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OhioSE highlights a powerful message from Spoken's founder Michael Bond in their latest interview: "People who can’t speak still have something to say: they have their minds, emotions, and intelligence and want to be a part of everyday life. The more tools that we can give them to be a part of that, the better." #SpokenAAC #AAC #AssistiveTechnology

Join us at Merriment Social for Policy in a Pub on June 10 starting at 5:00 PM! The program will feature our President & CEO Kevin Giglinto in discussion with Gregory M. W., a senior VP at the Medical College of Wisconsin, on how collaboration could improve among arts groups, and what role civic leaders might play in its future direction. More information can be found below!

something to think about. a very practical and pragmatic man.

I consider the island Manhattan, where I live, to be like a Poincaré disk when using the Metropolitan Transportation Authority. This is not a criticism, it's a testament to how even (democratic?) the system is. In Poincaré's model, from the reference frame of the viewer, it looks like the distances between points gets smaller as you go to the edge, but this is just an illusion of having projected a higher-dimensional space onto 2 dimensions. If you centered the Poincaré disk on any point, it would look the same. Similarly, whether you live at 125 in Harlem and can take the A or live at 82st on the UWS it's 35 minutes to Chinatown, but give yourself 40; and since you have to give yourself 40, well, it's the same from the Heights. Similarly, 1st Avenue to Broadway may *look* like a half the distance across 79th street than is the distance down Broadway to The Village... trust me, they are the same: one is a crosstown bus. I will leave aside whether this extends wistfully to just how infinite and boundless Manhattan is.

The year 2023 was impactful for Destination Crenshaw. We increased our in-person engagement through DC Thrive and workforce development. We also started construction on the remaining pocket parks for the project, marking the upcoming realization of our mission to boost the boulevard through economic development, job creation, and environmental healing while celebrating Black art and culture. Our project consists of community spaces and pocket parks, hundreds of newly planted trees, and, over 5-7 years, the installation of 100 commissioned works of art. When completed, Destination Crenshaw will provide the most dynamic expression of Black American culture in the U.S. by leveraging the power of the arts, culture, and business in South Los Angeles. As Black Culture moves the world, we see our project driving a broader regional agenda for self-determination in the Black community. 2023 Impact Report: DESTINATION CRENSHAW OVERVIEW Since we broke ground in February 2020, Destination Crenshaw has continued to grow in scope and ambition. Art and Black design remain at the heart of the project, but it now has many limbs. Responding to our community, we have deepened our support for Black-owned businesses and insisted on hiring local workers to build the project. By designing a vibrant, green urban corridor that, when completed, will be bursting with storytelling and magnificent public artworks, we resist the pressures of displacement and the erasure of Black Culture. Project Summary: 5 New Parklets 1.3 Miles of New Landscaping 7 Permanent Art Installations 10 Community Murals 40 Community Artist Works

Tyler Perry's decision to leave Hollywood? Creative control: By leaving Hollywood, Perry gained complete creative control over his projects, allowing him to tell stories that reflected the experiences and perspectives of Black people without interference from industry gatekeepers. Inclusivity: Perry wanted to create a space where Black talent could thrive and feel represented. He saw an opportunity to build a community where Black writers, directors, and actors could work together and support each other. Atlanta's film-friendly environment: Atlanta offers a more business-friendly environment, with lower production costs, tax incentives, and a growing pool of talented local crew members. This allowed Perry to produce high-quality content without breaking the bank. Access to diverse storytelling: Atlanta's diverse population and rich cultural heritage provided Perry with access to unique stories and perspectives that might be harder to find in Los Angeles. As for why other Black entrepreneur executives in the film industry haven't followed suit, there are several reasons: Lack of access to resources: Starting a studio or production company requires significant resources, including funding, equipment,and infrastructure. Many Black entrepreneurs may not have access to these resources

This is a really important piece to digest when thinking about the consistent doom-mongering about the state of the arts, lack of funding and the scarcity trap everyone finds themselves in (not only financial, also time, mindset and more). I quote from Chrissie, as there's no need to paraphrase: "Recent newspaper headlines describing the plight of “England’s cultural jewels”, with national institutions like the RSC “barely hanging on”, as loss of local authority grants and the cost-of-living crisis bite, make it important to recognise the political austerity into which Heart of Glass was born.  Savage economic and social inequalities and the brutal divisiveness that can follow have long been a reality for its communities. A fearless determination to work with partners to confront this has led Heart of Glass to consciously expand what ambition and quality mean......Words like co-creation and collaboration have become ubiquitous (YES HAVEN'T THEY?!). Yet support for artists doing such work is not always there. More than simply identify itself as a learning organisation, Heart of Glass has worked to create spaces for collective learning and unlearning." How can institutional structures (including funders, including the big cultural organisations) learn and unlearn. What can this mean for allowing artists the support to do deep work in communities, on the periphery? How can we resist the narrative of "not enough' which becomes a self perpetuating micro-violence from those who have salaries and a lot to work with toward those on the edge (and their communities and stakeholders) doing important and invisible work (RSC Exec Producer has just been advertised at 115k a year - with respect this is not hanging on) - like Heart of Glass and many many many many others. How can we truly and deeply support those who have fearless determination and step out to make new things rise from the ground? Thanks Dr. Chrissie Tiller - for this timely piece.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK. Let us reflect on Eleanor Roosevelt's words on human rights. Her words, “Where, after all, do universal human rights begin? In small places, close to home," strikes a powerful chord. It challenges the notion of human rights as distant ideals, existing only in grand declarations and international treaties. Instead, Roosevelt grounds them in the fertile soil of our immediate surroundings, reminding us that the seeds of justice and dignity are sown in the everyday decisions and actions we choose. Imagine human rights not as towering trees, casting shade over vast continents, but as vibrant flowers blooming in every garden, in every community, on every street corner. This shift in perspective is radical, yet essential. It suggests that the fight for human rights is not solely waged on grand battlefields, but also played out in the kitchens, classrooms, and workplaces where we navigate our daily lives. What does this mean in practice? It means acknowledging that a child denied access to education in our town is a violation of universal human rights, just as is the persecution of a religious minority across the globe. It means recognizing that the lack of affordable healthcare in our community erodes the right to life and health, just as does the denial of clean water in a remote village. #globalpoliticsaffairs #mondaymotivation #humanrights

My favorite part of the holiday break? Going to the Philadelphia Museum of Art with my sister-in-law Elisabeth, who just so happens to have a Doctorate in Art History (what a privilege!) She has a talent and passion for taking something that could feel unapproachable and bringing out the humanity of it in a down-to-earth, entertaining and understandable way. As we walked through, I got to ask "stupid" questions and make observations without fear of judgment. The result was a new appreciation and curiosity for the art on display. It turned an experience that could have been so-so, into one of discovery and creativity. Sometimes we put pressure on ourselves to be the smartest person in the room and so if we can't say the "smartest" thing, we say nothing and lose out on what could be an experience of discovery. Who in your life, has allowed you to ask silly questions, and through their expertise and passion for a subject, allowed you to joyfully learn about something new? How can you be that for someone else? #communication #communicationskills #leadership #culture #teamwork #leadershipskills