Bridging the Gap – Access and Inclusion to the Arts

Bridging the Gap is a networking event for cultural professionals working in the Film, Media and Arts sectors. This will be an opportunity to celebrate projects, engage with each other, share knowledge and build awareness around the work that is being made in these sectors. Our aim is to provide an open and inclusive space for effective networking opportunities for cultural professionals. This event will also share the way funding bodies at National and European level are focusing their policies on accessibility, inclusion, gender balance and openness.

Bridging the Gap is an invaluable opportunity to meet with and engage with potential collaborators, develop partnerships and meet with funders and organisations in the Film, Media and Arts sectors. This event is supported by Coimisiún na Meán and co-funded by the European Union.

Places are free but limited. UPDATE: tickets are sold out.

KEYNOTE SPEAKER

Our keynote speaker is Andrew Ogun, Agent for Change with the Arts Council of Wales.

Andrew Ogun is a musician and poet from Newport but based in Cardiff, Wales. He is the Agent for Change at the Arts Council of Wales and is the main organiser for Black Lives Matter Gwent. His work is centred on leading the process of cultural and systemic change within the Arts Council, ensuring that fairness and inclusion is at the core of the organisation.

PANELLISTS

The Panel Session will be facilitated by Jess Majekodunmi. The confirmed panellists for the event are:

• Emilie Conway, Artist and disability activist
• Ashley Makombe, The Galpal Collective
• Karen Aguiar, Socially Engaged Artist and Producer, Go Dance for Change platform
• Dr Zelie Asava, Academic, Speaker and Author

Event Accessibility

This event is advocating for inclusivity and accessibility for all in our sectors. We want to ensure the inclusion of our disabled and high risk peers by making this a masked event to ensure the safety for everyone in the space.

• High quality FFP2 masks will be provided on entry.
• The event space is a large gallery space with some ventilation.
• The event space will be a relaxed environment so feel free to move around, stim, and come and go as you please.
  A designated quiet seating area will be provided for anyone who may need a sensory break from the space.

About the Venue

• The building entrance is ground level with no lips on the door.
• The event space is accessed by 3 steps and a ramp.
• There are separate women and men’s toilets that have multiple cubicles in each.
• There is a single larger toilet which is more accessible and gender neutral.
• There are multiple bus stops one street over serving many routes such as 145, 46a, 40, 11 and 155.
• There is 1 disability parking space directly outside the building entrance. There is also plenty of parking in the neighbourhood.
• There is 1 disability parking space directly outside the building entrance. There is also plenty of parking in the neighbourhood.
• We will share more in-depth accessibility details in a follow up email. If you have any concerns or questions about the event or venue, or if you require any reasonable accommodations for this event please email katie.lowry@artscouncil.ie or tunney@artscouncil.ie.
• For assistance with booking please email: events@creativeeuropeireland.eu

Chair & Panellist Bios

Jess Majekodunmi, Director of the Human Sciences Studio at The Dock, Accenture.

Spanning both the non-profit and business sectors, Jess's career has been defined by roles that create social impact and shape a positive future. Her fierce belief in the vital role of the arts in technology has led her to where she is today - Director of the Human Sciences Studio at The Dock, Accenture's flagship global R&D centre. There, she leads a team of interdisciplinary researchers and creative engagement specialists, exploring the meeting point of people, society and technology. Jess is also a board member of the Irish Writers Centre and the Irish Museum of Modern Art.

Emilie Conway, Artist and disability activist

Emilie Conway is an award winning vocal jazz artist, composer and lyricist, blending her own compositions, spoken word
poetry with improvised and composed music and her interpretations of jazz standards. She is also a disability
activist, consultant and advisor, a creator of aesthetically accessible audio-described and sensory experiences. She is
regularly invited to contribute as a panellist and presenter on EDIHR and she is also a fully accredited and practising
art psychotherapist with the Irish Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy.

Ashley Makombe, The Galpal Collective

The GALPAL Collective is an organisation dedicated to the celebration, creation and support of art by young queer folk, women, and people of colour. The collective was founded by journalist and writer Ashley Chadamoyo Makombe alongside filmmaker and visual artist Aisha Bolaji in 2020.

Karen Aguiar, Socially Engaged Artist and Producer, Go Dance for Change platform

Karen Aguiar is a socially engaged artist, performer and cultural producer who believes in the transformative power of dance to unite people and nurture collective spaces. As the founder and creative director of Go Dance For Change, a platform for intercultural collaboration, Karen envisions dance as a means of meaningful integration, individual growth, and collective action. She has been building community and producing dance & performance in Ireland since 2018. She is also a recipient of the Artist in the Community Scheme Bursary Award: Collaborative Arts and Dance funded by the Irish Arts Council, managed by Create in partnership with Dance Ireland. With a postgraduate study in Art & Ecology at NCAD and a dance residency at Rua Red South Dublin Arts Centre, Karen's movement practice incorporates embodied ecologies, knowledge, culture, and play.

Dr Zelie Asava, Academic, Speaker and Author

Popular speaker, award winning writer and Screen Ireland board member Dr Zélie Asava is the author of two books and is the driving force behind a series of projects focused on questions of race, gender and visual culture in Ireland, France, Senegal, Scandinavia, Burkina Faso, Britain and the US.