Culture & media for development

Conveners: Paula Uimonen, Department of Social Anthropology, Stockholm University and Ylva Ekström, Department of Media and Informatics, Uppsala University

Contact: paula.uimonen@socant.su.se

This panel explores how the creative power of culture and media can be harnessed to bridge global visions and local realities. While global goals of sustainable development offer an important framework for action around the world, it is only when they are translated into local practices that real change can be achieved. It is well known that culture frames everyday life in numerous ways and that different modes of mediated communication, not least digital media, play an influential role in shaping social action. Even so, development actors tend to overlook the significance of these ‘softer’ aspects of development, while focusing on ‘harder’ technical issues. Despite earlier failures, this technocratic view of development appears to hold sway in emerging development agendas, thus bypassing real opportunities for real change. In the 21st century, culture and media drive development.

By placing artists and media savvy youth in focus, this panel reflects on creative uses of culture and media for development. Drawing on research and practice in the Global South, panellists will share experiences of how creative resources can be channelled for progressive change. Key factors of social change through culture and media will be addressed in relation to questions like gender, governance, and education. The panel will also discuss how scholars can contribute to stimulating as well as documenting local efforts through participatory and collaborative research projects.

Form: Film screening (30 minutes) combined with panel discussion.

22 Aug., 16:00–17:30, Ahlmann Lecture Hall

  • Tuseme: supporting youth towards quality education and gender equality. Vicensia Shule, University of Dar es Salaam.
  • Media in Islamic Revolution and Trial to Create a New Culture. Abolfazl Agha Baba, Sanjesh Organization, Iran and Shahriar Khonsari, Malmö University.
  • The House of Culture. Tanzanian Youth and Social Engagement at the Intersection of Arts, Cultural Heritage and New Media. Ylva Ekström, Uppsala University and Anders Høg Hansen, Communication for Development, Malmö University and Anders Høg Hansen, Malmö University.
  • Film: Chanjo ya Rushwa. An ethnographic roadmovie. (27 minutes). Presenter: Paula Uimonen, Stockholm University

Abstracts

Tuseme: supporting youth towards quality education and gender equality. Vicensia Shule, University of Dar es Salaam.

In 2015, United Nations (UN) passed 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to be achieved by 2030. Among them, Goal 4 is to “ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all”. Goal 5 aims at “achieving gender equality and empower all women and girls”. Tanzania needs to achieve gender equality and be able to provide quality education to its youth. Tuseme (let’s speak out) is an empowerment model using ‘theatre for development’ techniques to enable youth to identify problems which hinder their academic excellence. The model also provides solutions to identified problems and supports students retention. Established in 1996 at the Department of Creative Arts, University of Dar es Salaam, currently Tuseme has spread to more than 17 countries in Africa. Noted in various research reports, “it is uncommon for girls, for example, to report sexual abuse incidences in Tanzania”. The evaluation conducted on schools which Tuseme is operational revealed that “Tuseme has boosted pupils, particularly girls’ confidence not just to speak out about their problems, but also to initiate appropriate actions to address them”. This presentation aims at tracing the role of arts, particularly theatre in empowering youth. It uses Tuseme model to showcase achievements and challenges of combining arts and/for development. Regardless of existing challenges, Tuseme remains one of the models which if mainstreamed in primary and secondary schools in Tanzania will support other initiatives to achieve Sustainable Development Goals by 2030.

Media in Islamic Revolution and Trial to Create a New Culture. Abolfazl Agha Baba, Sanjesh Organization, Iran and Shahriar Khonsari, Malmö University.

Revolutions are to end the old memories and try to create new Culture. State media of Islamic revolution of Iran, because of some fundamentalists and because of the thought that it is comprehensive, they tried to re-shape the old experiences before the revolution and to flourish new culture after the revolution.   state radio and television networks called IRIB are Iran’s only radio and TV networks inside the country and they follow   the religious supreme leader's policies step by step. In this article, we will show the trial for obtaining and to controlling two main dimensions of social life, which are Time and Space are done by media. Like any controlling systems that faces resistance, the resistance that faces this trial are considered. For example in the last decade of twentieth century and first decade of new millennium, a prodigious growth in communication tools has occurred which created great changes in social life. The satellites waves and World Wide Web broke the boundaries of autocratic governments like Iran and no matter how hard they tried they could not defend their one dimensional fundamentalism as the one and only belief. These new tools imposed many changes and developed people’s thoughts and changed their points of view. The development of electronic communication technologies could fill the gap that exists when autocratic governments separate different groups of people and keep them uninformed. The conflict of the informal socialization process against formal trial, are our analytical unit.

The House of Culture. Tanzanian Youth and Social Engagement at the Intersection of Arts, Cultural Heritage and New Media. Ylva Ekström, Uppsala University and Anders Høg Hansen, Communication for Development, Malmö University and Anders Høg Hansen, Malmö University.

Film: Chanjo ya Rushwa. An ethnographic roadmovie. (27 minutes). Presenter: Paula Uimonen, Stockholm University.

Chanjo ya Rushwa (Vaccination against Corruption) is an ethnographic road movie about a campaign against corruption through music, mobiles and social media. In 2011-2012 Vitali Maembe & The Spirits carried out a music tour in Tanzania to vaccinate the population against corruption. The artists performed in public spaces, to give ordinary citizens a chance to speak up against corruption! This documentary film captures the campaign and the voices of people breaking the culture of silence on corruption. Available online at vimeo.com/73936399.