On the occasion of the 7th ASEM Summit
Climate change, sustainability and environment are among the most pressing global issues of concern. They are on the top of the agenda in global international relations, and are becoming the forefront topics of dialogue in Asia-Europe relations. Yet, the debate so far has been dominated by politicians and scientists.

The awareness of climate change and what it really means for an ordinary person is still rather vague. For most of us Climate change is an abstract concept. How do we translate factual information on climate change into actual (emotional) experiences? How can arts & culture offer new ways to understand this new reality?

Art can be an effective means of creating awareness among people about climate change and the environment, especially in a multi-disciplinary setting. Aware of this, the Asia-Europe Foundation (ASEF) conducted the Asia-Europe Dialogue on Arts, Culture & Climate Change in Beijing, China from 9-12 October 2008.

The Dialogue on Art, Culture & Climate Change was an investigation into the role of culture and the arts in the cross-cultural dialogue on climate change between and in Asia and Europe. The Dialogue has raised the awareness on climate change and sustainability in cultural and arts communities in Asia and Europe, between artists, scientists, and other climate change thinkers, who investigated different perspectives on this subject. It also seeked to strengthen the role and the voice of culture and arts in the dialogue on and actions related to climate change. Furthermore, it explored creative cross-disciplinary and cross-cultural connections leading to joint approaches and collaborations for future climate change actions.

The project gathered 43 Asian and European artists, designers, architects, cultural practitioners, environmentalists and scientists, who participated in a three-day workshop, organised in partnership with the China Central Academy of Fine Arts, the China Academy of Social Sciences and the Danish Cultural Institute. A second project phase will follow which will lead to an event held in Copenhagen in December 2009 alongside the Climate Change Summit.

The project is under ASEF’s newly-initiated programme called Connect2Culture, which focuses on the connections between arts & culture and important global issues. Connect2Culture is a platform for reinforcing connections between young artists, information platforms and policy through online and offline interdisciplinary collaborative projects.

http://www.asef.org/index.php?id=462&option=com_project&task=view

http://www.asef.org/images/stories/projects/documents/462_639.pdf