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ELIA Leadership Symposium 2023:
The Beginning of Now 
18 – 20 October Manchester, United Kingdom Hosted by Manchester School of Art, Manchester Metropolitan University
However, there is a waiting list, and passes will be assigned if/when they become available. If you would like to purchase a single pass or more than one via our combi member deal please feel free to fill out your details to be included in the waiting list through here. A member of the ELIA team will be in contact if and when passes become available. Still have questions? Feel free to contact us. Email: info@elia-artschools.org ThemeELIA Leadership Symposium 2023 The Beginning of Now gathers global thinkers, arts education leaders, researchers, policymakers, changemakers, and strategists to a city steeped in a radical tradition. Out of the dark soil, new shoots grow. Against the backdrop of global urgencies, the cost-of-living crisis, armed conflict, ecological emergencies, and social injustice, the ways students learn and perceive their role in the future are rapidly evolving. As educators, we face growing pressures to remain authentic in a highly metricized educational market. ELIA Leadership Symposium 2023 invites participants to provoke, stimulate, experiment and exchange as we empower each other with the confidence and foresight to take actionable steps forward. Be inspired by one of the birthplaces of the industrial revolution, the first modern city, advocates of the western vegetarian movement, aimed to be zero carbon by 2038, famed for its music scene, artists, writers, football clubs, and the splitting of the atom – Manchester.
Coalesce with your international colleagues. Share your ideas, manifestos, research projects, and methodologies on how the future should be and let’s start implementing. This is the beginning of now. Photo AlbumBrowse below the moments captured in photos at the ELIA Leadership Symposium 2023.
AftermovieWatch below the ELIA Leadership Symposium 2023 Aftermovie.
ELIA Leadership Symposium 2023 Aftermovie from ELIA on Vimeo.
PricingRegistration for In-person Attendee Passes has now closed. For any questions regarding the registration and pricing, please contact ELIA (Interim) Conference Manager Nona Thani.
SINGLE MEMBER PASS€650
1 participant
COMBI MEMBER DEAL€1000
2 participants (+more)*
ONLINE MEMBER PASS€50
1 online participant
*Purchase this deal for a minimum of two participants from the same institution. Add extra participants for the reduced fee of €500 per person. ProgrammeMain venue: Manchester School of Art, 50 Boundary St W, Manchester M15 6BR 10:00 – 18:30 + Dinner Be inspired by Manchester’s fascinating history and radical roots. Keep it local by connecting with local partners and activities. Look to the future with hope and desire for change and take action. Debate current leadership challenges, and pave new ways forward. Join the night shift and start writing the Manchester Provocation. Spark a powerful call to action. Main venues: Manchester School of Art, 50 Boundary St W, Manchester M15 6BR 09:00 – 17:30 + Dinner It’s time to get active. The second day of the Symposium will be dedicated to leadership matters of concern and approaches to dealing with them. Engage with your international colleagues in democratic and generative processes, conversations, discussions, and explorations of new ideologies and perspectives. Take the baton and carry on writing the next stage of the Manchester Provocation. Co-create new narratives for higher arts education. Main venue: Manchester School of Art, 50 Boundary St W, Manchester M15 6BR 10:00 – 14:00 + Connecting with local partner institutions Add the final touches to the Manchester Provocation and join us for the closing march, when we take actionable steps forward together. FULL PROGRAMME Provocateurs and Scene-settersA key element of ELIA Leadership Symposium is the Manchester Provocation – a text that will take its shape and form from the responses and enactments of Symposium participants, and the challenging statements posed by our Provocateurs and Scene-setters. 
eunice bélidorMontréal-born eunice bélidor is a curator, author, and researcher, as well as an adjunct professor affiliated with the Department of Art History at Concordia University. In her current practice, she looks at questioning as a method and at letter writing as creating auto theory and its intersection with care, feminism, and racial issues. She has organized exhibitions in Canada and Europe, and her writings have been published in Esse, Canadian Art, Hyperallergic, the Journal of Curatorial Studies, Invitation, InCirculation, and ESPACE. She is the recipient of the Hnatyshn Foundation–TD Bank Group Emerging Curator in Contemporary Art Award (2018). She has worked at articule, the FOFA Gallery at Concordia University (Montréal), and the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts.
Eugene DownesOver a 25-year career in cultural diplomacy and cultural relations, Eugene Downes has exercised leadership roles in foreign and culture ministries, state agencies and the international artistic sector.
Joining the Irish Diplomatic Service in 1994, he worked on the Irish peace process and then as cultural attaché in Russia before moving into performing arts full time. From 2000-07 he served as cultural adviser to the President of Ireland and Irish foreign ministry, curating and producing the artistic programme for more than twenty Presidential visits across Europe, Asia and the Americas.
In 2019 he returned to the Irish foreign ministry in the newly created role of Cultural Director, with responsibility for reimagining Ireland’s cultural diplomacy and cultural relations. Since then, he has developed a series of new policies, programmes and partnerships exploring innovative approaches to this field.
Neil GriffithsNeil John Griffiths co-founded Arts Emergency in 2011 and became Chief Executive in 2015. Prior to becoming our CEO, Neil worked for a variety of global rights campaigns and human rights charities. He was voted one the 50 most influential UK fundraisers in 2012, 2013 and 2014, and was awarded an Honorary Doctorate by London Metropolitan University in 2020 for his work as a distinguished humanitarian. He is a lifelong activist and campaigner, delivering talks and lectures nationally.
David JacksonDr David Jackson is a lecturer and researcher exploring AI in narrative and its effect on audiences. His work includes Stepford, an opinionated chatbot that comments on sexism in sci-fi texts, funded by Mozilla Technology Fund, and ‘Audience with a Hero’, an Innovate UK funded exploration of interactive speech-led documentary, with musician Nile Rodgers. His latest generative AI storytelling project “Children of Talos”, with Colleague Alasdair Swenson imagines an alternative history shared with mysterious artificial intelligences. David leads the Storytelling Co-Lab unit taken by all students in the School of Digital Arts. He also leads Storytellers and Machines, a creative AI series which began with a 2023 public symposium, featuring speakers from Serpentine Gallery, Columbia University and BBC R&D. In 2024, it will be two-day conference with an open call for papers and artworks.
Alice Kettle
Alice Kettle is a contemporary textile/fibre artist who makes monumental figurative works. Alice is currently Professor in Textile Arts at Manchester School of Art, Manchester Metropolitan University and leads the Design and Craft Research Group. Her work is represented in various public collections including the Crafts Council London, the Whitworth in Manchester, Museo Internationale delle Arti Applicate Oggi, Turin, Italy, Museum of Decorative Art and Design, Riga, Latvia. Her major exhibition Thread Bearing Witness 2019 at the Whitworth Art Gallery used stitch to address issues of migration and people displacement. She has co-curated Fabric ; Cloth and Identity at Compton Verney Art Gallery 2019, Threads at the Arnolfini in Bristol 2023. She has an enduring interest in collaborative work and empowering marginalized communities through creative means. She has co-authored various publications including Collaboration through Craft, The Erotic Cloth with Bloomsbury.
Shelley McNulty
Shelley McNulty is Head of Design at Manchester School of Art, Manchester Metropolitan University. She studied Interior Design at Edinburgh College of Art and went onto work for several leading brands in design and architecture studios in the UK. Having led the undergraduate and postgraduate programmes in Interiors at Manchester School of Art and External Examined nationally and Internationally, Shelley is passionate about the education of young designers and is an active Director Trustee for Interior Educators, the subject association for Higher Education Interior Design/Interior Architecture courses in the UK. Shelley’s research interests lie in design thinking, the social sciences, design anthropology and co-design.
wuod Ogutuwuod Ogutu is a writer and theater maker whose work is embedded in the practice of Orature. In his work, he searches for new forms of storytelling where socio-political aspects merge with the belief that art is an important catalyst for questioning certainties. He studied International Relations at USIU-Africa and graduated in 2016 with a Master in Arts at DAS Theatre. He has been published in the Kwani? Journal, Chimurenga Chronic, Rekto:Verso, Etcetera Magazine, NT Gent’s The Golden Book series, among others. His recent book - ‘How do you observe a stone that is about to strike you?’ explores the practice of diarizing while sharing with readers his diasporic experiences living and studying in Amsterdam. His performative works and storytelling have featured in several theatres and festivals including- La Mama (NYC), The Hay Festival (Wales), HIFA (Harare), SICK Festival (Manchester), Ranga Shankara (Bangalore), Afrovibes Festival (Amsterdam), Spielart (Munich), Theater Spektakel (Zurich), Festival Theaterformen (Braunschweig), Theatre is Must Forum (Alexandria), Theatre Commons (Tokyo) & within East Africa. Ogutu is based between Nairobi & Malindi where he continues his artistic practice and while teaching part time.
Franziska PillingDr Franziska Pilling is an interdisciplinary designer, design researcher and lecturer situated within the Interior Design department but working across the design department at Manchester School of Art. Her research specialises in socio-technical complexities associated with the introduction of technologies and anticipating the potential future societal impacts of their widescale adoption. Currently she is researching the impact of Artificial Intelligence and highlighting how AI technology connects contrasting and interlacing components of society together. Her research methodology is Research through Design with a keen focus on Speculative Design Research exploring the socio-technical implications of emerging technologies through world-building, resulting in environmentally immersive scenographic installations.
Sameed RezayanSameed is Head of Creative Learning at Factory International and Manchester International Festival. He fuses his passion for creativity with education, young people, mental health and school exclusions. He has worked for an Ed-Tech startup CareerFoundry in Berlin, multi award winning social exclusion charity Football Beyond Borders and most recently Factory International. Sameed grew up in South Manchester, playing football for Fletcher Moss Rangers, attending Xaverian college and later the University of Manchester. He became immersed in the underground Manchester rave scene, DJ’ing at illegal parties in sofa warehouses and derelict buildings in Manchester and Salford. Sameed has toured around the world as an artist, and produces music under his name Sameed.
Amneh Shaik-FarooquiAmneh Shaikh Farooqui, an accomplished social entrepreneur and leader, focuses on gender, inclusion, and livelihood development with over two decades of experience in Pakistan's impact sector. Amneh’s work is marked by a deep commitment to amplifying marginalised voices through indigenous heritage, storytelling, and art to drive cultural shift and transformation. Amneh is the Curator of the Women of the World festivals in Pakistan (wowvirtual.pk), a global movement that celebrates women and girls, taking a frank look at the obstacles they face and discussing solutions for change. She is the visionary Founder/CEO behind Polly and Other Stories (www.pollyandotherstories.com), empowering Pakistani craft makers. She's also an author and a recognised expert in gender mainstreaming, project design and management, leadership development, economic empowerment, and environmental initiatives.
Stuart WalkerStuart Walker was recently appointed Chair of Design for Sustainability at Manchester School of Art, Manchester Metropolitan University. He is also Emeritus Professor at Lancaster University, where he was co-founder/director of the Imagination-Lancaster Design Research Centre; Emeritus Professor at the University of Calgary, Canada where he was Director of Industrial Design, Associate Dean Academic and Associate Dean Research. He is also Visiting Professor of Sustainable Design at Kingston University, London. His research into Design for Sustainability has been published and exhibited internationally, and his many books include Sustainable by Design; Design Roots; Design Realities and Design & Spirituality. His most recent book, Design for Resilience, was published by The MIT Press, in 2023.
Soenke ZehleAs a media theorist, Soenke writes, teaches and curates on all things linked to collaborative research projects at the interfaces of art, technology and design. Co-founder of xm:lab – Experimental Media Lab at the Hochschule der Bildenden Künste Saar (HBKS, Academy of Fine Arts Saar), associate researcher at the Ubiqitous Media Technologies Lab (German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence), co-founder and co-managing director of the research-based transformation organisation K8 Institut für strategische Ästhetik gGmbH. Current research interests include anticipation and collective intelligence design. Soenke is the project lead for HBKS, a consortium partner of the CYANOTYPES project.
Satellite EventsAgainst the backdrop of global urgencies, the cost-of-living crisis, armed conflict, ecological emergencies, and social injustice, online Satellite Event participants along with ELIA Leadership Symposium in-person attendees will co-create the Manchester Provocation. Arts education institutions in Kenya, Canada, USA, Columbia, Singapore, Hong Kong and Egypt invite you to participate in their events. First respond to online provocations based on 'matters of concern', then collaborate to feed into the Manchester Provocation - a joint text or artifact that could take any form embracing a myriad artistic, cultural, academic languages in all their wonder, complexity and purpose. Join us as we empower each other with the confidence and foresight to take actionable steps towards a better future. This is the beginning of now.
What to expect Please note time zones and event durations differ. Satellite event hosts will be your guides. The outcomes of each event will be forwarded to the team in Manchester who will incorporate your work into what will become the Manchester Provocation. READ MOREEnvironmental sustainabilityELIA and Manchester School of Art, Manchester Metropolitan University are aware that large international events can have a negative effect on the environment due to the number of participants who will be travelling, eating, and producing waste. In order to reduce the environmental impact of the ELIA Leadership Symposium, ELIA and Manchester School of Art, Manchester Metropolitan University, will make greener choices in the organisation of the ELIA Leadership Symposium 2023 and will continue to engage with participants about this topic. ELIA and Manchester School of Art, Manchester Metropolitan University, consider sustainability a very important issue, so several steps have been taken to lower the Symposium’s impact on the environment and climate:
Accessibility informationShould you have any specific accessibility needs (such as transport assistance, support from a staff member, or a printed programme in large letters), or if you need help registering for the event and/or registering an assistant to accompany you, please contact ELIA (Interim) Conference Manager Nona Thani. Host
Manchester School of Art, Manchester Metropolitan UniversityBased in the heart of Manchester, a city known for innovation, the School of Art at Manchester Metropolitan University is one of the biggest providers of creative education in the UK. As the second oldest design school in Britain, established to provide design training to the manufacturing industry, the school offers an extensive range of courses that are still very much influenced by the specialist needs of industry to provide students with the essential skills and knowledge for their chosen career. Students are taught by academics at the forefront of their field and most recently the power of Manchester’s art and design research was rated second in the UK*. Manchester School of Art prides itself on its collaborative approach and from its place in the city through to the specialist spaces on campus, it offers the opportunity to develop innovative and impactful outcomes. *REF 2021
 Practical information
Travelling to ManchesterYour identity document (for example your passport or identity card) will be checked when you arrive in the UK. Please check which documents you’ll need to come to the UK.
Participants are strongly encouraged to travel by train to Manchester, if possible. For international trains, you can check Eurostar. Usually, there's an international train to London, where you can catch another train to get to Manchester (more details in the domestic section) Manchester Airport (MAN) is around 16 kilometers away from the city centre. From the airport, you can take the Navy Line: Victoria via Market tram or Northen train to Manchester Piccadilly and transfer to Piccadilly station and ride the Yellow Line: Bury to Market Street to get to the city centre.
Manchester is well connected to the rest of the UK via excellent motorway links. The M60 ring road connects the city to motorways north, south east and west. National Express and Megabus provide services from all over the country into Chorlton Street Coach Station in the heart of the city centre. There are three main stations in the city centre: Piccadilly, Oxford Road and Victoria. With direct rail services from across the country, getting here is easy. Operators include: Avanti West Coast, TransPennine Express, Transport for Wales, Northern Rail, CrossCountry Trains, and Great Western Railway.
Accommodation
ELIA has made pre-bookings for participants at several hotels within walking distance or a short public transport ride from the main venues. Please find a list of hotel options and booking info here. Other info
You can find more information about travelling to Manchester and things to do at the following websites: City | Manchester Metropolitan University (mmu.ac.uk) Visit Manchester | Holidays in Manchester UK | Official Tourist Board
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