WCPUN

Kristiansand, Norway – WCPUN recently collaborated with the University of Agder (UiA) Business School, to develop an assignment related to immigration for Masters students in the Creative Problem Solving course, led by Professors of Marketing, Sangeeta Singh and Stephan Sonnenburg. Throughout the course, over 70 students were challenged to analyze the dominant narratives surrounding immigration in Norway and propose alternative approaches grounded in data and inclusive perspectives.

The assignment was developed by Shamina de Gonzaga, WCPUN Vice-President and Co-Founder of the WCPUN programme Indocumentales. Launched in 2010 to foster dialogue around immigration, Indocumentales has been hosted at universities across the United States, as well as in Mexico and Spain. The project at UiA marks the first iteration of the programme in Northern Europe.

“This was a timely and important assignment,” said Professor Singh. “It brought together critical thinking, creativity, and social awareness — skills that are essential for students entering today’s complex professional landscape. Marketing is not just about promoting products or brands; it can also help shape opinions in the society we live in.“

The initiative came at a particularly relevant time, with national elections on the horizon and immigration remaining a key political topic. WCPUN  expresses gratitude to the UiA Department of Management and Innovation and to Professors Singh and Sonnenburg for their leadership and openness to bring social impact into marketing education, and congratulates the 70+ students for their diligent group work, critical thinking, and creative, actionable proposals.

According to UN Women, in 2023, every 10 minutes a woman was killed. On this International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, WCPUN highlights the work of Polish artist Monika Weiss, whose Nirbhaya monument/antimonument is “a memorial devoted not to conquerors and war heroes, but to forgotten victims of gender-based violence, who continue to be tortured, raped or killed around the world. Violence against women knows no geographical or political boundaries.” #NoExcuse. UNiTE to End Violence against Women

An installation of Nirbhaya is planned for Dag Hammarskjold Plaza (DHP), the Gateway to United Nations, in cooperation with the NYC Parks Art in the Parks Program, Streaming Museum, Friends of Dag Hammarskjold Plaza, and World Council of Peoples for the United Nations. It is curated by Izabela Gola / the Polish Cultural Institute New York, with support from the New York State Council on the Arts, the Office of the Governor, and the New York State Legislature. Learn more about Nirbhaya here.

Addressing the Invisible Labour behind the Cobalt Industry

Monday, 15 April, 15:00 – 16:30 United Nations Headquarters, Conference Room 12

WCPUN is pleased to partner with the International Labour Organization, the Permanent Mission to the United Nations of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and the University of Bath in presenting Cobalt Rush, a film by Roy Maconachie, and a panel discussion on how to improve the working conditions of the women and men who are the “invisible face” of the multi-billion-dollar cobalt industry, critical to electric vehicles and consumer electronics. The event is held in the margins of the first-ever UN General Assembly Sustainability Week, convened by the President of the General Assembly to advance Sustainable Development Goal 7 on affordable and sustainable energy for all.

Speakers: Ms. Cynthia Samuel-Olonjuwon, ILO Special Representative to the UN; H.E. Mr. Zenon Ngay Mukongo, Permanent Representative, Democratic Republic of the Congo to the UN; Ms. Cristina Duarte, Under-Secretary-General and Special Advisor on Africa, UNOSAA; Mr. Roy Maconachie, Director, Cobalt Rush and Researcher, University of Bath; Mr. Casper Edmonds, Head, Manufacturing, Mining, and Energy Unit, ILO; Mr. Glen Mpufane, Mining Director, IndustriAll Global Union; Ms. Patricia Veringa Gieskes, Fédération des Entreprises du Congo, DRC; with closing remarks by Shamina de Gonzaga, Vice-President, WCPUN and Chief Editor, Centerpoint Now.

WCPUN welcomes the forthcoming installation of Undercurrent, 2023, by Inner Mongolian artist Zheng Lu, in Dag Hammarskjöld Plaza. Facing United Nations Headquarters, the 2,500 kg (2.75 ton) stainless-steel sculpture evoking streams of water suspended in mid-air, was created specifically for the site. Underscoring the significance of water as a symbol of change, self-reflection, and the passage of time, the work also draws attention to climate change and water scarcity. The installation is made possible with the support of the Sundaram Tagore Gallery, New York, and the New York City Parks Department of Art and Antiquity, and facilitated by WCPUN, as part of its mission to raise public awareness about the United Nations’ goals, in this case UN Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 6 on access to clean water and sanitation, and SDG 13 on climate change.

18 May marks International Museum Day. WCPUN is pleased to highlight the work of Artist and WCPUN Cultural Adviser, Gema Alava, whose book How to Be Fearless in a Museum (Cómo Perder el Miedo Dentro de un Museo, Editorial El Ojo de la Cultura, 2020) was recently presented at the Museum of Anthropology and Contemporary Art (MAAC) in Guayaquil, Ecuador. Alava’s work is an example of how museums can engage directly with communities via relational art projects inside their gallery space. “Museums, institutions and foundations can serve as bridges between the ancestral knowledge of native cultures, the communities that live in the land of the museums, and contemporary artists who work on achieving a better and more sustainable future for all,” Alava states.

In advance of International Women’s Day, WCPUN is pleased to highlight the work of Judith Peck, whose installation, “Ladies of Steel,” is now on display at Dag Hammarskjold Plaza, the Gateway to the United Nations. On her piece “River Flow” (featured below), Peck notes “the river is powerful in itself but always reflecting the turbulent shifts of weather, changing its contour, its pace and rhythm, as it touches the changing shoreline. I like to think of the sculpture, like a woman, relaxed in its soft curves but confident even with its internal divisions, to make the journey, go with the flow.”

A sculptor and Professor Emeritus of Art at Ramapo (State) College, during her 42 year tenure, Dr. Peck instituted an on-going program training college students to conduct art workshops in jails, homes for abused children, psychiatric centers, domestic violence shelters, and nursing homes. jpecksculpture.com

29 September – Museum of Contemporary Art, Antwerp WCPUN/Centerpoint Now Chief Editor Shamina de Gonzaga, will join M HKA and Gaston Meskens, in a discussion on how the ideology of modernity still shapes our world today, with a presentation on Inequality and interdependence. The event is held on the occasion of the M HKA INBOX show ‘Gaston Meskens – What’s Wrong With Ideology? Life and work at the Institute of Idle Curiosity for Elements of Seduction’.

Indocumentales: Documenting Narratives on migration, organized by WCPUN Executive Director Shamina de Gonzaga and conducted with filmmaker Samuel Sebastian, with the support of the Polytechnic University of Valencia (UPV) Center for Development Cooperation. The workshop raised awareness about migration experiences and how they relate to various UN SDGs, situating individual migration experiences in a global context. See work generated by Participants at Indocumentales.com

Sunday, 17 July, 12 – 4pm, Naumburg Bandshell, Central Park, NYC

Gema Álava, Artist and Cultural Adviser to World Council of Peoples for the United Nations (WCPUN), will be part of the DISABILITY UNITE FESTIVAL 2022 as an advocate for Disability Rights, and for being an artistic and educational reference promoting interactive and Relational Art projects inspired by and developed with the participation of individuals with disabilities. “My projects not only deal with the idea of tearing down barriers in culture and society but also breathe from the strength and unique vision of individuals with disabilities” says Alava, whose Studio will be featured in the Festival’s “Creation Row.” www.gemaalava.com

Focused on the theme “A Future of Inclusion,” the Festival marks the 32^nd Anniversary of The Americas with Disability Act. www.disabilityunite.org

14 – 27 May – The SOCIALMED VALÈNCIA Festival will present film related to Water and Climate Change in connection with inequality in the Mediterranean. A collaborating organization in the WCPUN INDOCUMENTALES “An Encounter Beyond Borders” program, the SOCIALMED Festival will also participate in the forthcoming INDOCUMENTALES immigration film workshop to be held in October 2022 at the Polytechnic University of Valencia, Spain (UPV). festivalsocialmed.org