e59 pearl – positive tipping points

Conscient Podcast

SCALE (Sectoral Climate Arts Leadership for the Emergency) is a national round table for the arts and culture sector to mobilize around the climate emergency. A few months ago, you and I, and a few others were all having the same realization that while there was a lot of important work and projects happening at the intersection of arts and sustainability in Canada, there lacked some kind of structure to bring this work together, to align activities, to develop a national strategy, and to deeply, deeply question the role of arts and culture in the climate emergency and activate the leadership of the sector in terms of the mobilization that needs to happen in wider society. SCALE is really trying to become that gathering place that will engender that high level collaboration, which hopefully will create those positive tipping points.

judi pearl, conscient podcast, june 20, 2021, ottawa

Judi Pearl is currently Associate Producer, Artistic Projects for English Theatre at the National Arts Centre and a board member for The Only Animal. Previously, she served for ten years on the board of the Professional Association of Canadian Theatres. A passionate environmental activist since her teen years, she is honoured to be a part of the inaugural Coordinating Circle for Sectoral Climate Arts Leadership for the Emergency (SCALE), an emergent national hub dedicated to developing strategy, aligning activities and activating the leadership of Canada’s arts and culture sector in the climate emergency. She is grateful to live and work on unceded Algonquin Anishinaabe territory, nestled between the Rideau Canal and the Rideau River.

I first met Judi while I was working on greening activities for the Canada Council for the Arts. Judi was doing similar work at the National Arts Centre and we collaborated on a number of projects. I then had the privilege of working with Judi to set up SCALE, where we both put our organizational skills to use and enjoy taking the climate emergency bull by the horns. 

Judi’s positive and ‘can do’ spirit is remarkable and contagious. I was uplifted by our walk by the Rideau River in Ottawa and think you will be as well. 

I would like to thank Judi for taking the time to speak with me, for sharing her passion for theatre and the environment, her deep commitment to climate justice and her exceptional skills as an organizer and eco arts leader. 

For more information on some of Judi’s work, see https://nac-cna.ca/en/englishtheatre

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(traduction)

LeSAUT (Leadership sectoriel des arts sur l’urgence de la transition écologique) est une table ronde nationale permettant au secteur des arts et de la culture de se mobiliser autour de l’urgence climatique. Il y a quelques mois, vous, moi et d’autres personnes avons fait le même constat : alors qu’il y avait beaucoup de travail et de projets importants à l’intersection des arts et de la durabilité au Canada, il manquait une sorte de structure pour rassembler ce travail, pour aligner les activités, pour développer une stratégie nationale et pour questionner profondément le rôle des arts et de la culture dans l’urgence climatique et activer le leadership du secteur en termes de mobilisation qui doit se produire dans la société au sens large. LeSAUT essaie vraiment de devenir ce lieu de rassemblement qui engendrera cette collaboration de haut niveau, qui, espérons-le, créera ces points de basculement positifs.

judi pearl, balado conscient, 20 juin 2021, ottawa

Judi Pearl est présentement productrice associée, Projets artistiques pour le Théâtre anglais du Centre national des Arts et membre du conseil d’administration de The Only Animal. Auparavant, elle a siégé pendant dix ans au conseil d’administration de l’Association professionnelle des théâtres canadiens. Passionnée par l’environnement depuis son adolescence, elle est honorée de faire partie du premier Cercle de coordination du Leadership artistique sectoriel pour l’urgence climatique (SCALE), un centre national émergent qui se consacre à l’élaboration d’une stratégie, à l’harmonisation des activités et à l’activation du leadership du secteur des arts et de la culture du Canada dans l’urgence climatique. Elle est reconnaissante de vivre et de travailler sur le territoire non cédé des Algonquins Anishinaabe, niché entre le canal Rideau et la rivière Rideau.

J’ai rencontré Judi pour la première fois alors que je travaillais sur des activités d’écologisation pour le Conseil des Arts du Canada. Judi faisait un travail similaire au Centre national des Arts et nous avons collaboré à plusieurs projets. J’ai ensuite eu le privilège de travailler avec Judi pour mettre sur pied SCALE, où nous avons toutes deux mis à profit nos compétences organisationnelles et pris plaisir à prendre le taureau de l’urgence climatique par les cornes. 

L’esprit positif de Judi et sa capacité à agir sont remarquables et contagieux. Notre promenade le long de la rivière Rideau, à Ottawa, m’a fait du bien et je pense que vous en ferez autant. 

Je tiens à remercier Judi d’avoir pris le temps de me parler, de m’avoir fait part de sa passion pour le théâtre et l’environnement, de son profond engagement en faveur de la justice climatique et de ses compétences exceptionnelles en tant qu’organisatrice et leader des arts écologiques. 

Pour plus d’informations sur certains des travaux de Judi, voir https://nac-cna.ca/en/englishtheatre. 

Liens

The post e59 pearl – positive tipping points appeared first on conscient podcast / balado conscient. conscient is a bilingual blog and podcast (French or English) by audio artist Claude Schryer that explores how arts and culture contribute to environmental awareness and action.

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About the Concient Podcast from Claude Schryer

The conscient podcast / balado conscient is a series of conversations about art, conscience and the ecological crisis. This podcast is bilingual (in either English or French). The language of the guest determines the language of the podcast. Episode notes are translated but not individual interviews.

I started the conscient project in 2020 as a personal learning journey and knowledge sharing exercise. It has been rewarding, and sometimes surprising.

The term ‘conscient’ is defined as ‘being aware of one’s surroundings, thoughts and motivations’. My touchstone for the podcast is episode 1, e01 terrified, based on an essay I wrote in May 2019, where I share my anxiety about the climate crisis and my belief that arts and culture can play a critical role in raising public awareness about environmental issues. The conscient podcast / balado conscient follows up on my http://simplesoundscapes.ca (2016–2019) project: 175, 3-minute audio and video field recordings that explore mindful listening.

Season 1 (May to October 2020) explored how the arts contribute to environmental awareness and action. I produced 3 episodes in French and 15 in English. The episodes cover a wide range of content, including activism, impact measurement, gaming, arts funding, cross-sectoral collaborations, social justice, artistic practices, etc. Episodes 8 to 17 were recorded while I was at the Creative Climate Leadership USA course in Arizona in March 2020 (led by Julie’s Bicycle). Episode 18 is a compilation of highlights from these conversations.

Season 2 (March 2021 – ) explores the concept of reality and is about accepting reality, working through ecological grief and charting a path forward. The first episode of season 2 (e19 reality) mixes quotations from 28 authors with field recordings from simplesoundscapes and from my 1998 soundscape composition, Au dernier vivant les biens. One of my findings from this episode is that ‘I now see, and more importantly, I now feel in my bones, ‘the state of things as they actually exist’, without social filters or unsustainable stories blocking the way’. e19 reality touches upon 7 topics: our perception of reality, the possibility of human extinction, ecological anxiety and ecological grief, hope, arts, storytelling and the wisdom of indigenous cultures. The rest of season 2 features interviews with thought leaders about their responses and reactions to e19 reality.

my professional services

I’ve been retired from the Canada Council for the Arts since September 15, 2020 where I served as a senior strategic advisor in arts granting (2016-2020) and manager of the Inter-Arts Office (1999-2015). My focus in (quasi) retirement is environmental issues within my area of expertise in arts and culture, in particular in acoustic ecology. I’m open to become involved in projects that align with my values and that move forward environmental concerns. Feel free to email me for a conversation : claude@conscient.ca

acknowledgement of eco-responsibility

I acknowledge that the production of the conscient podcast / balado conscient produces carbon. I try to minimize this carbon footprint by being as efficient as possible, including using GreenGeeks as my web server and acquiring carbon offsets for my equipment and travel activities from BullFrog Power and Less.

a word about privilege and bias

While recording episode 19 ‘reality’, I heard elements of ‘privilege’ in my voice that I had not noticed before. It sounded a bit like ‘ecological mansplaining’. I realize that, in spite of good intentions, I need to work my way through issues of privilege (of all kinds) and unconscious bias the way I did through ecological anxiety and grief during the fall of 2020. My re-education is ongoing.

Go to conscient.ca

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