gala partners can collaborate in specific Partner Working Groups (PWG’s), comparable to study groups. The primary goal of these groups is to strategically share knowledge and discover synergies between partners located in different parts of the world. Partners can collectively develop activities for these groups, particularly to connect with other disciplines such as scientists, (environmental) lawyers or journalists.
PWG1: Online education on Art and Ecology from a Latin-American perspective
In this Working Group partners Labverde (Brazil), Fundación Mar Adentro (Chile), Estudio Nuboso (Panama), Goethe Institut Rio (Brazil), Kiosko (Bolivia), Terremoto Magazine (Mexico) and Artesumapaz (Colombia) are collaborating to develop an online course on Art and Ecology. The aim of the course is to reach and educate artists in remote areas and to strengthen their skills in accessing opportunities in the field of art and ecology.
PWG3: Ecocide and Advocacy
In this Working Group partners No Lugar (Ecuador), Invisible Flock (UK), Kala Chaupal (India) and Fundacíon Mar Adentro (Chile) collaborate on connecting with policymakers and lawyers on making environmental crimes juridical crimes. Central questions include: What are the legal procedures to become a guardian of nature? How to articulate a relational jurisprudence as a guardian of nature? How do we represent Nature in court and how do we protect those who protect Nature? For this Working Group we collaborate with Kinstitute; a collective of artists, environmental lawyers and restorative justice experts who work on long-term projects dedicated to climate justice, environmental crimes, ecocide and the possibilities of proposing justice through artistic, juridical, ritualistic and restorative justice practices.
PWG5: Food Art Research
In this Working Group partners Cocina Colaboratorio (Mexico), colectivo amasijo (Mexico), FAR network (global) and various researchers, curators, artists and anthropologists with a keen interest in the social, political, environmental and cultural entanglements of food come together to streamline strategies and approaches that address global food injustices. Topics include regenerative agriculture, territory and land-use, cooking as a way of connecting and learning, geopolitics in food distribution, seed sovereignty and forms of resistance. The FAR network is coordinator of the group.
PWG7: Regeneration and Biodiversity
In this Working Group partners Labverde (Brazil), Valley of the Possible (Chile), Fundación Mar Adentro (Chile), Estudio Nuboso (Panama), Pollinaria (Italy) and Imago Bubo (Spain) collaborate on how arts and culture can effectively contribute to forest preservation and re-wilding as well as protecting biodiversity. Estudio Nuboso is the coordinator of this group.
This group has been further developing the ‘Suelo’ format as a way to support reconnection with community and environment in a post-covid world. Estudio Nuboso offered this toolkit/methodology to the group. Suelo uses the concept and fact of soil as sustenance, home, land, and territory to re-articulate the natural and cultural value of selected vulnerable locations, while strengthening networks of support that promote place-making, conservation and community empowerment. Similar to analysing a soil profile, the program reveals all of the layers of history, present and potential futures through an experiential knowledge exchange between local community members and guests (or allies) from different fields of study connected with the area. This in turn brings to light the set of relations between the “stakeholders” who, ideally, come together to collaborate or support each other in the best interest of the place and its future. The concept is to facilitate a horizontal exchange between all participants based on the premise that every single person is an expert in their own life, and that we all have different ways of learning – that is, we all have different areas of interest that can be activated through an impulse or connection and drive us to care for something or expand our understanding. Therefore the exchange is encouraged to be in the form of storytelling, embodied / hands-on experiences and kinship building exercises, and shared meals.
PWG2: Future Materials
In this Working Group partners Museo del Hongo (Chile), FIBRA (Peru), HIAP (Finland), C-Platform (China), Kala Chaupal (India) and Estudio Nuboso (Panama), collaborate to identify materials for the Future Material Bank; an inventory of alternative materials to a range of toxic and non-biodegradable materials that artists often use in their practice. Coordinator of this Working Group is the Jan van Eyck Academie (Netherlands).
PWG4: Land Rights and Indigenous Territories
In this Working Group partners SAKA (Philippines) and Common Room Networks (Indonesia) collaborate on how indigenous territories can be better protected and how farmers can obtain rights to their land. This group is against looting, land-grabbing and pro forming community alliances to stand stronger together. Read the interview with them in Terremoto Magazine on Planetary Solidarity.
PWG6: Urban-rural relationships
In this Working Group partners Pollinaria (Italy), Geo-AIR (Georgia), Goethe Institut Rio (Brazil) and Jatiwangi Art Factory (Indonesia) exchange knowledge and strategies on how, as an art organisation, to facilitate urban and rural connections. Pollinaria is the coordinator of this Working Group.
PWG8: Ocean River Water Protection
The Water Working Group consists of gala partners ARTPORT_making waves (Germany/France), Ayer Ayer (Malaysia), Invisible Flock (UK), ArteSumapaz (Colombia), Knockvologan Studies (Scotland), Translocal (Hungary/UK), Bamboo Curtain Studio (Taiwan) and Imago Bubo (Spain). They work together to develop projects, resources and exchange knowledge on the topic of oceans, rivers and water. This includes issues such as acidification of oceans, overfishing, micro-plastics, clean drinking water, river ecologies and various other water- related environmental challenges. Current coordinator of this group is ArteSumapaz (Colombia).
