2009 CONFERENCE

Creative Communities:
Sustainable Solutions to Social Inclusion

15 - 17 April 2009
Griffith University, Brisbane

A conference of the Innovative Universities European Union Centre and the Centre for Public Culture and Ideas, Griffith University

15–17 April 2009.

Griffith University, Queensland: Gold Coast Campus

Convenor: Professor Andy Bennett

A three-day international conference featuring contributions from academic researchers and practitioners from the Pacific Rim, the European Union, Asia and North America. The conference will provide a forum for the sharing of ideas and knowledge about the value of creativity as a means of engendering social inclusion and will allow academic researchers, practitioners and organisations to explore aspects of commonality in their pursuits with the possibility of collaboration both within Australia and in international contexts.

Topics for discussion at the conference will include: Festival and carnivals as spaces for multi-culturalism and cosmopolitanism; Youth culture, cosmopolitanism, citizenship and social engagement; Community arts-based projects, creativity and cultural expression; Street art and civic participation; Creative projects and the prevention of juvenile crime and delinquency; Creativity, social inclusion and the role of education; The internet and communities of creative interest; Creativity, social inclusion and DiY initiatives.

Enquires to: Jill Jones, Centre for Culture and Ideas - j.jones@griffith.edu.au

Background:

Socio-economic and cultural dislocation are salient features of contemporary societies. Among both developing and post-industrial nations, rapid social change during the late 20th and early 21st centuries has brought with it significant levels of anomie as societies struggle to adapt to new socio-economic and cultural conditions. A number of factors contribute in this respect; traditional patterns of work and employment now increasingly a thing of the past; societies are increasingly multi-cultural; individuals are living longer and have much greater expectations of lifestyle and leisure opportunities in later life than was the case in previous generations. 

The need for new pathways and solutions to problems of social inclusion and cohesion within and across communities and neighbourhoods is now increasingly recognised. Among the array of ideas and projects currently being applied in this respect, the involvement of groups and individuals in creative pursuits has been highly endorsed in many national settings. ‘Creativity’ in this context has many meanings, but a central premise in all its applications is that involvement in creative pursuits – at the organisational, participant, consumer level – will engender a greater sense of individual and collective purpose and ultimately produce more social inclusive and cohesive communities.