Project seeks ideas on how to raise happy, healthy kids
A brand new programme from the British Council will give cultural innovators the chance to collaborate with peers across the world, hone their professional skills and see their ideas realised with special project funding.
Developed and presented by the British Council, “ELEVATE” is a programme that aims to build a global community of problem-solvers, who will meet practical challenges with innovative solutions to social problems, such as urbanisation, aging populations and sustainability.
The first stage of the programme will be the ELEVATE StartWell Challenge, which opened for applications on November 10 from entrants in Australia, Myanmar, China, Hong Kong SAR, Singapore, Japan, Indonesia, Malaysia, New Zealand, Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam, South Korea, Philippines and the UK.
The ELEVATE StartWell Challenge was developed in partnership with Singapore philanthropic house, the Lien Foundation, in line with Lien Foundation’s StartWell initiative, which aims to rethink the priorities of childhood in Singapore.
The partnership between the British Council and the Lien Foundation grew out of a mutual concern for social issues and an ambitious approach to harness creativity and values-based decision-making.
The ELEVATE StartWell™ Challenge asks applicants to present innovative new concepts to improve the element of play in early childhood (0-8 years), re-imagine urban spaces and playgrounds, and the way young children interact with space.
Applicants can be anyone who uses creativity in their work and life including (but not limited to) artists, designers, performers, digital technologists, and architects.
Those with the best ideas will become the first ELEVATE Fellows, and will be invited to attend a fully-paid residential innovation camp at Yamaguchi Centre for Arts and Media [YCAM], in February 2015.
After the innovation camp, ELEVATE Fellows may be chosen to receive a share of the ELEVATE support money (SG$50,000), with which they may realise their play space ideas or continue with professional development.
Fellows will also have access to a bespoke digital platform (from March 2015), which will include resources and educational content from leading organisations such as the Institute for Cultural and Creative Entrepreneurship (ICCE), Goldsmiths, University of London.
Applications for ELEVATE Startwell™ Challenge opened on November 10 2014 and will close on January 5 2015.
Find out more about ELEVATE at www.britishcouncil.sg/elevate-challenge or via twitter.com/eabritisharts and blog.britishcouncil.org/
