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UNESCO Transcultura engages with Caribbean creatives to tap into digital opportunities |
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6 April 2023/ UNESCO Havana
The online event Connecting Caribbean: broadcasting diversity, streaming integration, held on 30 March 2023, brought together experts and young creatives from the Caribbean region to leverage the potential of digital environments and traditional media for the creation, production, dissemination of and access to cultural and creative content. This debate was organized under the auspices of the UNESCO programme Transcultura: Integrating Cuba, the Caribbean and the European Union through Culture and Creativity, funded by the European Union, in collaboration with the National Commission of the Bahamas for UNESCO.
In her opening remarks, Anne Lemaistre, Director of the UNESCO Regional Office for Culture in Latin America and the Caribbean, celebrated the potential of the digital transformation for growth in the cultural and creative sectors, but also cautioned on the challenges it presents. 'While it has never been easier to share art and creativity with the world, it has never been more difficult to get paid for doing so', underlined Anne Lemaistre.
Participants from the Caribbean discussed the impact of the digital economy in the cultural and creative industries, disrupting traditional business models and reshaping the value chain and relationships between creators, publishers, audiences and technology companies.
"New digital technologies represent immense possibilities for our creative communities and the promotion and expansion of the orange economy, although they require careful scrutiny and analysis to avoid pitfalls or inherent risks."
Hon. Ms Glenys Hanna Martin, Minister of Education and Technical and Vocational Training of Bahamas
Panellists also referred to the unlimited possibilities of new media such as Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Extended Reality (XR), while highlighting the risks of undermining the diversity of cultural expressions. Similarly, participants discussed the new opportunities that crypto art or non-fungible tokens (NFTs) bring for the financial independence of digital artists. However, they also underlined the risks of financial speculation and the negative environmental impact that these new technologies have in terms of energy consumption.
"Try to be independent from the use of artificial intelligence it. Use it only when it is necessary, as nobody can tell the story about what you feel, that you want to tell. All technology is there to help and not to substitute."
Tony Rebel, Cultural Activist, Founder and Director of Rebel Salute
This discussion led participants to reflect on the role of traditional analogue media to ensure the diversity of cultural content. In a world in which the digital divide represents a major challenge caused by a plethora of factors, such as age, gender, inequalities, internet access and digital literacy skills, ensuring media and content diversity is crucial to enable a vibrant culture sector, according to panellists.
"Think out of the box when creating or suggesting content creation. Remembering there is no real value in sameness."
Keith Campbell, Chief Executive Officer of the Public Broadcasting Corporation of Jamaica
By means of this event, the Transcultura programme aims to provide young creatives from the Caribbean region with knowledge and recommendations to be better equipped to tap into new and analogue media and monetization strategies for their professional development.
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Related Link(s): Cultural Industries, Cultural Diversity, 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development
, Cultural Policies, Culture and Development |
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