June is going to be a big month for CreativeMornings, a free breakfast lecture series I started a little over three years ago here in NYC: For the first time, all 29 CreativeMornings chapters will be hosting their events under one common, unified theme: The Intersection of Arts + Technology, presented in partnership with the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD).

The arts are often seen as a “nice to have,” especially amidst tight budgets. Yet, CreativeMornings believes that it is through mixing arts and design with other disciplines that society can foster the next generation of creative doers and makers. In an effort to stir up a global conversation, CreativeMornings has partnered with John Maeda, President of RISD and their STEM to STEAM initiative to recognize the magic that bubbles up when Arts and Tech intersect.

As part of this special themed month, there will also be a special RISD pop up chapter in Providence, Rhode Island with speaker, Kelly Dobson.

Below is a short conversation we taped between John Maeda and myself when we visited RISD a few weeks back:

I feel like this themed month is pushing CreativeMornings to the next level and really ties all the 29 chapters together. And what can I say, I am thrilled for the partnership with John Maeda. His team has been incredibly helpful in putting this together.

For more details on all the june events, visit creativemornings.com.