Empowering Arts & Cultural Organization
Yogyakarta, Marc 8, 2019
709 Room 7rd floor, Soegondo Building FIB UGM
08.00 a.m – 04.00 p.m
Modern day city is witnessing an urban transformation of an entirely novel scale and speed in many different areas spanning from social dimension to environmental issues. Modern cities are places of residence, manufacture, employment, trade, education, innovation and creativity, and political and social action. At the same time, they are also places where poverty, wealth, deprivation, gender inequality, and social exclusion. In many developing countries, these cities’ challenges have been exacerbated by the rapidly increased of population number. UN forecasts show that in 2050, 66 percent of the world’s population is projected to be urban dwellers. It will absolutely create further challenges concerning access to resources such as clean water and electricity, as well as housing, social infrastructure, and sanitation, reducing the liveability of a city. Consequently it comes as no surprise that a search for city’s problems solution has put pressure on citi¬zens, politicians, and bureaucrats as well as businesses and intelletuals.
While the discussion of city sustainability has been centred on economic and social factors, there is increasing evidence that arts and culture make a positive contribution to the liveability of a city. Cultural institutions attract tourists, provide thousands of jobs, and contribute to resident well-being and quality of life. Arts and culture have also played a pivotal role in reshaping the identity of a city which deals more on the quality and diversity of its cultural activities and services than with its economic or commercial functions. Although it may have less economic contribution, in longer term, a vibrant cultural sector and a good place for residents to ‘work, live and play is critical to ensuring the well-being of residents, improving social connections, lowering stress, improving school effectiveness, raising community awareness, and enhancing civic engagement. Thus in the face of an increasingly globalised multidimensional challenge, aside from conventional improvements to the ‘hard’ infrastructure of cities and regional areas, attention must be paid to the cultural infrastructure, providing services and activities that encourage expressions of cultural diversity and encourage networking and creativity.
Against this background, the 17th URP Forum will address several issues concerning the role of arts and culture in city development. The cultural distinctiveness of city, the arts and a vibrant creative economy are seen as resources and assets in this process. All this means that the seminar will address a very broad theme encompassing the dynamic history of city, public arts and urban design, city’s heritage conservation, urban cultural and environmental issues, and creative city.
Speakers:
1. Assoc. Prof. Dr. Takako Iwasawa. (Hokaido University of Education)
2. Ms. Aiko Kurahara. (Higashiyama Artists Placement Service)
3. Dwi Pradnyawan, M.A. (Archeology Dept., UGM)
4. Wildan Sena Utama, M.A. (History Dept., UGM)
5. Anon Suneko, M.Sn. (Indonesia Institute of the Arts Yogyakarta)
6. Warsono, M.A. (Indonesia Institute of the Arts Yogyakarta)
