| Futuretown is a national scheme
to raise awareness among young people of the importance of our towns
and cities. Gravesend has been one of the forerunners in developing
this scheme, sponsored by Boots The Chemists and Sainsbury's plc
Futuretown And Beyond (FAB) takes this a step further
by involving over twenty schools and community groups, higher education
institutions and commercial organisations, over three years. Futuretown
& Beyond takes the metaphor of the ancient Roman Forum into the
21st Century to create a 'Global Town Square' - a place of debate,
interaction; a crucible of 'citizenship'; a beautiful physical space,
combining the physical and the virtual, the local and the global.
It involves participants in a social process, research and prototype
development,
the creation of an interactive physical and virtual environment, creating
visions for the future of their town.
FAB provides a bottom-up approach to Regeneration,
creatively combining Arts and ICT, culture and community animation
as the crucible for change. Participating groups will develop their
'futures' proposals, related to their specific needs, contributing
to a network and database
of 'futures' which can be built upon in practical, site specific ways.
Where possible these 'futures' will be implemented with the support
of Gravesham and other partners, and Interactive technologies will
be designed into public spaces. FAB moves Community-networking, Stake-holding
and Planning for Real into a new phase.
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We aim to make the process, software and hardware
prototypes, transferable
so that they may be used, in customisable forms, in any town,
city or rural community. The 'Global Town Square' can provide
public place for, and a democratic space within, the development
of new technologies.
FAB Aims:
Using the focus of creativity and ICT, to create a model of how
citizens can contribute to and promote potential 'futures' for
their town centre.
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Through partnerships with universities and
commercial partners involved in developing new technology communications
systems, to prototype public displays of this material in an interactive
'global town square'.
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To extend this 'local' network to the global,
making links with their counterparts in other countries to debate
and exchange their 'futures'.
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Through the above, to help understanding of
the rich benefits of cultural diversity and expression and promote
exchange, both virtually and physically.
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To promote Gravesend and the Kent Thameside
Region as a place of innovation for creative public use and engagement
with new technology communication systems.
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To create a model which is sustainable and
transferable to other towns and communities; to disseminate this
as widely as possible and make links between participating communities
Phase One
(2001/2) involved creating a network of young people, Research &
Development of ideas and technologies, getting business partners and
sponsors on board. Participants were asked to start by creating 'You-topias'
- looking at themselves and their surroundings as they are in the
here and now. Within these images are further insights into why they
were made and messages from the pupils involved in their creation.
These 'You-topias' are used as a series of 'Electronic
Postcards' You can add your
own messages and send them anywhere in the world. Over 400 young people
participated in the 'You-topias' project. Audience figures for the
exhibition of Phase One work were recorded in excess of 8400.
Phase two
(2002/3) - brings community groups/organisations into the network.
The website now contains a database of 'Futures' for the town as a
growing resource to expand ideas and enable the possibility for practical
realisation. The next phase of the project will be to develop the
the 'Forum', where participating groups and communities in Gravesend
can make links via email, creating and exchanging 'future visions'
with other communities locally, nationally and internationally.
'Buddying' System:
As Phase Two develops there will be a clear sense of who the participating
partners are. They will be in four essential categories: 1) Schools
2) Community groups 3) The Local Authority 4) Commercial organisations
and Research Institutions. From this we can create a 'buddying system',
making four way linkages. In this way ideas and prototypes can be
developed to meet specific needs and directions emerging from that
particular grouping.
Hardware and software prototype development begins in phase two with
partners who are developing new technologies in public spaces. We
aim to involve participants - the potential future users- in prototype
development. The first physical manifestation of this has been a large
scale projection of the work produced to date at the Garrick Street
Transport Interchange. This was launched in November 2002, in time
for the various 'festivals of light'.
Phase three:
(2003/4) involves the physical transformation of the site, the creation
of the 'Global Town Square' in its final phase. We are looking to
companies and institutions involved in digital interactivity and communication
systems, public display and transmission, sustainable and renewable
energy technologies. In software, we are particularly targeting those
involved in virtual mapping and imaging, and dynamic databases. Convergence
is the watchword across all technologies. We aim to involve participants
in developing some of these prototypes - if they are to be 'user-friendly'
what better way than to involve potential future users in their development.
This phase will involve installation of these prototypes - screens
and interactive devices - in public spaces so elements of the built
environment can be operated like a keyboard or mouse to access information,
participate in the Forum, or even play music or games. We will monitor
response to the physical and virtual space, the hardware, software
and content.
Phase four
Involves refining these processes and products to create a legacy
that is sustainable for Gravesend and to make these transferable to
other places. Main outcomes may include:
1) Model of an innovative 'bottom-up', culture led approach to regeneration'
for local authorities and the public sector.
2) For artists/designers/educationalists, wishing to develop similar
kinds of initiatives.
3) New departures for Cultural Industries in the domain of the 'Civic'.
4) Software development - customisable networking templates for the
social process, including the possibility virtual mapping of the town
centre which can be altered as part of a proposal process.
5) Model of action/research for commercial developers of public interface
technologies.
6) Actual hardware and interactive systems developed with participants
and prototyped in the town centre.
Futuretown And Beyond
Conceived and co-ordinated by Peter
Dunn of ART.e @ The Art of Change
|
No-one does more for England's heritage 
