Making Futures: Sustainable Future for the Craft Industry

Artisans, designers researchers, techies, craft communities, and policymakers gather in the first Making Futures international conference held in Quest Hotel, Cebu City.

(from left to right) Malaya Del Rosario, Kidlat Tahimik, Butch Carungay, Caroline Meaby, and Malcolm Ferris were the panelist in the Making Futures press conference at the Quest Hotel in City Cebu last March 5, 2020. (Photo by Gabriel Raphael Constantine Bumanglag)

Making Futures is a 3-day event from March 6 to 8, 2020. The international conference will tackle the problems of the craft sector and come up with solutions to help the industry thrive.

“This gathering will be a relevant forum to ping pong ideas for a global for a global culture in search of meaning and balance,” Kidlat Tahimik, Philippine National Artist for Film.

Kidlat Tahimik will be leading the international conference along with Amneh Shaikh-Farooqui of Pakistan’s polly & other stories; Tomas Diez Ladera of Fab Lab Barcelona; Hamza Cherif D’ouezzan and Kenza Oulaghada of The Anou from Morocco; and sustainable design expert Cameron Tonkinwise of the University of Technology Sydney.

Kidlat Tahimik talks about the issues faced by the crafting community in the Philippines. (Photo By Gabriel Raphael Constantine F. Bumanglag)

The international conference will also try to change the perception of the people that the craft sector is dying and explore the role of the craft sector in the holistic and sustainable development through culture and arts.

“This conference provides a unique opportunity to initiate collaboration between artisans, designers researchers, and techies. It will explore how craft and maker movements can develop a strong international crafts community that is in touch with cultural heritage and open to innovation and development,” Pilar Aramayo-Prudencio, British Council in the Philippines Country Director said.

Cebu City is chosen as the host for this year’s Making Futures international conference after the city was acknowledged as a creative city by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

Making Futures is an international conference that is held every two years. It is founded by the Plymouth College of Art. This year’s event is also supported by the Crafting Futures program of the British Council. (ASC)