SUBTOPIA, ABOUT SPACES FOR CHANGE AND RESILIENCE is a Strategic Partnership project supported by the Erasmus+ programme via the Belgian/Flemish National Youth in Action Agency JINT. As a Partnership for Creativity project, SUBTOPIA responds to the circumstances created by the COVID-19 pandemic. SUBTOPIA, ABOUT SPACES FOR CHANGE AND RESILIENCE is coordinated by Vitamine C, Leuven, Belgium together with 8 partners in Europe: Aurora Budapest Hungary, Studio Alta Prague Czech Republic, Kanapes Riga Latvia, Brunnenpassage Vienna Austria, Izolyatsia Kiev Ukraine, DreamTeam Athens Greece, Tandem Berlin Germany and Trans Europe Halles Lund Sweden. SUBTOPIA focuses on how creative and cultural spaces all over Europe are change makers in society and havens for resilience. SUBTOPIA wants to empower both staff and young people of cultural and creative spaces all over Europe to be change makers in their local environment and community. SUBTOPIA helps young generations and professionals to acquire skills and competences that supports the potential of youth, contributing to the resilience of their local environment. At the same time SUBTOPIA wants to unveil new opportunities and perspectives for positive change that can be sought and found in a critical context. In 2015-2016, Vitamine C coordinated the Strategic Partnership CREATIVE SPACES. The key question of CREATIVE SPACES was: “What is the space that young people need to be creative, to develop their talents, to empower?”. Two crucial things we noticed, during and after the project was that these creative spaces not only make a difference for the personal growth and empowerment of young individual people, but 1) that these CREATIVE SPACES also make a big difference for their community and local environment: many of these spaces are drivers for social change, they are often freehavens for free thinking, activism, and for resilience. MANY OF THESE CULTURAL AND CREATIVE SPACES ARE WORKING BENEATH (SUB) THE SURFACE TO TRANSFORM SOCIETY IN TO A BETTER PLACE, A BETTER WORLD (UTOPIA), WHICH IS WHY WE CALL THIS PROJECT SUBTOPIA. 2) and – very important – in most of these spaces for change and resilience YOUNG PEOPLE are at the heart of it! They are the ones who provide a continuous flow of new energy into these spaces to change society and TO BE RESILIENT. Based on these needs that we detected during CREATIVE SPACES and based on our convictions and belief in the power of young people and arts, culture and creativity, SUBTOPIA, ABOUT SPACES FOR CHANGE AND RESILIENCE, was born. Of course during 2020, The COVID-19 crisis was an extreme situation that hit the cultural and creative sectors and all who are involved particularly hard!THE COVID-19 CRISIS MADE ALL OF THESE NEEDS AND CHALLENGES EVEN MORE PERTINENT AND RELEVANT. THE MAIN ACTIVITIES during the project are: - 4 TRANSNATIONAL PROJECT MEETINGS; - 4 meetings of 5 LOCAL YOUTH LAB with around 10 young people; - 1 PARTICIPATORY END CONFERENCE, where both groups come together: 10 staff and 10 young people - 3 extra special ACTIVITIES TO DISSEMINATE the results of the project (1 in Flanders and via big networks 2 in Europe) and - online and DIGITAL COMMUNICATION via social media during the whole project. There are TWO IMPORTANT TARGET GROUPS in the project SUBTOPIA, ABOUT SPACES FOR CHANGE AND RESILIENCE,: 1) the STAFF WORKING IN cultural and creative spaces, and 2) the YOUNG PEOPLE THAT ARE CONNECTED WITH these cultural and creative spaces The output and results of SUBTOPIA, ABOUT SPACES FOR CHANGE AND RESILIENCE, will be the COMBINED AND CO-CREATED OUTPUT REALISED VIA TWO PROCESSES. During the whole SUBTOPIA project, in both these two layers, two processes, the staff and the young people will focus on the same questions, topics, and will work towards the concrete results and output of the project. Each of these layers will have its trajectory, exchanging expertise, developing skills, co-creating content, and so on. But throughout the project we will intertwine and connect both layers, so that AT THE END OF THE PROJECT, THERE WILL BE A COMBINED OUTPUT THAT STAFF AND YOUNG PEOPLE REALISED AND CO-CREATED TOGETHER. THE TANGIBLE RESULTS we expect during the project and on its completion are: - LESSONS LEARNED The results of the most important conclusions and findings of the project. What did we learn about how spaces for change and resilience all over Europe are change makers in society and havens for resilience? - TESTIMONIALS We are strong believers of the power of testimonials. At the end of the project we want to produce at least 10 testimonials both of staff and young people, in a fresh mix. - ARTISTIC MANIFESTO Creative initiatives and artefacts to express the key messages of what the participants found out about this topic of change and resilience to be expressed.
Subtopia, about Spaces for Change and Resilience focused on how cultural and creative spaces all over Europe are change makers in society and freehavens for resilience. SUBTOPIA wanted to empower both staff and young people of these spaces to enable them being change makers in their communities. SUBTOPIA helped young generations and professionals to acquire skills and competences that supports the potential of youth, contributing to the resilience of their local environment. At the same time SUBTOPIA wanted to unveil new opportunities and perspectives for positive change. We initiated this project together with many great partners and people from around Europe to stress the importance of many cultural and creative spaces all over Europe. Because 1) the work they do is crucial for changing society for the better and for all and 2) because these spaces are crucial for young people to provide for them a space where they can find themselves, where they can develop themselves. Arts, culture and creativity are providing a unique space for this…
In 2015-2016, Vitamine C coordinated the Strategic Partnership CREATIVE SPACES. The key question of CREATIVE SPACES was: “What is the space that young people need to be creative, to develop their talents, to empower?”. Two crucial things we noticed, during and after the project was that these creative spaces not only make a difference for the personal growth and empowerment of young individual people, but 1) that these CREATIVE SPACES also make a big difference for their neighbourhood, their community and local environment: many of these CREATIVE SPACES are drivers for social change, they are often freehavens for free thinking, activism, and havens for resilience. Many of these spaces are working beneath (sub) the surface to transform society in to a better place, a better world (Utopia), which is why we call this project “SUBTOPIA”. 2) and – very important – in most of these spaces for change and resilience YOUNG PEOPLE are at the heart of it! They are the ones who provide a continuous flow of new energy into these spaces to change society and TO BE RESILIENT. Why young people? Young people are severely touched and seized by big changes in society. Many of them are resisting, more and more inspired worldwide by other young people. Greta Thunberg f.e. is an icon for this power and perseverance of young people, their protest and resilience. In many countries throughout Europe young people are taking responsability themselves and are the drivers for change. They are the ones who are dreaming, fighting and building a new and better society beneath the surface: they are the inhabitants of Subtopia, where a new Europe is being dreamed of and prepared. Why cultural and creative spaces? We focus on spaces that have culture & creativity in its heart because we notice that these kind of contexts are often freehavens and breeding grounds for more open thinking, for resilience. Because cultural and creative spaces often have the power to change society. Culture, indeed, matters for social cohesion and resilience, for economic development and sustainability, for dialogue and mutual understanding, see https://www.britishcouncil.org/sites/default/files/culture-matters-report-v2.pdf . As states the European Cultural Foundation: "Culture contributes to social justice, as well as to economic and environmental change by shifting the mindset of people and short-term behaviour to more enduring and sustainable solutions." In this context it is important to say that Subtopia is about ““art, culture and creativity for the sake of society” and about what these spaces, through the arts, culture and creativity, can mean as freehavens and incubators for young people to change society and to be resilient. Why Change and Resilience? The key focus of Subtopia is Change for society and Resilience to keep going and fighting. Underneath the surface, were people are dreaming and fighting for Subtopia, these people and initiatives are resilient, they are the source for an undercurrent that makes a difference within their context, neighbourhood, community. Often these Spaces of Change and Resilience are vulnerable. Often these organisations and young people that are fighting for a better society, are bullied and/or threatened by the powers that be. They have to hide, are marginalised or put outside the social and cultural arena. But they resist, they cling together and keep fighting their battle, like the resistance during the war. Visting Aurora in Budapest Hungary, which is one of the partners of SUBTOPIA, was in a way an eye-opener to start SUBTOPIA. In recent years Aurora has faced huge challenges according to the shrinking space of the civil society in Budapest but has successfully remained open despite the many attacks coming from the ruling municipality, far right groups and state propaganda. During these years the core staff gained experience in fast reacting to misused power, handling unexpected publicity and the associated tools for advocacy and constituency building. Aurora is an amazing example of a space for Change and resilience. They are at risk in their own region or country. International exchange of expertise and connection with other similar minds and figthers is often crucial to have hope, to feel the solidarity, to survive even. Based on this context and these needs that we detected during CREATIVE SPACES, based on the experience and EXAMPLE OF AURORA and based on our convictions and belief in the power of young people and arts, culture and creativity, SUBTOPIA, ABOUT SPACES FOR CHANGE AND RESILIENCE, was born. In a way there were already enough crisises and challenges in Europe to start up SUBTOPIA, but of course during 2020, THE COVID-19 CRISIS MADE ALL OF THESE NEEDS AND CHALLENGES EVEN MORE PERTINENT AND RELEVANT. The COVID-19 crisis is an extra extreme situation that hit the cultural and creative sectors and all who are involved particularly hard!