Mobilising Histories of Discrimination, Persecution and Genocide

The ‘Mobilising Histories’ conference, held at the Johannesburg Holocaust and Genocide Centre, brought together two projects funded by the UK’s Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF) which ask how arts-based interventions can build and mobilise human rights cultures with-in post-conflict societies: ‘Mobilising Multidirectional Memory to Build more Resilient Communities in South Africa’ (Taberner, 2017) and ‘Changing the Story’ (Cooke, 2017). The two-day event featured reflections from NGO and CSO practitioners, along with academic colleagues, who use film, drama and storytelling as effective mechanisms for: confronting dark pasts, mobilising traumatic memory and addressing continuing forms of inequality and injustice. At the heart of these discussions was a focus on how the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are increasingly influencing arts and humanities research, as well as heritage organisations. The talks, panel presentations and group conversations across both days frequently re-turned to the question of how SDGs enable, or potentially inhibit, arts-based interventions in post-conflict zones.

[Duration 9 mins 35 secs]