Speakers from South Africa, Chile, New Zealand and the USA will further enhance the diversity of the World Summit programme in January 2014.
The intention of the Summit was to generate a collaborative and diverse gathering; in which different individuals could explore the enormous range of issues within the arts and culture sector. The search for a wide range of visions and perspectives regarding the role of culture in the development of our nations has been one of the main premises for selecting speakers.
Even though it has been a difficult task, the need to represent the complex diversity of visions has guided our search. Territorial diversity does not necessarily ensure gender diversity; gender diversity does not necessarily ensure diversity with regards to ideas, and so on. We have tried to create combinations and intersections that will create a complex and engaging international scene at the World Summit.
Our four new speakers bring the richness of the global scenario through their own local specificities. Their career paths, ages, areas of expertise, among other characteristics, take us one step closer to the cultural complexity which is sought. Antonio Altamirano, for example, has been the director of Festival Cielos del Infinito since 2008, the most southern theatre festival in the world, which takes place in different locations of the Magallanes and Chilean Antarctic Region. Antonio, originally from the south of Chile, will provide a perspective on the importance of decentralization and the circulation of national and international art pieces, not only as a mechanism to expand the access to culture, but also as a way to enrich and stimulate artistic dialogue.
Another guest will be Avril Joffe, director of CAJ: Culture, Arts and Jobs, a cultural economy research and policy consultancy based in South Africa. Avril Joffe is an economic sociologist who has worked greatly in the design, development, installation and evaluation of programs which support cultural economy in Africa. A UNESCO expert in cultural policy and governance and an executive of the Arterial Network South Africa, she will speak on the value of culture in the development of towns and nations.
From Christchurch, we welcome Deborah McCormik, director of SCAPE Public Arto, the leading Public Art biennial in New Zealand. Deborah McCormik has produced six successful SCAPE biennials and open over 150 temporal public art pieces. With over fourteen years of experience in the management of public art, Deborah shall speak of the process of helping artists connect with the industry, the materials, the intellectual property and the resources to generate innovative pieces which contribute to the active participation of communities in the exploration of contemporary art. This was achieved despite the devastating earthquake that hit Christchurch days before the launch of SCAPE 6 in 2011.
Finally, Bruce Seaman, together with Avril Joffe, will further explore the value of culture. Former economist and Federal Commerce Commission consultant, Bruce Seaman currently works as an anti-monopoly consultant in defense of free competition. His research includes cost-benefit analysis, economic impact methodologies, finance models in the art industry, international exchange of cultural goods, among other areas. His articles have been published in important journals such as American Economic Review, Journal of Socioeconomics and Journal of Behavioral Economics. His presence shall be, without a doubt, a fundamental piece to help locate our debate in the stage of global economics.
As you can see, many names, faces, areas and territories gather around one single objective: to share models and perspectives which help us face critical times –of constant changes and crisis-, and imagine new possibilities, based on the creative energy and vibrancy that culture can give society.