What is Global City Symphony?

    •    Is it possible to transform a city through music and film?  
    •    What is the role of culture to redefine a new sense of place?
    •    Can we humanize urban policies to become more participatory?
    •    How can communities make use of data and public research?
    •    What is the power of engaging creatively communities?
     •   How can we all create a more liveable city?

Global City Symphony is a multi-layered project using digital media, music, participatory documentary and silent digital films to connect urban communities around the world. An online community provides a virtual learning network for globally shared knowledge. A school for cultural-social entrepreneurs educates future changemakers across the cities

The mission of GCS is to provide an alternative to corporate CSR, creating cultural and social capital in each of the 7 cities, and empowering communities through information, participation and positive civic activism. We allow individuals and communities to make use of their inherited human and cultural rights  through diverse forms of expression, creativity, storytelling and civic activism towards a better future. 

The vision of GCS is to be a model that promotes cultural and local development in cities and the contribution of global citizens in the design of the future cities, working towards quality of life and shifting regeneration and planning policy  efforts towards a sustainable relationship between the human ecosystem and the urban environment. 

Big Bang Lab is a cultural-social enterprise and creative development agency based in London, working internationally to develop Cultural Social Responsibility. Our services span from innovation consultancy to independent production and creative learning across digital media, film, music and heritage. We specialize in the creation of new work re-using audio-visual archives and participatory creative programmes involving communities and new talent.

 

SOCIAL PURPOSE

Culture has historically been left out of the conventional international development agenda. More and more  local development policies take into account the cultural dimensions of urban life, such as social capital, tradition, symbols, a sense of belonging and pride of place.  (UnHabitat,  World Habitat Day)

GLOBAL CITY SYMPHONY: connecting people, cities, issues, and solutions

In 2009 I worked with a group of underprivileged children in Delhi living in sheltered homes and discovered how much can be done in a very short space of time. Delhi City Symphony was a pilot to use digital video for civic action, creating awareness of social and environmental issues affecting their city. It was also a project that reconnected young people with their heritage both tangible and intangible. The process of engaging communities to gain ownership of the common space, the city, was the journey to question an active role of communities in urban planning worldwide. We all should have a voice to express what is the city we want for the future. In the collective process of sharing that vision Delhi City Symphony was a starting point and a model of partnerships.

 

STAGE 1 -  DELHI  CITY SYMPHONY PLUS                          2012 -

STAGE 1 -  GLOBAL CITY SYMPHONY 7 cities worldwide  2013 -

STAGE 3 -  ONLINE PLATFORM, SOCIAL NETWORK,  ACADEMY 

Delhi City Symphony press   www.bigbang-lab.com/pdf/Frontline_bbl.pdf

To learn more us visit  www.microbang-lab.com

 

We have already started!

CREATIVE GENERATION  (www.creative-generation.org.uk) Thanks to a Big Lottery Fund we are working in South London Estate to create links between older and young residents  by creating the first audiovisual digital archive of the history of residents, aiming to understand the issues and shared concerns beyond history, but this is just the beginning!

CROWDVERSATIONS  This is our communication and advocacy service using video and audio. We are also implementing our crowdsourced video production to engage with other residents in cities to produce and make use of participatory video to advocate and engage with each others. Check out our video channel www.sharedvoices.net

IDEAGORA An example of  Shared Voices in the crowd via public interaction in the marketplace. We visit Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (Spain) and delivered  the workshop Ideagora, engaging a group of participants to become actively a crowdversations team. The task was to question the level of awareness and participation of civic society in the design of the cultural policies in the city  ...  (In Spanish)

WHAT CAN YOU DO RIGHT NOW?

BECOME A GLOBAL CITY SYMPHONY AMBASSADOR

Do you speak a second language? Join this venture in all languages of the world via this wiki
http://multilingual-ambassadors.wikispaces.com

JOIN US ON FACEBOOK
www.facebook.com/globalcitysymphony

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