The Forge Initiative

Technology serves as a tool to deliver results. Youth and adults explore and master technology, art and engineering. We discover confidence in ourselves. We uncover the strength in working together for something bigger than we have ever imagined. We figure out why we would want to lead and how to lead. As we grow, we come to understand that we all have the power and the ability to change the world.

The Forge has developed a learning model, D-ELL (Discover, Explore, Learn, Lead), that we use to describe the journey of learning in an informal STEAM environment. Discover often happens in moments — that exposure to a new idea or next technology. Explore is the stage of learning of those who have discovered an area that’s interesting, exciting and intriguing to them. Exploring is a critical step in understanding new technologies, new ways of doing things. It’s a step where people figure out the problem space they’re looking at; trying new things. Learn is the next step with more intentional purpose. And those who have explored and learned, cement those skills by leading — by showing others, by mentoring, by being role models, by teaching. It’s the place where great things can happen with the confidence and skills behind it.