Fall semester has begun, and I’m looking to once again incorporate cats into a class project.

(obligatory cat picture. That’s my husband’s foot fyi)

This semester’s class is focused on elements of creating a new product, particularly now that we have big data research, social media, and other digital elements. Throughout the course, we’re expected to work on a project that will culminate in a product portfolio of something we would create. The product doesn’t have to actually come into existence, but we need to do the proper market research, etc as if it were going to. Who knows? My professor says some of his students have gone on to make these products.

In our first class, he said we need to start with a need. What kinds of needs aren’t being met, and what kind of products could we create to remedy that? He suggested picking a need personal to us, so naturally, I’d like to do one related to cats.

So I turn to you, my readers (all maybe 5 of them). Can we identify some needs we have as cat ladies and people in rescue? There are already the obvious: funding, adopting out difficult cats. Spay/neuter awareness. What about volunteer management? Or containment of infectious diseases in the shelter/foster home? Connection of individual shelter/rescue data for analysis by all?  Why must kittens be adopted before adults? How do we battle compassion fatigue?

Another cat picture to get those creative juices going: