Anna Lindh Foundation

From Praxis to Policy: Environmental Shift through Art and Culture
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Author: Editors: Biljana Tanurovska – Kjulavkovski (editor in chief) and Ivana Dragšić (co-editor) Authors: Višnja Kisić, Goran Tomka, Zoran Erić, Suzana Milevska, Giulia Casalini, Nikolina Pristaš, Slobodanka Stevceska, Miloš Kovačević, Krista Burāne, Filip Jovanovski and Zorica Zafirovska
Publisher: Lokomotiva – Centre for New Initiatives in Arts and Culture
Year of Publication: 2023
Abstract

In this publication we desire; we wish to pursue our anxieties, our dilemmas, our aspirations, our resentment; we speculate; we believe and share ideological stands for the need of a major shift that would resonate with our wishes and desires, but resonate most of all with the empirically proven human potential to create futures of convivial communities of interconnected beings that care for one another.

This publication serves as a humble contribution to our collective pursuit of change. It explores various actions in the cultural and art field that advocate for radical transformation, equitable spaces, social justice, solidarity, and the nurturing of common
resources. It is a thoughtful exploration, mapping the intricate connections between the art field, critical theory, socio-political and cultural perspectives, as well as environmental dilemmas and collective action. It resonates profoundly with the turbulent times we currently live in, characterised by crises and uncertainty. With
it, we want to invigorate and rejuvenate our perspectives and offer a fresh outlook on these pressing issues, create a collaborative and inclusive space--where diverse practices converge to generate knowledge--and inspire transformative action.

The awareness that we live in a rapidly self-destructive society is greater than ever. The fact that natural hazards, wars, and consequent economic (and other social) inequalities spread equally to all parts of the world, exposing the weaknesses of the
“strongest” or “developed” nations and societies, can be an impetus for transformation. Even the most conservative discourses have considered links between crises and irresponsible social and environmental behaviour, and detected the relation thereof to
colonial powers and consumerism. Intersectionality, on the other hand, has upgraded the discourse of feminism, reflecting on socio-cultural and economic inequalities, and excavating its relation to the destruction of public and common goods, and the
trans-generational connection to exploitation in all its forms: neoliberal capitalism, white supremacism, and patriarchal ideologies politics that perpetuate hell on earth.

The publication is imbued with written material and praxis, looking at institutional imagination, cultural policies, sustainability, care, degrowth, ecofeminism, commons, art practices and educational politics. It generates new perspectives that transgress conventional boundaries, transforming personal and collective politics to prevent or mitigate the socio-economic, cultural, and political injustices resulting from the climate catastrophe. The transformative and challenging potential of art practices and
cultural production in political action and activism (not just politics as a topic in art practice, media, or messages) has been central to movements such as Occupy Wall Street, the Arab Coloured Revolutions (and those in South-Eastern Europe), the popular resistance in occupied Palestine, the conservation movements, the indigenous environment protectors’ actions, and even in one of the most commonly organised forms of pursuit of justice and equity in the 21 century: the occupations (of theatres, dormitories, universities and other public institutions). In addition to the establishment of a new (often temporary) system of relations, mechanisms of care, and rules of conduct; there was a discourse of applying artistic practices in joint action, creating a temporary cultural policy (values, activities, and use) as a part of the assessed
needs and potentials of the members of the new (temporary) micro society. Those crises, combined with the additional struggle to navigate the Covid 19 pandemic, or atrocities such as the Russian invasion of Ukraine, or the refugee ordeal, have opened a new chapter of re-evaluating and rethinking the position and role of public institutions, policies, services - and/or the commons. The humans (and non-humans unwillingly) have found themselves at the boiling point of human-made natural disasters, turbo-capitalism and war atrocities: and it’s time to shift en route.

Therefore, we raise the following questions: How do we establish new systems of relations in our societies and how do arts, collaboration and practices of self-organisation, commoning, ecofeminist approaches and critical thinking assist the struggle for the commons? We see this publication as sharing, and offering space for discussion and polemics in these perspectives, for opening questions and offering standpoints that
could transform the future.

Countries

North Macedonia
Region

Europe