Apologies again for cross-posting. This time with the free registration link below!
Please see below full programme details for CCT
Essex Futures conference (15-16th Sept)
Club Critical Theory: Essex Futures Conference
Venue: Civic Centre Southend-on-Sea, Committee Room 4a (close to Southend Victoria and Southend Central railway stations)
Dates: 15th-16th September, 2016
Club Critical Theory (CCT) host a free two day conference exploring ideas relevant to three public policy areas that have an impact on local communities within a national context
Day One: Thurs 15th Sept
Doors open 9.30am
Morning session 10am – 1pm
Introduction to CCT: Tony Sampson
Creative Industries and Entrepreneurialism: Exploring the drive by local authorities and other agencies to encourage growth in ‘creative sectors’. What impact is this really having on regional economies, and is it any more than simply
‘branding’?
Robert Hewison (Cultural Historian and author of The Rise and Fall of Creative Britain)
Joe Hill (Director of Focal Point Gallery)
Duncan Smith (Artistic Director of Association for Cultural Advancement through Visual Art)
Chair: Andrew Branch
Afternoon session 2-5pm
Food Cultures: Who is really setting the agenda in terms of policies on health and wellbeing in respect of what food we buy and consume? What can be done at a local level to improve ‘food cultures’ in the context of national policies
which endorse a free market vision of society?
Vic Borrill (Director of Brighton and Hove Food Partnership)
Jack Monroe (Writer, Journalist and Activist)
Chair: Giles Tofield
Evening drinks at the Railway Hotel (near Southend Central)
Day Two: Fri 16th Sept
Doors open 9.30am
Morning session 10-1pm
Cultural Policy, Heritage and Place-Making: What do we mean by ‘place-making’ at a local level? Who creates the stories and narratives that define how our towns and cities are to be ‘branded’? Does local cultural policy (where it
still exists) have a role to play in creating really distinctive identities and differences in a globalised world economy? How is local ‘heritage’ being used to promote new narratives of towns, cities and regions?
Matthew Taylor (Chief Executive of the RSA)
Scott Dolling (Head of Economy, Regeneration & Tourism, Southend Borough Council)
Robert Bean (Founder of Robert Bean Branding Co)
Chair: Giles Tofield
Closing remarks by Andrew Branch
Conference Funded by the University of East London
About the Organisers
Club Critical Theory (CCT) is a partnership between the University of East London (UEL) and Southend based social enterprise, The Cultural Engine. Established in 2014, CCT is a public engagement programme that seeks to encourage academics
to get out into community spaces to explore how radical theory can inform the imaginative life of society.
CCT co-founders: Giles Tofield (The Cultural Engine), Dr Andrew Branch (UEL) and Dr Tony Sampson (UEL)