & Goethe Institut, Swissnex
October 2 – November 10, 2019.

With kind support of:
– Gu Libing, Swissnex Shanghai
– Victor Liu, FoamPartner (China)
– Dr. Oliver Hartmann, Goethe Institut Shanghai

Full-screen map
(NOT optimized for mobile!)

Shenzhen

Stage 4: Hi-Tec-Fair & SZTU (+BFH)
November 11 – 17, 2019.

With kind support of:
– Pesche Eigenmann, BFH International, Bern

Full-screen map
(NOT optimized for mobile!)

Seoul

Stage 5: Innovation Tours & Honkig University (+ Swiss Embassy)
November 18 – 25, 2019.

With kind support of:
– Alessandra Appicella & Ji Hyun Lim, Swiss Embassy
– Prof. Jooyeon Kim, Prof. Jaeyeop Kim, Prof. Sookyeon Kim, Hongik University
– Carsten Hunger, Goethe Institut

Full-screen map
(NOT optimized for mobile!)

Tokyo

Stage 6: Brand Architecture & ENSA (+GTA)
November 26 – December 10, 2019.

With kind support of:
– Carlotta Daro, ENSA Paris
– Laurent Stalder, GTA Zurich

Full-screen map
(NOT optimized for mobile!)

Taiwan

Stage 7: Taipeh & Emei
December 12 – 15, 2019.

With kind support of:
– Prof. Shi Shuin, National Tsing Hua University

Full-screen map
(NOT optimized for mobile!)

Japan

Stage 8: Osaka, Kyoto, Sendai
December 16 – 22, 2019.

With the wonderful travel companions Georg, Lilian, Anne & Georg.

Full-screen map
(NOT optimized for mobile!)

Tools

Blogging while being on the move is an excellent way to reflect your own digital ecosystem – especially while traveling in China (consider the firewall!). By making immediate use of the «artefacts» (photos, waypoints, tracks) generated while travelling, you dive in a kind of «cognitive mapping» process, that not only helps you to hold tight what you experience in the very moment, but also to see the connecting lines and patterns that underlies the here and now. Here are the tools I used to do so.

iPhone
Images, Video. Make sure geo information are saved (Meta information).

MapsME App
Way finding, saving waypoints (list building), data export (.kmz). Make sure the map works offline (GPS only) and allows transliteration of street names.

MacBook
Image transfer (from camera) to your computer. Check settings of your iPhone to make sure you do not loose the meta data (geo infomation), it’s not a default setting!

GPX Binder App
Unzip (.kmz to .kml), edit waypoints (naming, description). Alternatively use Google Earth (not recommended as you have to upload your .kmz-File).

Photoshop App
Edit images. Reduce image size (e.g. 1280px) and quality (e.g. 60%) to respect loading time of web page (and, problably, server capacity of your web hosting).

VPN
Be aware that in China all your cloud services are blocked. Have a VPN service in place to access your cloud service, e.g. Dropbox (it’s not possible to active a VPN while staying in China).

uMap
Import, edit, arrange Map, customize interaction options. Generate code sniplet for embedding the map (iFrame or Short-URL) plattform.

Wordpress
Upload images, embedd uMap code sniplet in the source code of the web page. Reduction of image size (e.g. 1280px) und quality (e.g. 60%) recommended.

Meet uMap

uMap lets you create maps with OpenStreetMap layers in a minute and embed them in your site. And it’s open-source!

Your can easily import your .kml- or .gpx-Files derived from your mobile Map App. It allows you to edit the waypoints, e.g. adding a description, as well as to attach images to waypoints without uploading them to the (Google) cloud.

Try it (it's free)