In early August 2022, Remote Closeness invited representatives of Jordanian art and cultural institutions to gather and discuss methods of environmental sustainability in the local sector. Representatives from the visual arts, music, film, theatre, tourism, education, INGO and cultural fields from both private and public sectors were present and in their discussions, focused on finding necessary and sustainable methods to connect the local art world to the Earth, planning events and working internally in a responsible and ecology-conscious manner.

Facilitating the day-long symposium was Elham Al Abbadi, an inspiring eco-agricultural expert based in the village of Bayouda who led the participants through a number of activities and discussions throughout the day. Elham shared her personal experience in creating a sustainable “life shift” in her day-to-day routine and how she then slowly applied this change to her outward circles, eventually influencing her local community as a whole. Using the Bayoudah Village Cooperative as an example of positive behavioural change within a community, Elham led a gap assessment session with the participants to evaluate their internal institutional culture in reference to eco-awareness and sustainable working ethos.

Another guest during the day was Corinna Vosse from Kunst-Stoffe Berlin was invited to share an inspiring talk about Kunst-Stoffe which is a non-profit organisation from Berlin, that was founded in 2006. The goal of Kunst-Stoffe is to collect and store the assumed “trash” of Berlin’s citizens to resell them to interested parties, including artists and cultural institutions.

As a conclusion to the symposium, a group of cultural actors representing different areas of the sector was formed to take proactive actions in developing and adapting alternate approaches to institution and event management together.