MANILA, PHILIPPINES — In mid-2019, the United Nations released a troubling statement in a high-level political forum: the progress to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which were adopted in 2015, has been slow or even experienced a reversal in gains. One unlikely area is now being explored to help achieve these lofty targets: creativity.
Create 2030 was conceptualised with the idea that a ‘worldwide sustainability revolution’ for the planet and the people can be achieved with the help of creatives, not just by having them perform, but by engaging them in decision-making, as well as encouraging them to use their creativity to help address the problems that the world is now facing. Some artists have since taken on this challenge, using their talents to help bring to life the quote from Toni Cade Bambara: ‘The role of the artist is to make revolution irresistible.’
Photos by Recci Bacolor
SDG 5: Gender Equality – Safe space for the LGBTQ community
It may already be 2019, but the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer (LGBTQ) community still faces discrimination, as evidenced by the continued strong opposition against the passing of the proposed Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Expression (SOGIE) Equality Bill in the Philippines. Nonetheless, there are private entities that are doing their part to help provide safe spaces for members of the community. One such group is Pineapple Lab.
Pineapple Lab* is a creative art space in Makati City that showcases the works of Filipino artists, particularly for women and members of the LGBTQ community. ‘We’re really a space…for people to make themselves visible. A safe space, a brave space for people in our community,’ says Pineapple Lab executive director Jodinand Aguillon, who is also the creative producer of Fringe MNL and the brain behind the Lil Gay Shop.
The melding of the arts and their advocacy to promote equality is a necessity rather than a choice, says Jodee, as he prefers to be called. ‘It’s an excellent entry point for people who are still afraid, or for issues that are a little more taboo or controversial. Arts is an amazing way for people to educate and level the playing ground.’
Besides providing safe spaces for artists, Jodee says that they at Pineapple Lab make it a point to promote equality. For instance, they have set up accessibility features in their facilities, do not charge entrance fees, produce marketing collaterals in Filipino and English, and offer both alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages at low prices. All of these are intended to drive home the message that anyone and everyone is welcome in the space they are providing. ‘There’s such a heavy hand of classism here…we try to make our programming free. We try to disrupt the idea that gallery spaces are for the privileged, the elite.’
They also hire staff that other organisations may not be open to employing. ‘I think 50 per cent of our staff did not finish post-secondary education, did not finish university. Here in the Philippines…you won’t get a job in the arts or management without that degree. We have a small team, but our team comprises [of] people within our target demographic. That’s just for inclusivity. That’s what we’re living and breathing.’
‘At the end of the day, you want to create a world that you want to be a part of, so if you have the opportunity to create that space, you create that space,’ he also says.
Photo by Recci Bacolor
SDG 8: Decent Work and Growth – Karaw as a means for the vulnerable to earn
As someone with a background in community development, Paul Orpiada has seen how difficult life can be for poor families because of the limited opportunities available to them. This drove him to start Karaw Craftventures, an offshoot of a college project, with some of his friends.
Karaw Craftventures was established in Naga City in Camarines Sur, one of the poorest provinces in the Philippines. In Bicolano, karaw means ‘to play and be creative’, and it is creativity that Paul is using and hopes to promote by providing opportunities for underprivileged sectors and supporting environmental conservation through upcycling materials. ‘We believe that, whatever their individual backgrounds are, people still have basic human rights. They also have a right to a livelihood… good and dignified opportunities for their welfare and for their and their families’ futures.’
Their first venture is partnering with individuals, particularly women, incarcerated in the Naga City Jail. ‘Among the vulnerable groups in society, the prisoners are a sector that is neglected most of the time,’ says Paul.
‘There are a lot of talented and skilful people behind the bars that can be empowered to achieve their full potential,’ he continues. However, he says that they experience exploitation even while in jail. ‘There exists a social injustice in the way middlemen deal with the community of inmate handicraft producers,’ Paul explains. ‘They are paid with a very small amount because middlemen purchase the goods at a very low price and sell them to big stores at higher prices. Middlemen take advantage of the situation.’
Karaw Craftventures is now supporting the inmate handicraft producers through continuous skills trainings to enhance their skills so they can produce souvenir and lifestyle items, including plush toys, bags, shirts, and shoes, which the social enterprise is also marketing. They are also now targeting to reach unemployed mothers from urban poor communities in Naga, which they hope will also welcome former inmate handicraft producers they are already supporting.
Photo by Malaya del Rosario
SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities – City rebirth through creativity
In the UK, the place of origin of John Howkins, known as the ‘father of creative economy’, creative industries have now become the fastest growing economic sector, contributing £101.5bn gross value added (GVA) in 2017 alone. According to the Creative Industries Federation, one in ten jobs across the UK, or over 2 million jobs, are in the creative industries, 87 per cent of which are considered as ‘future-proof, or are less likely to become automated, unlike other professions.
Job generation is not the only contribution of this industry to society. The rebirth of Manchester has been partly credited to creatives, with MadLab as one of the main organisations contributing to this. ‘MadLab has been instrumental in driving digital and creative community development in Greater Manchester,’ says Rachael Turner, one of its co-founders. A non-profit co-working and creative space and one of the oldest makerspaces in the UK, the organisation has done several things to help revive the city, including managing spaces across Manchester; providing space development advice to various organisations such as Central St Martins, The Lyric Theatre, and Central Research Laboratory; and opening avenues for creatives to do their work. They have since expanded their offer, providing creative consultancy services to organisations such as the British Council, Disability Stockport, and University College London.
‘I think the main thing about creative hubs is that you need to adapt, you need to change, you need to be constantly responsive to your audiences,’ Rachael says. ‘We listen to our community and we make the changes they want to see, and that is how a good creative hub works.’
These examples serve as concrete examples that creativity is essential to achieve the SDGs. UNESCO itself has said that creative approaches are needed to achieve an equitable, inclusive and peaceful future. Fostering creativity will help drive societies in the achievement of the SDGS and in turn promote more resilient and sustainable societies.
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*Since the writing of this article, Pineapple Lab has closed its physical space brought by the effects of the global pandemic.
RELATED ARTICLES:
- Insight: The resilience of creative hubs in Southeast Asia, told through the British Council’s “Communities of a New Future”
- Insight: Transcending Legacies – How Three Young Leaders Are Using Creativity to Breathe New Life to Their Heritage
- Arts & Culture: The Future of Creatives, the Future is Creatives – a Dissection of the Creative Hubs in the Philippines by the British Council
