Salzburg Academy on Media and Global Change enables young creative minds to reinvent media with compassion, care, and community
The 16th in-person Salzburg Academy on Media & Global Change convened over 85 participants for around two weeks in July to explore human belonging in the age of machines.
Participants came together at Schloss Leopoldskron in Salzburg from over 15 different institutions around the world to consider how to support and prioritize human belonging, compassion, attentiveness, and solidarity in a time of increasingly invasive technologies.
Through envisioning media practices and pedagogies that emphasize care and meaningful connections, participants attempted to reimagine the soul of media and consider how to build systems that emphasize care and prioritize a radical human agenda in the age of machines.
Throughout the program, participants from Lebanon, Mexico, Hong Kong, USA, India, Argentina, Portugal, and Austria engaged in a range of activities, including lectures, workshops, and cultural activities led by media-makers, researchers, creative practitioners, and community stakeholders from across the world.
Participants also engaged in film screenings, a living library, art and cultural experiences, tours of Salzburg and Gosau, and excursions to the Mauthausen Memorial and the Dokumentation Obersalzberg museum.
This year, participants were also hosted by the Paris Lodron Universität Salzburg for a one-day symposium to dive deep into issues of critical and current concern in our world. The symposium was held in memory of faculty member Moses Shumow, who believed in the power of bringing people together to talk about pressing topics in the world and finding ways to move forward together.
The symposium gave participants the opportunity to more deeply reflect on their experiences visiting the Mauthausen Memorial and the Dokumentation Obersalzberg Museum, and consider those in the context of conflicts that are currently gripping the world. They engaged with current situations and considered how different interventions from art and media can help move these conversations forward.
Reflecting on this year’s Salzburg Academy on Media and Global Change, faculty chair and program director Paul Mihailidis wrote, “In times of increasing uncertainty and conflict in the world, it’s increasingly vital to explore how we can come together - across borders, across cultures, across divides - to explore how media can support worlds that are more human, care-based, and that advocate for those at the margins of society.
"This was a challenging year for our cohort, as we wrestled with large and complex problems. But the collective power and solidarity of our group solidified the necessity to convene groups of emerging leaders in media to strive for more equitable and just global futures.”
Through the theme “Belonging in the Age of Machines”, participants were challenged to envision media practices and pedagogies that work to advance human-centered realities and center care within the development of “thinking” technologies. This theme enabled participants to imagine how media systems could strengthen social cohesion and promote belonging and care in the age of abundant digital media.
Their final publication, “Love Against the Machine: Imagining Soulful Media Futures”, features five creative interventions that explore how media systems can be more human-centric in the future. The final publication also includes a keynote, two playlists, testimonials and reflections on the participant experience, and curated highlights of programming from the sessions.
The international cohort worked in small groups to develop creative ideas for futuristic media initiatives that could nurture a sense of belonging and community. Participants’ projects centered around the futures of five key areas: music, art, advertising, fashion, and social media. The 16-day Academy culminated in each group presenting their final project on the last day in Salzburg.
The project outcomes include:
The Future of Music: 2074s Cultural Renaissance: The MINT technological device transforms music experiences, ensuring fair treatment for artists, breaking down language barriers, and supporting social justice and historical education through immersive technology.
The RÊVE: An AI-powered space that reframes art to be accessible, equitable, and fair.
Neurowaves: Transforming the Future of Advertising: The iPatch technological device is a public interest-centered platform for advertising in the service of global solidarity and peace.
Current. Magazine: A fashion and lifestyle magazine with a focus on inclusivity, sustainability, care, and belonging.
Alexandria: An immersive social media platform where humans interact seamlessly with AI, the environment, and nature to facilitate the sharing of knowledge and human experiences.
Participants’ media outputs are shared on the online platform Medium and will also be featured on the Salzburg Global website.
Reflecting on his experience, Taylor Whelchel from Nevada State University stated that the Media Academy “inspired me to continue to push myself outside of my comfort zone and to continue to keep an open mind to different perspectives. I truly believe the friendships I've made with people from different areas of the world have helped shape the way I view life differently. I am very grateful to be able to take this perspective back and continue to pass it along.”
The Salzburg Academy on Media and Global Change is an annual program that convenes emerging leaders in media fields to build networks for positive change. If you would like to find out more about the Academy, please email , Faculty Chair and Program Director.
