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We've settled in for the afternoon as MIF artistic director John McGrath introduces the session. Once again, we've got you covered if you're following along at home!
Image source, MIFJohn McGrath opens the afternoon session at Interdependence
We are enlightened. And hungry.
We've just wrapped up the morning session at Interdependence and we've got plenty to chew on from radical responses to the debt crisis to calls for greater representation of young people in parliament and finding utopia in community libraries.
Thanks to all of our speakers, host Zing Tsjeng and Girl Gang for facilitating so many intense, insightful discussions between delegates!
More to come this afternoon as we look at how to reclaim our planet, our communities and our humanity.
Kemang Wa Lehulere in discussion with John McGrath
Spending the next few weeks in residence at Manchester Central Library, Kemang Wa Lehulere closes this morning's session in conversation with MIF artistic director John McGrath. During his residency, Wa Lehulere will be exploring new work and research ahead of a future MIF commission, providing a fascinating insight into his process.
Quote MessageI didn't want to come here with preconceived ideas or a set formula, I wanted Manchester to let me discover something...
Kemang Wa Lehulere, Artist
What an amazing series of talks we've just seen from Darren Keenan, external, Dr Johnna Montgomerie , externaland the Alphabus team, external. We're now going to a quick Q&A with the audience.
Question from the audience: "The last session discussed access to art. I'm black and I question how we begin to merge the artistic skills of the black community with the written word, that is, correctly, seen as more highly valued?"
Quote MessageThat exact idea has been somewhat of a hurdle, where some of our poets have the only goal of publishing a book. They forget sometimes that there's a journey, a foundation, a story there before any of that. We respect spoken word and page poetry for what it is, but it's more than that sometimes. What can it do for you, the communities around you?
Young Identity
Another audience question: "Johnna, you focused on individual debt, do you feel the same principles apply to larger national debt?"
Quote MessageYes, debt is also linked to existing systems of global opporession. The wealthiest countries in the world put everyone else under the boot - it's no way to run an economy, we can see how it's failing.
Dr Johnna Montgomerie, Author and academic
Quote MessageI asked myself: why do I need to conform? Someone once told me I wouldn't make it without learning someone else's choreography and it was that moment when I realised I didn't have to conform.
Quote MessageA lot of my dancers felt like they didn't have a voice. I pretty much told them: we say so much through our bodies that we can express ourselves without voices or poems. Hey, we have a voice, a vocabulary of dance that can speak to everyone.
Reggie Gray, Dance pioneer
Quote MessageThe thing is: how do we fix our communities? Through the work we do, allowing people to have a platform, we're able to let the marginalised have that voice. Let's celebrate our excellence!
Quote MessageHow can we change our communities? With the power of art. Art can't be silenced.
Young Identity, Arts Organisation
Say Reggie Gray and Young Identity
We're joined by Reggie Gray, external and the Young Identity, external crew. They're currently showing Alphabus here at MIF19 , externaland are here to talk about the use of dance, performance and spoken work to address inequality.
Image source, MIFReggie and Young Identity on stage at Interdependence
So says Dr. Johnna Montgomerie
Following Darren Keenan, we're now listening to Dr Johnna Montgomerie. She's the author of Should We Abolish Household Debt? , externaland is an academic on the subject at King's College, London. You can follow her here, external.
Image source, MIFJohnna Montgomerie speaking at Interdependence
Quote MessageThink about what debt means. The truth of it is, debt and money are made in exactly the same way. Only 2% of money exists as money you hold in your pocket, the rest exists as debt.
Quote MessageMoney is power. And that means: debt is power. We're talking about another form of inequality - debt inequality. For some people, debt is big business. It's what makes some people very wealthy.
Quote MessageFor some, debt helps make you rich. For most, it's the opposite. Debt is a powerful force. Is a Utopia a world without any debt?
Quote MessageNot all debt is bad, but the debt that's causing harm to our society is absolutely something we need to remove. It's about using abolishment to recognise the harm that debt is causing to our society. We need to move closer to a system where money and power are used to create a fairer, more equal, and more sustainable society.
Dr. Johnna Montgomerie, Author and academic
On leadership, and the many different routes to it...
Quote MessageThere's no correlation between academic success and leadership skills. I put myself forward for college governor - "for a keen governor, vote Keenan!"
Quote MessageI managed to get work experience with my local MP, but only because I put myself out there. My grades showed that I failed, but I knew that if I had this chance I wouldn't fail.
Quote MessageI got an internship at 38degrees, among mostly graduates from elite universities. I failed the first time, but wasn't deterred.
Darren Keenan, Advocacy Academy
So says Darren Keenan from the Advocacy Academy
Darren Keenan is speaking at Interdependence right now. He's from the Advocacy Academy, external who put young people through a transformational social justice fellowship. Darren opened with an electrifying spoken word piece that we'll try and share footage of later, he's superb. You can follow Darren here, external.
Image source, MIFDarren Keenan holding the audience rapt with spoken word
Quote MessageNot all people are all bad, or all good. Society will remain broken until we learn to look beneath the surface.
Darren Keenan, Advocacy Academy
The Q&A is in full swing
High energy, great costumes, loud noise, and big ideas. What more could you want. Big up the Girl Gang, external! We'll be posting some of the best ideas here...
Image source, MIFWe now go to a panel Q&A with our speakers, led by Zing and the Girl Gang crew.
Quote MessageOften politicians don't get it right, but ultimately they have to respond to what we're asking them to do.
Sophie Howe, Future Generation Commissioner for Wales
Quote MessageOne key word is "information" - in order to have these difficult conversations we have to know what we're talking about. Brexit is a good example, we need to go behind the curtain of what we're being told.
Rimini Protokoll, Artist collective
Quote MessageWe have a mediated representation of the truth given to us, but we increasingly have access to the means of control, through our phones and machines. Slowly, but it's happening. We want evidence-based solutions to create empowered citizens.
Professor Richard Clay, Professor of Digital Culture
This time it's personal
Girl Gang, external are keeping the energy up. They've split the audience into two and the challenge is for every single person to touch their globe.
I managed to create a pleasing accidental Renaissance image during the chaos too:
Image source, MIFWe're all winners really.
Quote MessageWe have to be calling out inequality. We need to fundamentally shift our economic model.
Sophie Howe, Future Generation Commissioner for Wales
Sophie speaking boldly about how we as a society measure how well we're doing as a generation. She suggests our metric is broken and that instead of looking at economic growth and financial prosperity, we instead need to look towards wellbeing and equality.
We're joined by the Future Generations Commissioner for Wales
Sophie Howe from Future Generations , externalis tackling the same enormous problem at Brett Hennig discussed earlier, but from the perspective of her incredibly-named role as the Future Generation Commissioner for Wales - she helps public institutions with their policies to ensure they're reflecting the best interests of the young, and the unborn.
Image source, MIFSophie Howe at Interdependence
Find out more about Sophie and her work here, external.
Author and activist Brett Hennig is taking us through his ideas and work on democracy now. If you haven't seen it, it's well worth checking his TED talk out here, external.
Image source, MIFBrett Hennig speaks at Interdependence
Experience their bold new project Utopolis at MIF19
The Utopia project opens next week here at MIF19, and is one of the most ambitious works on at the festival.
Look out for an exclusive behind-the-scenes look at the technology powering this incredible work over the next few days.
Read more about the project here, external, and come join us as Utopolis comes to Manchester for four days only.
Rimini Protokoll are discussing their notion of utopia in response to the original work by Thomas More, external, in the context of modern cities.
Quote MessageWe hope to trigger the question: how can cities be organised in a different way? From its community to its politics.
Rimini Protokoll
With Professor Richard Clay
The Rimini Protokoll, external are bringing their incredible Utopolis project to MIF next week (more on it here, external), and are in discussion with Richard Clay, external, Professor of Digital Cultures.
Image source, MIFRimini Protokol discussing democracy
Quote MessageCan we speak, or can we enable speaking about, positive reflections on democracy?
Rimini Prototkoll, Artists
Girl Gang MCR, external are taking the entire audience through some lovely warm-ups because, after all, you can't expand your mind without stretching a little first, eh?
Image source, MIFWarming up at Interdependence
Even our sleepy-looking attendees are getting stuck in. Fair play.
Image source, MIFThe audience getting stuck in.
Our guest host this morning is the amazing Zing Tsjeng, the Executive Editor of VICE UK, external, you can follow her on Twitter here, external.
WAIT - she's been interrupted by some time-travellers!
Image source, MIFTime travellers are here...
Quote MessageHow many hours have we gone back? About three hours? We have SO MUCH to get you up to speed on! We made some amazing points....
Unknown Time Traveller, Time Traveller
Oh, wait a moment, it's GIRL GANG MCR. Much more about this amazing crew here, external!