Ohio’s Imagination Conversations Part of National Initiative to Build Creative Economy
by Jami Goldstein
Innovation and creativity are critical to the future of Ohio’s economy. Imagination is what enables people to visualize new possibilities and is a prerequisite for success in the 21st-century global economy. America and Ohio have long been at the vanguard of creation and innovation, but an economic downturn and increased worldwide competition mean that this position is not guaranteed. Now more than ever, schools must teach imagination and citizens must nurture it in their communities.
In order to create a greater awareness of the creative economy and contribute to a new vision for Ohio’s future, the Ohio Department of Education (ODE), the Ohio Alliance for Arts Education (OAAE) and the Ohio Arts Council (OAC) are coming together to sponsor a series of Imagination Conversations around Ohio.
OAAE and the OAC will host one of the conversations on Saturday, December 5, at 10:45 a.m. on the 31st floor of the Vern Riffe Center for Government and the Arts, 77 South High Street in downtown Columbus. The event is free and members of the public are invited to attend to hear the discussion.
"These conversations are a wonderful opportunity to support the new economic imperatives—imagination, innovation and creative thinking," said OAC Executive Director Julie Henahan. "In order to be successful, Ohio’s 21st century economy must be a diverse mix of commerce including creative industries that are driven by innovative ideas, designs and solutions and the craftspeople and manufacturers who bring those ideas to life. Through the Imagination Conversations we can begin to chart a course for the future of imagination in our society and address the urgent need to rediscover Ohio’s creative spirit."
Ohio’s Imagination Conversation is part of a larger national discussion – 50 conversations in 50 states – sponsored by the Lincoln Center Institute to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts. Lincoln Center hopes that the conversations will build national awareness for imagination as a key skill in work and life; engage policy makers, business leaders and thinkers across professions in a series of dynamic discussions about the vital role of imagination; and produce an action plan for making the cultivation of imaginative thinking an integral part of education in our schools.
The Imagination Conversation will feature individuals from public policy, education, business and the arts including Matthew Platz, professor of chemistry at The Ohio State University; Gary Harwood, professional photographer and teacher of visual storytelling at Kent State University; Nancy Recchie, principal partner of Benjamin D. Rickey & Co., an historic preservation and consulting firm; and Karen Bell, associate vice-president, Arts and Culture, The Ohio State University. The Conversation will be moderated by Jeff Hooper, director of Arts Learning for the Ohio Arts Council.
The conversation will be guided by key questions that ask panelists to share personal stories of how imagination helps shape their field, how it is used as a tool in problem-solving, how learning and work environments can be structured to better foster imagination, and how to nurture the capacity for imaginative thinking in Ohio’s young people and citizens.
Additional Imagination Conversations will take place during the Ohio Dance Festival at Oberlin College in May and in cooperation with other state agencies and departments. The Imagination Conversation project will culminate with a widely-promoted public Imagination Conversation in the fall of 2010.
Each state will share its findings and innovative policy proposals online and the project will culminate with a National Imagination Summit at Lincoln Center in 2011 where representatives will draft a “Declaration of Imagination.” This briefing document will include an action agenda for policy makers, educators and community leaders to make the teaching of imagination an integral part of American education.
For additional information, contact Donna Collins at the Ohio Alliance for Arts Education at 614/224-1060 or Jeff Hooper at the Ohio Arts Council at 614/728-1839 or jeff.hooper@oac.state.oh.us.
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