Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/576901
maltatoday, SUNDAY, 27 SEPTEMBER 2015 This Week 41 Valletta 2018 explores cultural mapping with international conference THE annual Valletta 2018 inter- national conference on Cultural Relations in Europe and the Medi- terranean returns with its second conference, titled 'Cultural Map- ping: Debating Spaces and Places' on 22 and 23 October at the Medi- terranean Conference Centre in Valletta. The conference is being organised following last April's launch of the online map www.culturemapmal- ta.com – which exhibits the data collected during the first phase of the Cultural Mapping project, led by the Valletta 2018 Foundation. Bringing together a number of in- ternational academics, researchers, cultural practitioners and artists, the conference will explore various exercises of cultural mapping tak- ing place across the world. With the subject being relatively new to Malta, speakers will be discussing the role of cultural mapping within the fields of cultural policy, artis- tic practice, heritage and cultural identity, amongst others. Speakers include experts, aca- demics, researchers and activists within the fields of tangible and intangible heritage, sustainable development, and cultural policy, both across Europe and the Medi- terranean. Keynote speeches will be deliv- ered by Prof. Pier Luigi Sacco, a cultural economist who will be presenting examples of cultural mapping taking place in Italy and Sweden, and Dr Aadel Essaadani, the Chairperson of the Arterial Network, a Morocco-based organ- isation that brings together art and culture practitioners across the Af- rican continent. The conference will also feature a series of parallel sessions, allowing researchers from across the globe to present examples of cultural mapping taking place in various European and non-European con- texts. Parallel sessions will explore a broad range of issues, including the use of innovative digital technology within cultural mapping, the role of cultural mapping in participa- tory community-based work, and cultural mapping as a tool within artistic practice. Highlights include presentations of cultural mapping exercises tak- ing place in Palestine, New York and Hong Kong, as well as in Malta and across Europe and the Medi- terranean. The conference will be complemented by a site-specific installation by artist Trevor Borg and a series of short film screen- ings developed by conference pre- senters. Registration for the conference can be carried out through the Valletta 2018 website at www.val- letta2018.org/cultural-mapping- debating-spaces-and-places. Reg- istration closes on 9 October. For further details call on 21242018 or email us at research@valletta2018. org The conference is organised following last April's launch of culturemapmalta.com Speakers include experts, academics, researchers and activists within the fields of tangible and intangible heritage, sustainable development, and cultural policy