Our Director, Hilary Copeland, was a speaker on the “Arts and the Reconciled Future” panel on Thursday as a part of the Government of Ireland’s 4th Shared Island Forum.
The panel covered a range of topics including the current climate of North-South and East-West relations and, how increasingly diverse communities must be included in this process. Hilary put forward the point that historically there has been an overreliance on arts facilitators to reconcile personal and generational traumas through peacebuilding practices, without the requisite training that could best meet the needs of people and that could better protect artists.
This is part of the vital and commendable ongoing process spearheaded by Taoiseach Micheál Martin and the Shared Island Initiative to “develop each of the complementary and interconnecting relationships of our Good Friday Agreement - through our shared political institutions and right across society”.
Watch the Forum’s recording (Arts and the Reconciled Future at time 02:07:38-02:50:22): https://www.youtube.com/live/YXTqwt6Nn64
Read the Taoiseach’s statement: https://www.gov.ie/en/press-release/782c5-taoiseach-micheal-martin-announces-new-phase-of-the-shared-island-initiative/
This panel fit in wonderfully with Fighting Words NI's current efforts to amplify our impact in the community through cross-community and peacebuilding work. As well as attending panels such as these, Hilary has been working the chair of our board, proffesor Tony Gallagher, to host of range of workshops and team planning sessions on how to best generate and evaluate a positive impact through our programme activities.
Fighting Words NI is supported by The National Lottery Fund Northern Ireland through the Arts Council of Northern Ireland and The Department of Foreign Affairs Reconciliation Fund as a Strategic Partner.
