What role for craft in the creation of a collaborative and positive future vision?

Abstract

Despite overwhelming and generally accepted scientific evidence, the breadth of existing societal response to global environmental challenges remains woefully inadequate. We are surrounded by apocalyptic and dystopian visions of the future and are falling to harness the power of human imagination and creativity to enable individuals and communities to shape a positive vision for a low carbon future. Such a process would enable them to face current global challenges in the belief that such a future could be preferable to the present: healthier, happier, more resilient, localised and more collaborative.

Sustainable Ability (Hilary Jennings and Lucy Neal, 2010) commissioned by Mission Models Money, used primary research to map the growing response to resource scarcity and climate change by individuals and organisations across the UK arts and cultural sector and assembled information to help deepen understanding of the practical and behavioural barriers to a greater breadth and depth of response. It highlighted research by WWF and others into the impact of human values on behaviour change, recently published in Common Cause - The Case for Working with Values and Frames (PIRC 2011).

The paper identified the potential of a holistic, values-driven, positive and visionary response, including space for understanding the loss and led by communities of activity. This potential will be drawn out through practice in three different contexts:

• Community response – as co-chair of Transition Town Tooting (part of the global Transition Town movement) in the creation of the artist/maker led (and Tipping Point awarded) Trashcatchers’ Carnival – a community wide celebration imagining a positive future.
• Institutional response – as Associate on the Happy Museum Project – investigating how museums can create new civic spaces to help society transition to a high well-being, more sustainable world, inspired by principles set out in a paper, The happy Museum – a Tale of How it Turned Out Alright, co-written by the NEF – Centre for Wellbeing and leading museum commentators.
• Individual creative response – as a co creator of Case for Optimism (supported by Clore and EFF) investigating how we encourage a much deeper conversation about the role of creativity, culture and art in a sustainable future.

What is the potentially critical place for craft in shaping such a response, harnessing the potential of a positive vision and the particular potency of arts and creativity? An innately creative process, craft making contributes to individual well being and engenders a deeper personal sense of place and heritage. Wider acquisition and practice of haptic skills and understanding of materials could play a key role in challenging our current over-consumption.

Hillary was Skills Director at Craft at Creative and Cultural Skills where she drafted the first iteration of the Creative Blueprint for Craft (2009), she is advisor to the Heritage Craft Association and has worked for the Crafts Council and other craft agencies.