From the Focal Point

THRIVE - Networking Culture Leaders Workshop

At the end of August, IFACCA organised the THRIVE workshop, in partnership with the European League of Institutes of the Arts and the Arts Network Asia and supported by ASEF Creative Networks and the National Arts Council of Singapore (NAC), inviting 16 representatives of international cultural networks from Asia and Europe, including Culturelink, to gather at the LASALLE College of the Arts in Singapore on 28 - 31 August 2015.

The aim of the workshop was to provide international culture networks with an opportunity to build relationships and enhance leadership, to develop future collaborations between Asia and Europe and advance networking within the culture sector in Asia, and to create a resource that will benefit networks on both continents. The workshop discussions were informed by an IFACCA Discussion Paper, entitled International Culture Networks: A Preliminary Analysis, based on a conducted survey of culture networks. The workshop's discussions focused on sharing experiences and discussing ways to improve the operations and the impact of networks, and on developing the leadership skills that are required to sustain networks and enable them to thrive.

The workshop sessions covered issues such as corporate governance and network leadership; evaluating the impact of networks and improving practices; diversifying funding sources; communications, advocacy and building alliances; and regional issues. The workshop closed with a public session on Global Issues for International Culture Networks: Perspectives from Asia and Europe, held on the last day of the THRIVE workshop, allowing for an open dialogue between THRIVE participants and about 80 participants from Singapore cultural life. More information can be found at IFACCA's website at ifacca.org/announcements/2015/09/02/thrive-workshop-networks-networkers/

Considering the issue of cultural networking pertinent for the present-day cultural policymaking, Culturelink has tackled the issue of cultural networks through several conferences and publications. We invite you to respond to the IFACCA Network's SURVEY which is available in English at www.surveygizmo.com/s3/2177374/THRIVE-Networking-Culture-Leaders and in Spanish at www.surveygizmo.com/s3/2202035/THRIVE-Trabajo-en-red-de-agentes-culturales. The results will be made available in the Discussion Paper on International Culture Networks that is expected to be published as a D'art Report in October.

Culturelink was represented by Aleksandra Uzelac, Head of the Culture and Communication Department at IRMO.

1.   LEGACIES OF TRANSCULTURAL ENCOUNTERS IN THE AMERICAS

The 63rd Annual Meeting of the Southeastern Council of Latin American Studies (SECOLAS) entitled Legacies of Transcultural Encounters in the Americas will take place in Cartagena, Colombia, on 9 - 13 March 2016. The organisers welcome submissions on any aspect of Latin American and/or Caribbean Studies. The deadline for the submission of proposala is 15 October 2015. >>>

2.   INHERITING THE CITY: ADVANCING UNDERSTANDINGS OF URBAN HERITAGE

This international conference seeks to examine the processes of protecting, planning and promoting urban heritage in the face of on-going changes, pressures and opportunities at the global and the local level. The conference, organised by the Ironbridge International Institute of Cultural Heritage, the University of Birmingham and the National Taiwan University, will take place in Taipei, Taiwan, on 31 March - 4 April 2016. The deadline for abstracts is 15 October 2015. >>>

3.   INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON FOOD HISTORY AND CULTURES

The European Institute for Food History and Cultures (IEHCA), Tours, is organizing the second of its henceforth annual international conferences, to be held in Tours, France,on 26 - 27 May 2016. The closing date for the submission of papers pertaining to food studies is 30 October 2015. >>>

4.   THE VALUE OF CULTURE IN THE SOUTHERN MEDITERRANEAN

The SouthMed CV is launching a first call for proposals to strengthen the role of culture in the Southern Mediterranean. SouthMed CV is co-funded by the European Union within the framework of the regional programme Med Culture. The deadline for submissions is 2 November 2015. >>>

5.   SPRING ACADEMY ON AMERICAN HISTORY, CULTURE, AND POLITICS

The thirteenth HCA Spring Academy on American History, Culture, and Politics will be held in Heidelberg, Germany, on 14 - 18 March 2016. The Heidelberg Center for American Studies (HCA) invites applications for this annual conference that provides twenty international Ph.D. students with the opportunity to present and discuss their Ph.D. projects. The deadline for applications is 15 November 2015. >>>

6.   INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON ENTREPRENEURSHIP, INNOVATION AND REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT - ICEIRD 2016

The National University of Political Studies and Public Administration (SNSPA), Romania and The University of Sheffield, International Faculty, England invite academics and practitioners to participate in the 9th International Conference on Entrepreneurship, Innovation and Regional Development: Responsible Entrepreneurship. Vision, Development and Ethics (ICEIRD 2016) to be held in Bucharest, Romania, on 23 - 24 June 2016. The deadline for the submission of abstracts is 27 November 2015. >>>

7.   THE ANNUAL CONFERENCE ON CULTURAL DIPLOMACY 2015

The 2015 Annual Conference on Cultural Diplomacy: Building Bridges of Peace and Reconciliation in Times of Greater Global Insecurity, to be held in Berlin, Germany, on 10-13 December 2015, aims to present all practices that the field of cultural diplomacy has to offer to the international community for their application to try to remedy and solve the growing global challenges. Participants are invited to submit a paper they would like to be considered for presentation at the conference. >>>

8.   CULTURE SUMMIT OF UCLG 2017: CALL FOR CANDIDACIES

Following the success of the first UCLG (United Cities and Local Governments) Culture Summit, and considering the growing importance of culture in the framework of sustainable cities, the Executive Bureau of UCLG has decided to convene a second UCLG Culture Summit in 2017. The UCLG Committee on Culture invites local government members of UCLG to submit candidacies to host the UCLG Culture Summit in 2017. The deadline for application is 31 October 2015. >>>

9.   THE MARC DE MONTALEMBERT PRIZE 2016 FOR MEDITERRANEAN RESEARCH PROJECTS

The Marc de Montalembert Foundation in association with the French Institut national d'histoire de l'art (INHA) awards the annual Marc de Montalembert Prize for a research in the history of arts in the Mediterranean. The deadline for applications is 30 November 2015.>>>

10.   CHALLENGES FOR THE FUTURE OF EUROPE WITHIN A FEDERAL CONTEXT OF NATION STATES

In the programming of the Campus Yuste International Summer School 2015, the European Academy of Yuste team organized a summer course entitled "The Process of European Integration and the Challenges for the Future of Europe within a Federal Context of Nation States". The team provides the possibility to access all the content of the lectures, panel discussions and debates through videos accessible on their YouTube channel. >>>

11.   INTERNATIONAL WINTER ACADEMY / 3-MONTH CAS PROGRAM IN PEACEBUILDING, MEDIATION, COFLICT RESOLUTION, INTERCULTURAL DIALOGUE AND SECURITY

Following the implementation of several summer academies, the Institute for Peace and Dialogue (IPD) is organising the 1st International Winter Academy in Peacebuilding, Mediation, Conflict Resolution, Intercultural Dialogue and Security, to be held in Zug, Switzerland, on 15 - 25 February 2016. The deadline for applications is 20 November 2015. >>>

12.   INTERNATIONAL CULTURAL ACADEMY ON PUBLIC AND CULTURAL DIPLOMACY IN TIMES OF CRISIS

The 2nd International Cultural Academy on the topic of Public and Cultural Diplomacy in Times of Crisis will be held in Rhodes, Greece, on 22 - 26 October 2015. The Academy aims at bringing together students, researchers and practitioners from interdisciplinary fields and settings to discuss and share theory, research and best practices, and to foster a dialogue on issues related to Public and Cultural Diplomacy. >>>

13.   NEMO ANNUAL CONFERENCE: RE-VISITING THE EDUCATIONAL VALUE OF MUSEUMS - CONNECTING TO AUDIENCES

The 23rd NEMO (Network of European Museum Organisations) Annual Conference on Re-visiting the Educational Value of Museums - Connecting to Audiences will take place in Pilsen, the Czech Republic, on 5 - 7 November 2015. The conference offers an international view on the state of art of the museums' commitment in the educational field and new approaches to building and attracting audiences. Registration is open until 26 October 2015. >>>

14.   CITIES, MUSEUMS AND SOFT POWER

Museum planners Gail Lord and Ngaire Blankenberg urge city governments to embrace museums which so often are the signifiers of their cities, increasing real estate values while attracting investment, tourists and creative workers. They describe 32 practical strategies for museums and cities to activate soft power. >>>

15.   CREATIVE ECONOMY AND CULTURE. CHALLENGES, CHANGES AND FUTURES FOR THE CREATIVE INDUSTRIES

The productivity of creativity can now be seen as a global phenomenon. It demands a systems-based and dynamic mode of explanation. The book Creative Economy and Culture is essential reading for upper level students and researchers of the creative and cultural industries across media and cultural studies, communication and sociology. >>>

16.   CULTURAL MAPPING AS CULTURAL INQUIRY

This edited collection provides an introduction to the emerging interdisciplinary field of cultural mapping, offering a range of perspectives that are international in scope. Cultural mapping is a mode of inquiry and a methodological tool in urban planning, cultural sustainability, and community development that makes visible the ways local stories, practices, relationships, memories, and rituals constitute places as meaningful locations.>>>

17.   THE SECRETS OF CULTURE

The central premise of the book The Secrets of Culture by D. Paul Schafer is his belief that "we need to pass out of the present economic age and into the future cultural age", and that "in order to do this, it is necessary to unlock and capitalize on all diverse and dynamic secrets of culture". >>>

18.   CONVERSATIONS WITH ARCHITECTS: IN THE AGE OF CELEBRITY

Through 30 interviews conducted in the course of the past thirteen years, author Vladimir Belogolovsky gives us a detailed picture of contemporary architects and their work. He started interviewing architects in December 2002 during the competition for the World Trade Center master plan, at which point, according to Belogolovsky, architects gained national and international visibility and fame in popular mass culture and became "starchitects". >>>

19.   THE INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CULTURAL POLICY SPECIAL ISSUE: CULTURAL DIPLOMACY - BEYOND THE NATIONAL INTEREST?

A Special issue of The International Journal of Cultural Policy published in September 2015 deals with the field of cultural diplomacy policies and practices, as well as with cultural relations, soft power and public diplomacy in today's globalised and interconnected world. >>>

20.   THE 2014 ENCATC ANNUAL CONFERENCE REPORT: NEW CHALLENGES FOR THE ARTS AND CULTURE: IS IT JUST ABOUT MONEY?

The 2014 ENCATC Annual Conference Report "New Challenges for the Arts and Culture: Is it just about money?" has been produced to offer to ENCATC members and followers stimulating material produced during this major international event held in September 2014 in Brno, Czech Republic. >>>

21.   INTERCULTURALISM IN CITIES. CONCEPT, POLICY AND IMPLEMENTATION

This book covers two major concerns: how to conceptualize and how to implement intercultural policies. By compiling recent research in Europe and elsewhere, the book concludes that interculturalism is becoming both an attractive and efficient new paradigm for diversity management. >>>

This free newsletter, produced and distributed by the Culturelink Network, is sent to over 1900 e-mail addresses worldwide. Please forward your relevant current information for publication in C-News to clink@irmo.hr.

Past issues of C-News are archived at http://www.culturelink.org/news/c-news/.
Please visit also the regularly updated Culturelink WWW Resource Centre at http://www.culturelink.org.

To unsubscribe click here, to subscribe send an e-mail to clink@irmo.hr with 'subscribe' in the subject line.

Culturelink/IMO, Vukotinoviceva 2, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia; tel:+385-1-4877460, fax:+385-1-4828361
clink@irmo.hr, http://www.culturelink.org