Fiction and poetry are doses, medicines. What they heal is the rupture reality makes on the imagination.

(If you’re looking for the manifesto, please scroll down the page and there’ll be more soon)

‘Fiction and poetry are doses, medicines. What they heal is the rupture reality makes on the imagination.’ Jeanette Winterson 

Looking through the newspapers over the last few days, I’ve been overwhelmed by the usual round up of ‘highlights’ of 2011: successes, failures, deaths and revelations. I’m still surprised how little is reported on the on-going crisis resulting from the tsunami in Japan in March.

How is the health and well-being of the displaced people around Fukushima, now that the Japanese government has increased the levels of radiation it is permissible and ‘safe’ for its citizens to be exposed to? Although barely noticeable in the printed media in the UK, counterpunch have provided some compelling detail, exposing the very real and enduring plight of people in Japan. What is particularly poignant, is the focus on women's voices, reminiscent of Greenham Common in the early 80’s, when 30,000 women held hands and formed a human fence around nine miles of the US nuclear missile base, and sung They Shall Not Pass. 

The women of Japan sing a traditional song of remembrance and longing, Furosato:

Someday when I have done what I set out to do,

I will return to where I used to have my home.

Lush and green are the mountains of my homeland.

Pure and clear is the water of my old country home.

This year has also seen societal unrest on a scale unseen in a generation. Whilst focus in the UK media has been on the ‘Arab Spring’ and the unfolding crisis in Syria, the voices of school girls unbalanced the political system across Chile, resulting in a number of government resignations and questioning wider social inequalities. The voices of the young women of Chile cannot be ignored.

Closer to home, and less apparently sensational, the small print in the Guardian on 30th December revealed that antidepressant use in the England has risen by more than a quarter over the last 3 years. Prescriptions for anti-depressants rose from 34m in 2007/08 to 43.4m in 2010/11: an increase of 28%. Furthermore, in the North West we have the highest antidepressant use over 2010/11, with 7.2m prescriptions dispensed.

I have no doubt at all, that antidepressants offer critical respite from serious and debilitating depression, but we mustn't lose sight of some of the factors that impact on our mental health, and the current economic crisis plays a real part in this. Whilst counselling and talking therapies can help turn lives around, it is significant that as the government have increased their support for Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, this apparent treatment of choice is both time-limited and ‘measured’ in part, by the individuals’ ability to find employment/return to work. And we’re told that depression is costing the economy almost £11bn a year. I seem to remember the wonderful Dorothy Rowe telling the Un-Conference here at MMU in October, that guilt, blame and shame are all part of that complex baggage that erodes our well-being and can cause depression. (see Greenberg in recommended books for the big picture)

Doesn’t it seem like we’re in some horrible muddle, measuring our well-being...measuring our ‘happiness’ ad infinitum. The writer Jeanette Winterson sums it up perfectly, ‘...when money becomes the core value, then education drives towards utility...the life of the mind will not be counted as a good unless it produces measurable results.’

In her autobiography, Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal? Jeanette Winterson paints a picture of her life, originally fictionalised in Oranges Are Not The Only Fruit. It’s an enthralling read and one that I won’t spoil, but one in which we are given some very strong ideas about the potential impact of the arts on our well-being, and how as ‘meaning-seeking creatures’ in an increasingly secular world, we need to find ‘new ways of finding meaning.’ She also succeeds in blowing the myth, that poetry and prose are luxuries for the educated middle classes, suggesting ‘a tough life needs a tough language - and that is what poetry is. That is what literature offers - a language powerful enough to say how it is.’


In his report to HM Treasury, didn’t Derek Wanless suggest that evidence showed that one of the strongest determinants of health impact, wasn’t in fact, the reach of health services, but the female literacy rate?

I wonder how the people of Japan will describe this experience of being; will the actions of the young women of Chile go down in song, and how will we make sense of the here-and-now on our increasingly depressed little island?   C.P

Thanks to Dr Nick Shimmin for sharing counterpunch; Professor Chris Williams of Pace University for his essay; the inspirational young people of Chile and Jeanette Winterson.

Keeping Your New Year's Resolution with Mindfulness

By Brandon Cornejo M.D., Ph.D.

How many of you are trying to get yourselves back into a regular gym and exercise routine for your New Year's resolution? When it comes to exercise, one of the biggest challenges is staying motivated and consistent. I hope I can help you with this two-part blog post on "Mindfulness."

What is Mindfulness?

• Mindfulness is a nonjudgmental, present-centered awareness in which each thought, feeling, or sensation that arises is acknowledged and accepted.

Mindfulness as a Therapeutic Approach

• Mindfulness based stress reduction means to focus your attention on the "now."

• People practicing mindfulness work on not judging or evaluating the present moment but focus on simply “being” present.

• People in a formal mindfulness class engage in daily meditation along with skill-building homework that ties them to the “here and now.” 

 How Does Mindfulness Work?

• Mindfulness allows a person to pause calmly and reflectively before reacting to things.

• Mindfulness may prevent relapse of clinical depression by allowing a person to have some “space” between who they are and their emotions.

• Mindfulness based cognitive therapy (MBCT), a form of therapy that combines elements of mindfulness with cognitive based approaches to treatment, can be an effective approach for the treatment of anxiety or depressive disorders.

• Mindfulness may enhance mood as well as help eliminate negative thoughts associated with depressive states.

So why is "mindfulness" important to keeping that New Year's resolution of daily exercise? Next week, I will post part two with my tips for staying in the present moment while exercising. Happy New Year's!

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Days

What are days for?

Days are where we live.

They come, they wake us

Time and time over.

They are to be happy in:

Where can we live but days?

Ah, solving that question

Brings the priest and the doctor

In their long coats

Running over the fields.

Philip Larkin 1964

Best things...manifesto and first networking evening 2012

Just a couple of things for this last posting of 2011…

I want to give a big thanks to everyone who’s been supportive of Arts for Health over the last 12 months and wish you all the very best for whatever 2012 throws at us. On a personal note, it has been incredibly exciting to see people joining our supposedly ‘regional’ network from all areas of the globe! It’s wonderful to have lots of comments about the manifesto (part 1) too, some of which I will include in part 2 in January.
 

Work in progress from 1st session in Manchester...

If you haven’t sent thoughts or responses to me about the manifesto, but were involved in the process, I’d be really keen to hear your thoughts, or collect your comments before its next incarnation. So please send them to artsforhealth@mmu.ac.uk
I have collected some sharp, subtle and inspirational thoughts from people who were involved in the sessions, from those who weren’t but feel passionately, and from the wider world of Culture, Science, Politics and the Arts.

Dementia and Imagination evening
I’m thrilled that the artist Claire Ford will be sharing reflections of her Churchill Fellowship at our first network event of 2012 on Thursday January 26th between 6:00 and 8:00pm (venue to be confirmed at MMU). As usual the event is free to our members, and will be informal. Claire spent 10 weeks in the USA exploring different approaches to dementia and the arts, and will be sharing this experience, her findings and ideas about future developments in the field.

Final details of the venue and confirmation of places will be sent out one week prior to the event, but please drop an expression of interest in attending to artsforhealth@mmu.ac.uk before Thursday 19th January. Please enter Dementia and Imagination in the subject line of the email.

For now, my very best things to you...Clive

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M A N I F E S T O and more...

M A N I F E S T O  Part ONE
Our manifesto is just as much about education as it is health; the arts as it is science, communities as it is the individual. Well-being is central to our vision. The arts are central to fulfilling our fundamental human rights.

• this is not a quick fix
• this is not about benign lumps of municipal sculpture
• this is not about reducing the arts to a cost-effective prescription
• this is about well-being
• this is about democracy
• this is about human flourishing
• this is about new ways of understanding impact and value
• this is about solidarity

Click on the image above to access full-colour, black and white and podcast versions. I'll be collating all comments and thoughts over the new-year.

NETWORKING EVENINGS at MMU
Please keep your eye on the blog for updates on three very special networking events over winter/spring 2012:

• Stroke and the Arts
• Dementia and Imagination
• Fourth Culture

Response to the European Review Consultation

For those of you who were interested in the response to the European Review Consultation lead by Sir Michael Marmot for the World Health Organisation, emphasising the importance of creativity, culture and the arts in relationship to social determinants of health and health inequalities, please see the co-ordinated response from Stephen Clift, to whom I extend my thanks.

(Click on image below)

 Experience of Creativity Questionnaire

Elaine McNeill from Liverpool John Moores University is undertaking a study that network members may want to contribute to.
The purpose of the study

This study is part of MSc in Consciousness and transpersonal Psychology and will look toward developing an understanding of personal transformation as an outcome of creative practice.  As a participant you may benefit by gaining a deeper understanding of your creative practice. 

Taking part

It is entirely up to you to decide whether or not to take part. If you do you will be asked to complete a 10-15min questionnaire online. You are still free to withdraw at any time and without giving a reason. A decision to withdraw will not affect your rights. The online questionnaire requires you to consider a time when you were being creative. The questionnaire should take approx 10-15mins. You may be asked to take part in an in-depth interview which will take 20-30mins, please leave a contact email address at the end of the survey. The interview will be exploring the aspects of the creative process discussed in the questionnaire.

The possible benefits include:

A greater understanding of creativity which could inform your studies/practice.

Confidentiality

As a participant you will have access to the final report and you may be quoted verbatim in future publications. However, your participation and contribution to this research will be kept confidential as you will remain anonymous in all information/data. 

Please click on this link to access the questionnaire:  http://www.survey.ljmu.ac.uk/ecq

The Two Wheeled Key to Better Health and a Better World
Thanks again to Cheryl G for another excellent info-graphic. Click on the graphic to go to the full document.

Is a Pizza a vegetable?

Thank you SO MUCH for all the thoughts and comments on the manifesto part 1. Everything is valid and will be thrown in the mix for part 2. Sorry for my slow response if you've emailed me whilst I've been in Australia. I am back in the UK now and will be updating this blog in the manner in which you are accustomed to.

So for now, and to get us in the mood for all that 2012 offers, a question.
IS A PIZZA A VEGETABLE?
It appears that congress thinks so. Read on by clicking on the pizza!
Best things, Clive

How to "Bully-Proof" Kids

By Gariane Phillips Gunter, M.D. 



Do you think October's national anti-bullying campaign was successful in stopping bullies? The Washington Post recently blogged about our country having a hard time defining bullying among kids. So, what can we, as parents, do to protect our children and teens? Here are some tips for "bully-proofing" your kids:

Distinguish between events and feelings - It is important to teach your children the difference in their interpretations of life situations. This helps kids learn to understand and relate to the feelings of others. They will be able to determine if someone is treating them appropriately - or if they are, in fact, being bullied.

Develop a sense of self - Another great way to bully-proof your child is to help them develop a sense of self. Encourage them to learn about and understand who they "are" because children who struggle to identify self-awareness or constantly strive to be their "hero" are never going to be able to live up to those expectations. This can be detrimental for their self-esteem - making them a direct target for bullying. Kids with low self-esteem are less likely to stick up for who they are which makes them prime targets for those looking to pick on someone (bullies often bully due to their own low self-esteem).

Monitor their online lives - Parents or caregivers should have access to online accounts and cell phones to ensure their teens' safety over the Internet. Cyberbullying continues to be a nationwide epidemic.  



Positive activities - It is also important to encourage your kids to explore activities that make them feel good about themselves. Find something that they are really good at because it will help increase their overall self-esteem and feeling of self-worth. Encouraging courageous behavior is another great way to guide children. You can teach them to stand up for themselves and for their peers and other friends. When groups of kids or teens stand together to put an end to a bullying situation, the bully is more likely to back off and won't mess with your child again.



Following these tips when your kids are young is the best way to show them how to establish early on that they will not tolerate bullying. 



Sources: http://www.makebeatsnotbeatdowns.org/, http://www.olweus.org/

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m a n i f e s t o

So here it is: m a n i f e s t o: part 1

It's been a while in the making and is the first of two parts.

A colourful version is available here alongside a straight black and white word version. A short animated film and podcast version will be available shortly.

I know that it's what some of you expected, because we’ve talked about it.

I know that it's not what some of you expected, because we’ve talked about it.

So respond to it, talk about it and share it, and we’ll get some of these thoughts into part 2 and see how it grows!

Thank you everyone who’s been involved.

And of course, I’ll give some presentations around it, and encourage some debate.

No more round-robins for November, whilst I am away at the 3rd International Conference for Arts, Health and Well-being, but there may be the odd conference posting if you have a moment to visit this blog.

Please post all comments around the m a n i f e s t o to artsforhealth@mmu.ac.uk and excuse the brief silence.

...and for those of you who haven't taken part in the process, it may be worth looking at the references first!

On Friday 7th October, the Marmot Review Team launched a consultation on the European Review of the Social Determinants of Health & the Health Divide in the WHO European Region. At the present moment, this consultation makes no reference to the role of the arts and creative interventions on health inequalities, and the time is right for our input. I will be making some comments on this consultation, but if you want to read more and contribute yourself, click on the logo above or follow this link:
http://www.marmotreview.org/reviews/european-review-of-hi/consultation.aspx

GMAHN Library and Website Launched...the Un-Conference and SO much more...

Musique et Sante
The wonderful Musique et Sante who regularly work with our collegues at the Royal Northern College of Music, (RNCM) have developed their own website, which I recommend to you all. Partners and allies of the finest quality.
http://www.musique-sante.org/en 

Bi-Monthly Networking Evening
(a change to our advertised programme)
I'll be 'out of service' for much of November, and instead of cancelling the networking evening planned for the end of the month, I'm thrilled that Holly at the RNCM has offered network members the opportunity to attend a talk on Music for Health as part of the RNCM Research Forum Series. It will take place on Wednesday 23 November at 5.15pm – 6.45pm in the RNCM Lecture Theatre and is entitled ‘Creating musical space in a medical place’. Holly Marland will be sharing insights into the role that music can play in hospital settings and the training and support that can be offered to musicians. There will be an opportunity for discussion and some informal networking in the RNCM bar afterwards. Places are limited so if you’d like to come along, please drop holly an email at holly.marland@rncm.ac.uk

An Evidence Review of the Impact of Participatory Arts on Older People
A very important contemporary review of arts participation conducted by the Mental Health Foundation.
http://www.baringfoundation.org.uk/EvidenceReview.pdf

Greater Manchester Arts Health Network Library
I am thrilled to be supporting the Greater Manchester Arts Health Network website which was formally opened last week. This on-line resource provides a fantastic one-stop-shop for some of the latest thinking, research and development in the field. Please check it out and in particular the extensive LIBRARY.
Fantastic work Anne and Phil.
http://www.greatermanchesterartshealth.org.uk/

Brief thoughts on the Un-Conference
Last Thursday’s Un-Conference was a (long) day of challenging, exciting and provocative debate and activity around our arts/health field. Divided into 4 themed sessions, the day gave the opportunity to participants to engage in 1 or more of the day’s events.

Langley Brown and Phil Burgess were quick to provoke and excite, getting people on their feet and active and using deeply personal stories of their own experiences as artists to question narratives and in part suggest, that its never too late to have a happy childhood.

Lynn Frogett and her team shared their psychosocial approach to understanding how the arts can change individuals and communities through theory and practice in an interactive workshop exploring how practitioners and organisations can evidence this.

Clive, Dorothy and Anne

Dorothy Rowe was utterly compelling and shared some of her thoughts on the myth of depression and its chemical origins, alongside notions of imagination. The repose to Dorothy’s session has been quite overwhelming.
            
                   Thought Provoking
                       Inspiring
                          Moving and concise

Mark O’Neil and Leisa Gray gave an excellent two-hander to round the day off, exploring the potential of museums and galleries to impact on public health at a population level, and a more intimate hands-on experience of literally handling objects. A perfect end to a wonderful day.

A Gentle Prod at those who take for granted...
The venue wasn’t perfect for the day, with some distracting noise from people working, and a couple of people complained there wasn’t food! I do have some sympathy about the ambient distractions, but for those demanding food…the day was free to all participants, and cost a fortune to host. So, no more greedy bleating please.

And finally a big thanks to everyone who made it possible.

Female Athlete Triad: Sport Gone Bad

By Claudia L. Reardon, M.D.

Psychiatrists encourage nearly everyone to participate in sports and exercise. Sports not only improve physical health but also can greatly improve mental well-being. However, if girls and women take involvement in sports too far, they can suffer a well-described triad of symptoms. The so-called female athlete triad consists of the following three inter-linked health problems:

1. Insufficient caloric intake/disordered eating


2. Menstrual problems


3. Weak bones

Girls and women who participate in “leanness sports” that emphasize thinness (running, ballet, gymnastics, figure skating, and others) are particularly at risk. If they receive the message that being thinner could result in greater athletic success, they may try to cut down on their caloric intake to levels too low to support their levels of physical activity. This can result in full-blown eating disorders, irregular menstrual cycles, and weak bones (including osteoporosis at young ages).

Some common myths about the female athlete triad include the following:

• If an athlete’s performance has not started suffering, then she must not have a problem. FACT:  Even if an athlete’s performance has not started suffering, it eventually will.  Not taking in enough calories to match activity level is not sustainable in the long-run.


• It is normal for female athletes to stop menstruating. FACT:  It is never normal for a female athlete to stop menstruating. There are serious health risks, especially bone loss, to not menstruating. Studies show that after three years of not menstruating, bone loss is likely to be permanent. Loss of future reproductive function could also occur.


• If an athlete is not eating enough to match activity level, she is aware of what she's doing. FACT: Denial is powerful. Athletes will very often feel that they are being as healthy as possible, and that meticulous attention to diet is a sign of dedication to sport. Coaches, parents, and professionals will need to help the athlete see the problems with the behaviors.


• An athlete who eats “healthy," is a top performer on the team, and excels in class is unlikely to have an eating disorder. FACT: Traits that are desirable in an athlete can make them more at risk of developing an eating disorder. Mental toughness, pursuit of excellence, performance despite pain, commitment to training, and being a team player are very similar to excessive exercise, perfectionism, denial of discomfort, and being self-less.

What can you do if someone you know might be suffering from the female athlete triad?

1. Share your concerns with the athlete.


2. Talk with the coach, athletic trainer, or school counselor.


3. Encourage the athlete to see a physician and dietitian. Not all health care professionals are familiar with the details of the female athlete triad; to help them out, you can send along this brochure with the athlete to the appointment.

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Should your Doctor be your Friend?

By Jeffrey Borenstein, M.D.

Last Friday, October 14th, I was asked to be a guest on the Dr. Drew show to address the important issue of the doctor-patient relationship. Our discussion centered on the friendship between Dr. Conrad Murray and Michael Jackson and the inappropriate crossing of boundaries.

First and foremost, the doctor-patient relationship is special, centered on trust, caring, and helping. But it is not a friendship – friendships are two way streets. The therapeutic alliance in the doctor-patient relationship is a one-way street – the doctor’s role is to help the patient. 

Another issue we discussed was “doctor shopping." When a person who has a diagnosis of chemical dependency gets prescriptions from various doctors in order to misuse medications, typically pain meds or anti-anxiety meds (benzodiazepines), it's called "doctor shopping." When a physician is aware of this behavior or even suspects "doctor shopping," it's the doctor's duty to take action and stop filling prescriptions rather than enable such destructive behavior.

If you have a friend or family member misusing medication in this way, don’t sit by quietly. Taking appropriate action could save a life. Encourage your loved one to seek appropriate treatment. On the Healthy Minds Public Television series, we have two episodes which focus on chemical dependency, episodes #111 and #112 which can be seen at www.wliw.org/healthyminds. 

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Power, Older People, Australia, Young People, Drugs and St Perry of Essex

Ai Weiwei tops the art world’s ‘power 100 list’…whatever that is! ‘His art activism has been a reminder of how art can reach out to a bigger audience and connect with the real world…Institutions, while they are really important, can be great tombs.’
Mark Rappolt, Editer, Art Review

How we value older people, the arts and the 'market'
I’m thrilled to be giving the opening key-note at the 3rd Annual Art of Good Health and Wellbeing International Arts and Health Conference, which is taking place at the National Gallery of Australia, Canberra between the 14 and 17 November 2011. I’ve written a paper which explores the role of the arts when we are faced with serious illness and which asks, in the face of our own mortality, just what relevance can culture and the arts play, if any. An article in today’s Gurdian chimes with much of the sentiment of my paper (see directly below)

The Hon Simon Crean MP Minister for Regional Australia, Regional Development and Local Government, Minister for the Arts, will be opening the conference and I’ll be giving my paper at around 6:15 on Monday the 14th, so if you want to hear it and get involved in our international debate, please come along.
http://www.artsandhealth.org

Illustration by Andrzej Krauze

 NHS end-of-life care has been crippled by a marketised mindset that sees everything in terms of its economic value 'Our market-shaped way of life has no time for the elderly or the art of caring.' Madeline Bunting captures some of the outrageous issues affecting us all, around how we age; end of life care and the insidious ‘market led’ approach to ‘care.’
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2011/oct/16/market-no-time-elderly-caring  

What young people are really thinking?
The Art of Protest is a pop-up exhibition organised that will take place in empty shops on Manchester's Market Street from 19 to 27 October. The charity Noise sent photographers Liam Carter, Sebastian

Heise, Lucia Zapata and Marta Julve out on the streets of Manchester, Madrid, Valencia and Berlin, to ask young people the question: 'What would make you protest?' Displaying the resultant images in an area hit by the recent riots is a powerful statement of disillusioned youth

To find out more go to: http://noisefestival.com/    

Why Americans Pay So Much More For Brand-Name Drugs (and Canadians don’t)
Brilliant Graphics and another sharp commentary on the pharmaceutical industry from http://medicalbillingandcodingcertification.net/high-cost-of-rx/
…and a Big Thanks to Cheryl Godden

On the Secular Beatification of St Perry of Essex
I’m often asked if I’m after a ‘celebrity’ to be a patron of Arts for Health, and in truth, we’ve had some great people behind our work over the years including Lord Attenborough; Joan Bakewell; Melvyn Bragg and Sam Taylor-Wood, but the current obsession with fame and all its glories, has left a bit of doubt in my mind around publicity, for publicity’s sake. Much of this has been reflected by the vapid self-celebration of contemporary British art.

This said, I had an almost revelatory moment at the British Museum this weekend, in the exhibition by Grayson Perry: Tomb of the Unknown Craftsman, which I would recommend to anyone, particularly the people who ask, ‘what’s the relationship between arts and heath?’ I tend to open up a conversation about it being more than just a prescription...

Perry has produced something completely exquisite in his curation of artifacts’ from the British Museum and creation of his own work. I don’t particularly think he lays it on with a trowel either. It’s a beautiful show, with some challenging work that whilst exploring Perry’s own experience of being human, offers though the arts, far wider thoughts on being individual and part of a community. It’s not dumbed down in the slightest…if anything, he ups the ante.


Grayson Perry (b. 1960), The Rosetta Vase, 2011. © Grayson Perry. Courtesy Victoria Miro Gallery, London.

So on the basis of his enduring wit, cynicism and piercing beauty, I suggest some kind of secular beatification of Perry, and instead of approaching him to be a patron, he could be co-opted as our very own (and exquisitely flawed) Patron-Saint of the Arts.
http://www.britishmuseum.org/whats_on/exhibitions/grayson_perry.aspx  
http://www.victoria-miro.com/artists/_12

An artists answer to the credit crisis…
Michael Landy’s Credit Card Destroying Machine was unveiled at the Frieze Art Fair last week. The huge Jean Tinguely-inspired contraption, pieced together from a random collection of found objects such as mannequin limbs and Mickey Mouse figures, is surrounded by tiny bits of shredded credit cards on the floor. In return for a drawing made by the machine that bears Landy’s signature, people have to hand over a valid credit card for shredding. An assistant feeds pre-signed sheets of paper into the machine and off it goes, with a marker pen attached to a metal arm doing an automated random drawing (you can choose the colour). Some 300 credit cards were shredded during the first day alone (including the private view). Landy, of course, is best known for shredding all his worldly possessions a few years ago. (Thanks to itsnicethat.com and Thomas Dane)
http://www.itsnicethat.com/articles/michael-landy-frieze-2011
http://www.thomasdane.com/artist.php?artist_id=7

...and for all of you eagerly awaiting Part 1 of the m a n i f e s t o for arts/health, I can confirm that the wonderful Kamila Kasperowicz has been creating a stunning digital and hard copy version for your delectation…

Chile: a World Summit on Arts and Culture and Student Uprising...

Chile...a World Summit on Arts and Culture

The International Federation of Arts Councils and Culture Agencies (IFACCA) has announced that Chile would host the 6th World Summit on Arts and Culture in its capital, Santiago, on 13-16 January 2014.

This will be the first time that the World Summit has been staged in Latin America and will be presented in Santiago’s award-winning Estación Mapocho Cultural Centre. One of IFACCA’s most significant initiatives, the World Summit on Arts and Culture provides national arts councils, ministries of culture and other agencies with an opportunity to discuss key issues affecting public support for the arts and creativity. Previous World Summits on Arts and Culture has been held in Canada (2000), Singapore (2003), England (2006), South Africa (2009) and Australia (2011).

Provisionally entitled Creative Citizens: Technology and Culture for Diversity, the theme for the 6th World Summit will address the current context of globalisation and the challenges in the cultural arena, specifically in relation to safeguarding and protecting cultural diversity and cultural identities. New technologies in culture represent an opportunity to impact positively on the visibility and legitimatisation of cultural identities, to foster increased cultural diversity, and to enhance access, production and exchange of cultural goods. At the General Assembly, IFACCA also launched WorldCP, an international database of cultural policies [http://www.worldcp.org].
For further information please see www.ifacca.org 

Hola hermanas y hermanos en Chile y la solidaridad de artistas y profesionales de la salud en el Reino Unido ...

  

Camila Vallejo on a march in Santiago held on the anniversary
of the Pinochet coup that toppled
President Salvador Allende in 1973. Photograph: Aliosha Marquez/AP

Chile...Girls Demand Free University Education

‘It was the most beautiful moment, all of us in school uniform climbing over the fence, taking back control of our school. It was such an emotional moment, we all wanted to cry.’ Angelica Alvarez 14

With the IFACCA announcement freshly ringing in our ears, its worth noting how a group of teenage girls kick started what is known in Chile as  the ‘Chilean Winter’. There’s not been much in the UK press on this story, with our focus facing towards the ‘Arab Spring’, but here’s a synopsis.

A group of young girls have occupied Carmela Carvajal primary and secondary school for five months fighting for a single goal: free university education for all. The girls took a vote on their action too, with a 10/1 in favour of action, and their days are organised through a democartic voting system for managing all aspects of their lives, but their argument is simple; that education is recognised as a common right for all, not a consumer good to be sold on the open market.

 

This is part of a vast student uprising across Chile, with weekly protest marches gathering between 50,000 and 100,000 students. The girls are still having a rich education, supplemented by yoga and salsa and music gigs. There’s an excellent article on this story by Jonathan Franklin at:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/oct/07/chilean-girls-occupation-school-protest

So, with a World Summit on Arts and Culture and a democratic Student Uprising, lets hope that the IFACCA board see it in their remit to explore how culture and the arts are a force for social change, and if a core part of their agenda is about Creative Citizens and Technology, then this is potentially an exciting and provocative summit and one where our ever-evolving arts/health/well-being agenda is central.

And whilst use of facebook and twitter is being used as evidence of dissent in the UK resulting in lengthy prison sentences for those who advocate civil dissobedience, in Chile we can see how creative citizens have in fact harnessed this technolgy. Here are two links to the student leader, Camila Vallejo Dowling's blog and twitter...
http://twitter.com/#!/camila_vallejo   http://www.camilapresidenta.blogspot.com/  

Anyone Who Has a Heart is a light sculpture that displays your heart rate. It is a landmark and signature artwork sited at the entrance to the new Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital. The sculpture aims to catch attention through its form, textures and movement. giving a sense of fun and playfulness for all ages. Walking around the sculpture triggers sensors and changes the light display. Holding onto the stainless steel hand grips monitors your heart rate and translates that into a red light display synchronised with your pulse. It can also tell you the time as every hour, the sculpture turns into a clock. The sequence is explained on floor panels along with information about the heart rate of a range of animals.



It was commissioned by Lime in collaboration with the Central Manchester University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. This stunning work was made by artist Andrew Small commissioned through a special arts programme allocation from the hospital’s Charitable Funds.