Scotland's history of innovation to be explored in lectures

The Queensferry Crossing and the 250th anniversary of Edinburgh's New Town are among the subjects to be discussed at a series of public lectures on innovation.

An aerial view of Edinburgh's New Town. The famous 18th century development is the subject of a lecture on innovation. Picture: Rob McDougall/TSPL

The Innovation Nation programme will be held at the Edinburgh International Conference Centre (EICC) as part of Scotland’s Year of History, Heritage and Archaeology, a Scottish Government-backed initiative aimed at attracting more visitors to the country.

The first lecture – Innovation Heritage – takes place on Tuesday, 18 April when Adam Wilkinson, director of Edinburgh World Heritage, will talk about the unique place held by the capital on the world stage.

Innovation Bridges is scheduled for May to coincide with the opening of the new Queensferry Crossing, while Innovation Robotics in June will feature speakers from the globally renowned Edinburgh Centre for Robotics.

The final event, Innovation Festivals, is planned for August to mark the 70th anniversary of Edinburgh’s festivals.

Councillor Richard Lewis said: “Edinburgh would not be the thriving festival city it is today had it failed to innovate. The EICC is a fantastic venue to take stock of how far we have come and what we can continue to learn from our past.

“Edinburgh’s cultural heritage is a tourism asset and this series of lectures will explore the influences that shaped this 
reputation.”