IETM Aarhus Plenary Meeting 2023: Living on the Edge. One green step back.

/June 2023, Denmark, IETM – International network for contemporary performing arts/

Author: Mgr. Monika Necpálová, M.A.

When I was traveling to Aarhus, I was wondering what could happen in such a big international event as IETM Plenary Meeting. The topic of the event „Living on the Edge“ is quite urgent and our generation is responsible not just to find, but also to live solutions towards green sustainable development.

It is essential to understand that art is not just an artistic result, there is a wider or smaller environment where we have an impact also during the process of realization (dreaming, planning, distributing…) and also after the „premiere“. People from different industries, policies, and economies, as well as artists, workers of cultural organizations, and freelancers,… are responsible for trying to find a better solution for the creative process, production, and distribution of art.

We all „know“ and believe that art can lead to a change of perspective of recipients. However, let´s look for more.

IETM tried to open the topic of green policy in performing arts from different perspectives, Plenary meeting was a global meeting of professionals from the performing arts from all over the World, where over 450 people met. Imagine the impact of this event. Pieces of information and good practices on how to create performing arts sustainably, really touch hundreds of people.

At the same time, we didn´t find a secret solution to how to survive on our planet. However, we inspired each other and came up with examples of what can work (and what is wasting of time or it works contradictory). Sometimes also our creative sector can find clever „green“ ideas and apply them in communities.

What I took from many ideas: Simplicity. Look back and see how your parents or grandparents live. Do we really need everything? Can we take a step back from our comfort? Lots of sustainable ideas are already here. People applied them in their lives many years ago. I was so happy that one of the presenters of the IETM plenary meeting mention exactly the same. It reminds me that solutions are everywhere around us. We just have to include them in the artistic process and cultural policies as much as possible.

The international mobility of the Slovak theatre artist, the author of the text and a member of IETM, was supported using public funding by Slovak Arts Council / Fond na podporu umenia/.

Text and Photo: M. Necpálová