Rachel Jacobs and Matt Watkins from Active Ingredient, Carlo Buontempo, Senior Climate Scientist at the Met Office, representatives from the Horizon Hub and by video link from Rio de Janeiro, artist Silvia Leal will describe the process of working on Timestreams and their hopes for its development and use by other groups in different contexts in future. Three artists who have taken part in residencies in different parts of the world will respond to this initial case study presenting aspects of their own work and responding to some of the issues raised when working at the intersection between arts, media and ecological/environmental issues. This will be followed by a series of presentations from an exciting range of speakers working in interdisciplinary fields including activism, campaigning, sustainable development and design/gaming.

Among the areas of discussion will be questions of what is happening at the leading edge of weather?  Can we cross arts, science and technological boundaries to build open and collaborative platforms for research and development in conditions of crisis?  What boundaries and differences exist between artistic practices and activist approaches? Can artists bring something new and different into contexts where narratives of technological progress are dominant?  How do different systems of knowledge meet and find common ground in on the ground projects and in communities of exchange?  What value can artistic residencies have in environmentally fragile contexts? How can  contemporary methods of data collection and visualisation, related to increasingly responsive sensor-based systems, help understanding of the impact of climate change? How can advances in science and technology be combined with growing environmental awareness?  Are these systems in conflict or can we (like Gustav Metzger in 1969) subscribe to 'technologies of paradise'?

Confirmed speakers: Active Ingredient ( Rachel Jacobs and Matt Watkins);  Jesse Blum(University of Nottingham); Carlo Buontempo, (Senior Climate Scientist at the UK MET Office); Martin Flintham; Rob La Frenais (The Arts Catalyst): Gabriella Giannachi (Exeter University); Candice Howarth (Global Sustainability Institute, Anglia Ruskin University); artist Jo Joelson (London Fieldworks); artist and curator Silvia Leal; artist Ana MacArthur; artist Julie Myers (Kingston University, London); and Jorge Lopes Ramos (Zecora Ura).

This is a debate and open discussion in which you are invited to participate. The event is free but places are limited. Refreshments will be provided.  The event will be filmed for future dissemination and sharing, please contact us if you do not want to be filmed.

The Arts Catalyst
50-54 Clerkenwell Road
EC1M 5PS London
United Kingdom

Tuesday, November 20, 2012 from 4:00 PM to 8:00 PM (GMT)