Newsletters

Newsletter April 2023   

 

We are excited to announce our next Arts and Policy Certificate for Cities focused on public innovation through the arts. This edition will take place on April 14th and 15th in Padre las Casas, a municipality in the Araucanía Region of Chile. 48.2% of the population in this region identified as Mapuche. We are honored to have the presence of Mayor Mario González, members of his cabinet, and community leaders from civil society. Read more about our Certificate here

 

A Conversation with Dr. Diego García-Sayán

A space hosted by Harvard University Association of Peruvian Students, the official Harvard-wide organization that brings together students, professors, alumni and researchers interested in Peru. Board and members met with Peruvian lawyer and former Foreign Affairs Minister of Perú, Diego García-Sayán to talk about his career and the current situation of social and political instability in Perú. Dr. García-Sayán sat as judge of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, and was president of the Court between 2010 and 2012.

 

Deadline Approaching: Frontiers in Sociology

 

Cultural Agents is preparing a special issue of Frontiers in Sociology, titled “Boredom: The Elephant in the Room.” This unique issue aims to explore the often overlooked yet pervasive phenomenon of boredom and its impact on society. We invite you to submit your original research articles, reviews, or theoretical papers that focus on various aspects of boredom, its causes, consequences, and potential remedies in the context of sociology.
The deadline for submissions is April 29th, 2023. Submit your manuscript through the Research Topic Page.

 

Mental Health By All Means

During the panel hosted by the Harvard Health Lab on March 22nd featuring Dr. Vikram Patel, Dr. Fawwaa, Dr. Mario, Sarah Johnstone and Dr. Ricardo Araya, the conversation illustrated innovations in mental health through interdisciplinary collaborations and musical approaches. More feedback on the event and future news from the Health Lab to come.
 

 

Urban Gardens, Cultivating Shared Culture, Argentina

On Saturday, April 1, the girls and boys who participate in our stable workshops in the City of Buenos Aires went on an excursion to the Agroecological Garden of the Faculty of Nutrition of the University of Buenos Aires, invited by Professor and Master in Social Anthropology (FFyL UBA), Andrea Solans. During the outing we participated in the tasks of the garden and the preparation of breakfast and lunch with their products. This activity is part of our annual planning around healthy eating, ecology, and our relationship with the environment. Full report here.

 

Women and Community Leadership, Argentina

On Monday, April 10, an in-person training workshop began at Pre-Texts Argentina’s headquarters, Casa Walsh, aimed at women artists and leaders of community spaces in the city of Buenos Aires and surrounding areas. The participants have been granted scholarships to take this training and implement the protocol in their work spaces and places of belonging. Referents of Belleza y Felicidad Fiorito, Red de Comedores Comunitarios, Amalthea, Vamos a Andar and other institutions are participating in this workshop until mid-May. 

 

Improving Mental Health: High Impact Coalition

In collaboration with the High Impact Coalition, we are launching a Pre-Texts Workshop to improve Mental Health in Maipú. The initiative aims to address issues of wellbeing in the municipality through a unique educational approach that combines literacy, innovation, and civics. Professor Sommer will lead the workshop which will take place from April 17th to April 21st, between 10:00 am and 1:00 pm at the Municipal Theatre. The workshop will bring together community leaders, municipal representatives, and regional government officials. You can learn more about our work in Chile here.

 

Spring Workshop in Italy

During the Pescara Sessions at Spazio Matta, Italy, Doris Sommer, program founder and facilitator, held 5 encounters with 32 participants. The participants in this workshop came from various age ranges, and professionals, all strangers to one another. According to the testimonies, skepticism towards the protocol and individuals in the room were erased by the end of the first icebreaker.
The text object  was The Ignorant Master by Jacques Ranciere. Among other activities, the participants proposed and carried out a show parade based on a fragment of the text.

 
 

As it is a goal of our protocol, a playful and organic atmosphere was achieved while analyzing a complex piece of literature.
 

Training Action

ANTONIO ZIMARINO, Liceo Scientifico Leonardo Da Vinci, Strada Colle Marino

Some of the participants are already doing their implementations in Middle and Elementary schools and sharing their results and thoughts.

Raffaella Zaccagna, Scuola Primaria San Lorenzo, Vasto

Follow our work in Italy and more news here

 

 

Training Workshop in Latin America 

During the past month, Tálata Rodríguez, our Pre-Texts facilitator in Argentina, held an Online workshop to train professionals from Latin America in our protocol. The participants from Mexico, Argentina and Cuba, came from a variety of sectors that connect in education and art and are already doing their implementation practices.

 

U.S.A. Training Workshop Online

Pre-Texts is an educational protocol that can support a range of goals for your organization, whether you start with literacy, innovation, or civics. When the goals interlock, we achieve high impact at low cost. With a single prompt: “Use a text as material to make art,” the whole person thrives. Partners around the world attest to the results, using local arts and resources. Partnering up with Harvard University we will offer a training workshop from Tuesday, May 30-Saturday through June 3, 2023. 9:30am-12pm ET. Participants will be certified as Pre-Texts facilitators. You can register here

 

Welcome our New Facilitators

It is with great pleasure that we welcome Olatz Etxebarria (USA), Fatma Ali, Laura Cheptarus, Joe Chege (Kenya), Shreyoshi Saha and Shruti Shukla (India) to our team of Certified Facilitators.  Congratulations! 
To see his great work, check out the Where? section of our web site.

 

Weavers Meeting

We invite the entire Pre-Texts community to participate in the next Weavers Meeting to be held on April 29th at 9AM ET.

Meeting Link