smART cities and waste:

Developing an Arts-led, Interdisciplinary, European network for Waste management and Treatment Innovation.

**Welcome to this wiki website for the smART cities and waste network!**

BREAKING NEWS next FREE WORKSHOP gweithdy gwastraff is in Bangor on 3RD OCTOBER 2017-venue Pontio, Bangor University. Gwybodaeth yma! more info here!

Photos and presentations from our third workshop in London Urban Waste Streams And Flows Ewaste and water key themes! **info here** final programme here finalversionlondon_waste_workshop_6april2017-1.docx

latest blog post here

some feedback from participants from our second workshop in Maastricht Techno-Scientific Innovation and Waste; Opportunities and Consequences on 9th December 2016

I enjoyed the workshop very much. The presentations I attended all raised critical questions and reflected an original perspective on such a complex matter like waste.

A report from our first workshop in Amsterdam is available here finalamsterdamreport.pdf

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Background Information: project aims and objectives

In a Nutshell:

  • Primary aim: Interdisciplinary Knowledge exchange and capacity building: arts/science/policy/practitioners/ ‘the public’, through interactive workshops, arts “pop ups” and social media
  • Secondary aim: Identify key ‘intervention points’ most suitable for developing interdisciplinary, ‘participatory design’ approaches

Research Context. Waste is a significant problem facing a rapidly urbanising world, with challenges at every stage including waste prevention, treatment/management, recycling and reuse, and the health and ecosystem impacts of poorly managed waste. Rising to these challenges, particularly in relation to sustainable cities, is high on the policy agenda at local, national and international levels. For example a recent (2013) UK Government report on waste noted that: We need to develop further the concept of a circular economy, where one person's waste becomes another's valuable resource…Making the changes needed may require innovation and creative thinking... (UK Gov 2013). Waste is a social/cultural product: Techno/scientific waste innovation needs to have input from end users (“the public”).

Aims and Objectives The aim of the Network is to develop a forum for knowledge exchange and debate across art & humanities and science disciplines and subject areas with a common focus on waste treatment, management and innovation. This will seek to develop responses to the question: how can arts based approaches inform waste management innovation techniques and processes; and secondly, (how) does place (local context, identity, culture, governance) make a difference to waste generation, waste innovation delivery and uptake?

This aim will be met through the following objectives:

i)To establish an interdisciplinary network of Europe-wide academics, artists, scientists, practitioners, stakeholders, and interested end-users. We will run four workshops in 4 European cities (London, Amsterdam, Maastricht, Bangor in Wales) to explore and develop ideas, issues and possible solutions and learn from each other, and also run a number of 'pop-up' events piloting arts-based approaches to public engagement and waste. A 'wiki style' open source website will provide network support.

ii) to identify particular sorts of waste (e.g. industrial/domestic, organic/manufactured, chemicals/metals, waste-energy, water) and to identify specific 'intervention points', which have good potential for creative interdisciplinary innovation.

We also seek to explore “the difference that place makes” and the importance of working with citizens' "local knowledge". This can be understood in terms of “Place shaping”. “Place-shaping” promotes the idea that local citizens and stakeholders can have a say in how the places they live and work are governed: A …negotiated outcome in which citizen participants in local regeneration initiatives may be able to influence state actions, at least at the local level… Adamson (2010: 116)