PGD Session 2-1
Session Theme: Dialogue: Building Practical Collaborations Maximizing the Strength of Asian Social Enterprise.
Session Time: 9:00~11:30, Nov. 30
Finding a Solution to Asian Poverty Through Culture-Art Social Enterprise – Seeking Mutual Cooperation of Asian Cultural Arts Social Enterprises.
On the 2nd day of the ASES 2010, Six group discussions were held to promote networking among the social entrepreneurs in Asia. Following from the 2nd Plenary Session on the 29th, all the culture-art social entrepreneurs and interested people, met to discuss the cases and issues of culture-art social enterprises and to seek ways to cooperate on these issues.
During the Culture-Art Group Discussion led by Jin-Yi Oh, MD of Seoul Foundation for Art & Culture, ideas of art education, public art projects, recycling and up-cycling in Thailand, Japan, India and Korea were discussed.
Sunit Shrestha, MD of ChangeFusion Institute, Thailand, introduced his Institute’s activities with its theme, “Open Culture”. ChangeFusion, which tries the platforms of social innovation in various forms, provides business opportunity for change for social entrepreneurs to suggest creative ideas and help realize these ideas selected through online polls.
The next speaker Won-Jae Kang, Director of the Planning Division, HAJA Center, presented the background of HAJA Center, its mission and the current outcomes of their social enterprises. HAJA Center was an organization that planned for the future of youth, by combining work, play and life; promoting various art activities, and encouraging participation in the project as a cultural alternative for youth unemployment since the Asian financial crisis. He also introduced ‘Noridan’ and ‘OrganizationYORI’ as successful cases of social enterprise incubated by HAJA Center.
Honma Jun began his presentation with, “What is the role of the artist in society?” He then spoke of his successful project: the public art project in Japan, named ‘ABOA+ART’. As an artist and the director of the modern art exhibition held in a residential area in Yokohama, he pointed out the corruption of traditional society and the disappearance of community identity caused by urbanization in Japan. He suggested that Public Art Projects based on community members’ active participation and cooperation, can be a solution to these problems in Japan.
Lastly, Soo-Kyung Chae, CEO of REBLANK introduced the business, REBLANK, which has been re-designing old clothes, banners, leather and paper into useful and creative daily goods since 2008. She insisted, “We should find a solution by understanding nature and the people in each community; not apply the program with copied ideas.”
In this Group Discussion, participants approached the poverty issue in Asia by sharing their Projects of public art, reading campaigns, and art education for the low-income class. Also, they sought ways to keep networking among culture-art social entrepreneurs by sharing their ideas and discussing how to cooperate in solving Asia’s poverty.