Calendar
ACP | LANet shares
Friday 29 June 2012
LA Net leading an initiative throughout Latin America promoting a Regional Public Policy of Community Points of Culture
The Latin American Network for Social Transformation (LA Net) was founded in 2005 and was originally formed by 24 organizations, Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile and Peru. The movement is gathering strength and it has been extended to over 100 organizations and to more countries such as Uruguay, Colombia, México and Central America. The LA Net basically fosters new forms of communities and grassroots participation in social life on a continental dimension, promoting artistic and pedagogical exchanges among members and organizing events such as public meetings, conferences, seminars and festivals.
At the World Social Forum in Porto Alegre, the LA Net got together with Bridge Platform that gathers Red Latinoamericana de Arte para la Transformación Social (RLATS), Articulación Latinoamericana Cultura y Política (ALACP), Red Latinoamericana de Teatro en Comunidad, Asociación Latinoamericana de Educación Radiofónica (ALER), Red Maraca, Red Mesoamericana, Red Brasileña de Arte Educadores (ABRA), Red Latinoamericana de Gestores Culturales, Comisión Nacional de Puntos de Cultura de Brasil
This American Network is spreading “Points of Culture”, an official governmental program conceived in 2003 by Gilberto Gil, the Brazilian Ministry of Culture. Both nets, supported by the Brazilian Government, are working on a Regional Public Policy of Community Points of Culture.
The Mercosur Parliament has recently passed a law to regionalize “Points of Culture”. This will give a strong impulse to cultural projects for social development in the region asit establishes that 0,1% of local budgets must be allocated to them.
Apart from what is already happening in Brazil, this same public policy has been adopted by the city of Medellin in Colombia. There are also public policy projects presented to the Parliaments in Argentina, Peru and Costa Rica. In all the other LA countries, the organizations are developing dialogue platforms hand in hand with governmental authorities and research centres. The latter, generating and communicating valid and reliable data revealing the impact of these cultural practices, something constantly demanded by governments and donors. Consequently, many organizations of the LA region share common political and knowledge-building objectives, triggered by the LA N and its partners.
All thoseorganizations will be represented in Rio+ 20.
The Continental Community Living Culture Caravan will participate in the debates of the summit of the peoples, affirming that there is no project of autonomous, sustainable development and with a perspective of social transformation that does not pass through culture. The Points of Culture contribute to the emergence and consolidation of creative collaborative and innovative cultural and political forms of action, the strengthening of new networks of communication and the recognition of traditional knowledges and practices, interactions of language and artistic expressions.
