International conference "Art as an Agent of Change: Cultural Literacy for Societal Resilience"
RSU Anatomy Museum 22 April 2026
Arts education is inherently interdisciplinary – it integrates visual, verbal, kinetic, and emotional dimensions, creating a holistic approach to human development. New sensibilities, critical self-reflection, shifting boundaries between the private and public spheres, the redefinition of taboo topics, and an awareness of the multifaceted nature of collective memory characterize contemporary understanding of culture and art.
When global and local policy priorities reorient toward military and economic security, cultural and arts education budgets often find themselves at the forefront of optimization and consolidation plans. The peculiarities of Eastern European geopolitical and economic development often marginalize the role of culture and art in political communication, prioritizing economic issues and disinformation threats.
Contemporary society faces multilayered challenges – geopolitical upheavals, fragile social cohesion, fragmentation of the information environment, and transformation of value systems. In this context, arts education reveals itself not only as a space for creativity and self-expression but as an essential interdisciplinary tool capable of strengthening societal resilience, fostering critical thinking, and creating connections between different social groups. Defining cultural and creative processes in education is challenging, as they develop in close interaction with the era's geopolitical and social realities. Similarly, culture is characterized by self-reflexive processes that cyclically return to seemingly known historical facts to reevaluate them within the spirit of the times and the frameworks of our collective and individual ethics.
The conference will gather arts educators, researchers, artists, cultural policy makers, and practitioners to jointly explore the changing role and potential of arts education in an era when cultural and educational sectors are often marginalized in political agendas. The conference will examine how arts education enriches other disciplines – social sciences, humanities, technology, and civic responsibility – creating new opportunities for knowledge synthesis and forming hybrid states in the domains of values, legality, and democracy.
- How should values be developed in young people and society as a whole within the framework of arts education?
- How does arts education help create a more cohesive society?
- What is the role of cultural literacy in young people's lives and social development?
- How can we measure the actual value and impact of art and cultural literacy on communities and society as a whole?
- What methods in arts education add value?
- What are art's potential implications for social change?
- How can we change the discourse on the socioeconomic foundations of art and its interaction with politics?
Critical thinking, creative problem-solving, empathy, and the ability to navigate a complex information environment are skills developed through arts education that are essential not only for individual growth but also for the resilience of a democratic society.
The conference is organized within the framework of the international research project CLiViE (Cultural Literacies' Value in Europe), which develops and applies the Theory of Change methodology and the Social Return on Investment (SROI) framework to deepen understanding of the value of cultural literacy and its impact on social cohesion. The project "maps" arts-based education across various learning environments and stages of youth education, "evaluates" the results and outcomes of arts education, "determines value" of arts education activities by calculating their impact, and "practices" pedagogies by developing innovative practices and materials that support arts educators in promoting social justice and inclusion.
Key Speakers
Thematic Directions of the Conference
- Cultural literacy and social cohesion: theoretical and practical aspects
- Determining the value of arts education: Theory of Change and Social Return on Investment (SROI) approaches
- The arts educator as an agent of change: innovative pedagogical approaches for promoting social justice and inclusion
- Arts education policy: arguments and strategies in an era dominated by military and economic security issues
- Best-practice examples in arts and cultural education in Europe and Latvia
Presentations
| Opening |
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| Mapping Matters Kemal Ahson, PhD, Research Coordinator, University of Helsinki |
| Panel Cultural Institutions and Education as Catalysts for Social Cohesion |
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| Wrong side of the river? Cultural institutions as agents of social cohesion in Warsaw Prof. Katarzyna Sadowy, SGH Warsaw School of Economics, Poland |
| Temple of culture: Cultural literacy and social cohesion Magdalena Novotná, teacher, researcher, Charles University, Faculty of Education, Prague, Czechia; co-author: Jan Pfeiffer |
| Promotion of social cohesion through non-formal cultural education: the case study in Daugavpils Prof. Anita Stašulāne, PhD, Daugavpils University, Latvia; co-authors: Alīna Romanovska, Irina Presņakova |
| Activating Cultural Heritage Through Contemporary Experience: Art as an Agent of Change — The Logic of the Bumblebee Jānis Holšteins-Upmanis, Purvītis Museum, Ziedonis Foundation “Viegli” |
| Creative practitioner – how cultural education tools give the ability to create connections with children and young people Saulė Norkutė & Gabrielė Ivanauskaitė, Masters, Kūrybinės Jungtys, Lithuania; co-author: Milda Laužikaitė |
| Keynote |
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| 10 Observations on Artistic Research Dirk Hoyer |
| Panel Artistic Research as Space of Learning and Belonging |
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| NOT MY FILM: Artistic Research Project on Aging and Later Life Astra Zoldnere, Dr. phil. in art, Rīga Stradiņš University, Latvia / Filmuniversität Babelsberg KONRAD WOLF, Germany |
| Learning from the unknown. Curatorial education as source for the experiment Antra Priede, Mag. art., Vice-rector for Academic Affairs, The Art Academy of Latvia |
| Filmmaking as a Space of Belonging and Becoming Prof. Natalija Mažeikienė, Dr., Vytautas Magnus University, Lithuania; co-authors: Lina Kaminskienė, Ilona Tandzegolskienė-Bielaglovė, Agnė Liucilė Grickevičė & Leta Dromantienė, Vytautas Magnus University; Milda Laužikaitė, Kūrybinės Jungtys, Lithuania; Kemal Ahson, University of Helsinki, Finland |
| Film Literacy in Latvia: Experience and Lessons from the Film 'Stream' ('Straume') Dita Rietuma, Dr. art, Latvian Academy of Culture, Rīga Stradiņš University, Latvia |
| Keynote |
|---|
| Quantifying the Intangible: SROI Framework and Project Appraisal in Arts-Based Education – Lessons from CLiViE/Measuring the Social Value of Cultural Literacy: Applying Social Return on Investment (SROI) in Arts-Based Education in Latvia Grzegorz Maśloch & Kamil Flig, SGH Warsaw School of Economics, Poland |
| Panel Measuring Impact: Policy, Technology, and Reflective Practice in Arts-Based Education |
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| The Role of AI in Art Education: the Value of Technology in the Development of Creativity Vita Pihtina, Teacher, doctoral student, RISEBA, Latvia |
| Cultural and creative sector as social infrastructure in an age of security-driven policy Žanete Eglīte, PhD cand., Latvian Academy of Culture, Ministry of Culture of Latvia |
| Through Reflective Creative Practice to the Respect of Otherness: Applying Model of Theory of Change for the Art-Based Workshops in Daugavpils Rothko Museum Assoc. Prof. Ilva Skulte, Dr. philol., Rīga Stradiņš University, Latvia; co-authors: Mairita Folkmane, Rothko Museum, Daugavpils, Latvia; Alīna Romanovska, Daugavpils University, Latvia |
| What do I learn when I reflect on the topic: The place where I live? Asst. Lucie Jakubcová Hadjušková, PhD, lecturer, Charles University, Faculty of Education, Department of Art Education, Czechia |
Conference Organizers
Chair
Members
Chair
Manager, Social Sciences Research Centre
Lead Researcher, Faculty of Social Sciences
Members
CLiViE project website
