For the past 12 years, C2 Montréal has brought together leaders, entrepreneurs, creatives, and visionaries from around the world. Co-founded by Sid Lee and Cirque du Soleil, C2 presents itself as a series of “immersive idea conferences” focused on creativity, business, and innovation.

The event aims to stimulate collaboration and the exchange of ideas by offering a unique environment where participants can interact creatively. It features a wide range of activities, including talks, workshops, immersive experiences, exhibitions, and artistic performances. Since its inception, C2 has been known for its unconventional approach and spectacular staging. Topics span a broad spectrum, including technological innovation, leadership, sustainability, design, creativity, and entrepreneurship.

Over the course of three days, more than 80 events and conferences animated an intense exchange of ideas. From Tony Hawk to Yoshua Bengio, and Julie Snyder in between, speakers followed one another at a relentless pace before audiences as engaged as they were diverse.

This year, STGM took part in C2 both as attentive listeners and as active participants. Attending such an event invites reflection. Speakers come from vastly different backgrounds, and the thread connecting them can sometimes seem tenuous. Often, they work in fields where creativity and innovation are central—and sometimes in professional spheres where these qualities are not necessarily expected.

Yet regardless of their individual paths, they all share one thing in common: a strong propensity for divergent thinking—that is, an exceptional ability to explore different perspectives, imagine alternative possibilities, make unexpected connections, and create links where none seem to exist at first glance. They also share an aversion to the status quo, preconceived notions, and conformity.

“Creatives” have long been associated with wild-haired artists and slightly disorganized free thinkers, but it is clear that creatives are everywhere and come in many forms and personalities. Whether hidden behind a Stratocaster, a Denon DJ Prime GO, a Stefano Ricci tie, or a lab coat, their contribution is vital. They enable society to find new solutions to problems, improve existing products and services, drive positive social change, and often inspire wonder. Creativity is a key skill that fosters adaptability, critical thinking, and the ability to develop innovative solutions.

In architecture, creativity and innovation are not always spectacular. Sometimes aesthetic, but often programmatic or technical, innovation in architecture exists first and foremost to meet needs, improve building performance, and enhance occupant comfort. It is not an end in itself, but part of everyday practice. The best solutions are often found along side paths, just off the beaten track. Without creativity and innovation, there would be no progress—and in architecture, as in all fields, they deserve a central place. We must nurture and promote them, because creativity and innovation have always been the engines that drive our societies forward.