Relate North 10: Possible Futures virtual symposium is free to attend and open to all students, designers, artists, academics, and any others interested in topics concerning Arctic sustainable art & design.
To attend the symposium please use this zoom link: https://yukonu-ca.zoom.us/j/6646191165
A moderator will let you into the session.
You may use the same zoom link to attend each session with the exception of Session 5A: Possible Publications? Sharing, Recognising and Acknowledging your Work
Relate North 10: Possible Futures is a collaboration between the University of the Arctic’s Arctic Sustainable Arts and Design thematic network (ASAD), Yukon University (Yukon School of Visual Arts), and the University of Lapland. The ASAD Network aims to identify and share innovative practices in learning, teaching, research and knowledge exchange in the fields of art, design and visual culture education. The network promotes cooperation and collaboration between academic institutions and communities with the purpose of working towards a shared understanding of critical issues relevant to people living in the North.
The research symposium will be broadcast from the Ayamdigut campus of Yukon University, in Whitehorse, Yukon, on the traditional territories of the Ta’an Kwäch’än Council and the Kwanlin Dün First Nation. The Yukon School of Visual Arts, the coordinating ASAD Network partner, is located on Tr'ondëk Hwëch'in territory, in Dawson City, Yukon.
The Relate North 10 logo was adapted from a sculpture by Tr'ondëk Hwëch'in artist Jackie Olson. Concentric circles are an important symbol to Hän-speaking people, who have lived along the Yukon River for millennia.
Every year, the Relate North Symposium & Exhibition attracts leading scholars and artists from around the circumpolar north to present research and debate issues of concern to arctic and subarctic regions through the lens of art and design. ASAD seek to investigate questions such as: How might design practices respond some of the challenges facing those living in northern and arctic areas today? What role might art play in chronicling and communicating issues important to people in the North? How might the visual arts represent a northern sense of place?
For further information about the ASAD Network visit https://www.asadnetwork.org/
Relate North Symposium and Exhibition theme: Possible Futures
The theme of the symposium is Possible Futures: an intentional expansion on one of the core themes of the 2022 Arctic Arts Summit held in Whitehorse, Yukon, June 2022. Arctic communities are at the forefront of imagining alternative futures in a rapidly changing present. Across the ASAD Network we have many examples of initiatives that are actively working towards creating alternatives; from land-based educational projects to the inclusion of Indigenous language and cultural revitalization programming, to collaborations between community-led arts-based researchers and scientists. Relate North 10: Possible Futures is about cultivating circumpolar relations between network partners to mobilize and share examples of what we know ‘works’ at each of our specific sites. It is about discussing how we can ethically and intentionally evolve our institutions, projects, and practices to align with, support, and enact the many possible futures that have already been envisioned in the Arctic.
There is great potential and a growing need for sustainable arts, design and creative industries to support the well-being of Arctic residents through transatlantic collaborations such as the ASAD Network. As Arctic regions continue to experience the accelerated effects of climate change, global geopolitical tensions, and resource development pressures, it is a critical time to bring Canadian, American, and Scandinavian arts institutions together to share knowledges, experiences, best practices, and projects being done to address global issues that are felt regionally, particularly for those in the North.
