This qualitative study examines how Caribbean families integrate spirituality and creative expression to build resilience in the face of adversity. Grounded in family resilience theory and employing an arts-informed phenomenological approach, the research engaged sixteen families in Grenada representing Christianity, Islam, Rastafarianism, and Indigenous spiritual traditions. Data were collected through in-depth interviews and collaborative art-making, revealing five themes: meaning-making, communal support, prayer, creative expression, and connection to nature. Regardless of the spiritual tradition, participant families consistently identified spirituality and art as vital to emotional regulation, relational bonding, and cultural connection. While some families produced visual artwork, others engaged in music, storytelling, ritual, and symbolic practices as spiritually grounded coping mechanisms. The findings highlight the therapeutic potential of integrating culturally meaningful and spiritually attuned creative practices into mental health and community interventions. This study contributes to a more holistic, culturally responsive framework for supporting Caribbean families and underscores the importance of honoring local traditions of faith and art in resilience-building strategies.
This article uses a knowledge exchange (KE)-based approach to evaluation to explore the reported experiences of artists, scientists, and land managers participating in the NaturePLACE Program (formerly Urban Field Station [UFS] Arts), focusing on the period 2016–2024. The primary aim of the program is to build understanding of and engagement with urban social-ecological systems through the arts. The approach to this evaluation draws on a range of literature on research in the arts, as well as research and KE impact evaluation from the environmental research domain. The evaluation reported in this article is distinctive in focusing on the interactions of participants rather than on perceptions of beneficiaries. The data analyzed comprise evaluations (n = 49) submitted at the conclusion of the residency by six cohorts involved in the NaturePLACE Program (2016, 2017, 2018, 2020–2021, 2022–2023, 2024–2025). This article provides important insights into the impacts on artists, scientists, and land managers from transdisciplinary place-based work. Causes of impact not previously noted within the framework are identified as related specifically to the arts, including modes of sensuous aesthetic attunement, forms of focusing attention and eliciting public discourse, and shaping cultural imaginaries. Critical reflection also becomes evident as an aspect of capacity building.
In November 2021, a research report was published authored by On the Move and commissioned by the British Council called Time to Act, which focused on arts engagement by disabled people in Europe. The report evidenced the lack of accessibility in the arts for disabled individuals and low confidence among arts organizations in including disabled people in their activities and events. In total, 48% of respondents were not very/at all confident in the accessibility of artistic programs for disabled people. The report also demonstrated insufficient consideration of disabled people in the planning and facilitation of arts events or programs. This article, based on our 2025 Arts in Society conference presentation, details our research into how these findings relate to Wrexham specifically. Through creating community links within Wrexham, holding public forums, and creating an online survey, we have formed an overview of how the arts are perceived within the area, by disabled communities and individuals. This article articulates the development of a network of third-party collaborators who have an enriched knowledge and understanding of the arts community in Wrexham in relation to disability and community arts, such as The Wrexham Miner’s Project (Art4All) and Emerge Community Arts. Through this research, we examine the challenges and identify possible ways forward in enabling local arts venues, event organizers, creative practitioners, and policy makers to utilize sustainable approaches to the perspectives of disabled people in Wrexham, with the aim of enabling arts engagement.
Senior adults are a growing population in America and face increased feelings of social isolation, a problem compounded by the COVID-19 pandemic. The positive physiological impacts of dance fitness classes for seniors are well documented, but less research exists on the impacts of creative dance on well-being and social connection. This study addresses this gap in knowledge by focusing on the expressive potential and social impact of senior adult engagement in creative dance. Over the course of a three-week dance and storytelling workshop, senior adult participants experienced an outlet for creative expression and imagination. The methods include oral history interviews, a group interview, facilitator field notes, oral storytelling, movement generation from language, creative writing exercises and somatic guided movement experiences. The study is situated within participatory action research (PAR), with regular dialogue and participant feedback guiding the workshop. In the context of community engaged dance, this research reveals the expressive potential that comes from bridging language and movement. I will show how utilizing both a “language-first” approach and a “movement-first” approach engaged the seniors’ imaginations in what Vygotsky terms “combinatorial creativity.” These approaches contributed to positive social connection outcomes and a sense of self-discovery among the senior adult participants and suggest the importance of imagination for creative expression in future community-based dance engagement.
This article provides an ethical framework for artists who wish to respond creatively to moments of collective trauma and moral injury. The case studies described here focus primarily on developments in the United States during the first administration of Donald Trump, with emphasis on the US Capitol insurrection of January 6, 2021. However, the framework is readily applicable to any type of civically engaged artistry, and non-US examples are also explored. The framework’s primary goal is to translate Martin Luther King, Jr.’s philosophy of non-violence into the realm of the creative arts. By integrating King’s principles of non-violent activism with the contemplative practice of lovingkindness, this arts-based framework is designed to yield creative outputs that embody the notion of critical hope. Through techniques of improvisation and experimentation, arts-based inquiry can cut a middle path between cynical resignation and naive idealism. Furthermore, by pushing beyond verbal communication, it can identify latent or aspirational perspectives that the public has yet to fully articulate. The framework, therefore, resonates with current work in civil discourse and deliberation as well as in arts-based research (ABR). Featuring original music, dance, and video design, the article’s case studies aim to challenge the partisan logic of commercial social media algorithms. Such methods offer pathways for recovering a shared sense of commitment to the common good. In sum, by combining non-violent principles, contemplative practice, and arts-based techniques, the proposed framework aims to amplify the potential of civically engaged artistry to recover the possibility of the first-person plural, “We.”
The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) epidemic in northern Vietnam has increased the number of orphaned children. Vietnam’s national response to addressing the needs of orphaned children has included a focus on child protection, education, reproductive health, and HIV prevention. Youth participatory action research, such as photovoice, can empower youth populations typically excluded. Twenty-five adolescents between ages 12 and 19 participated in a youth program focused on photovoice and youth-identified topics. Focus groups and journaling identified macro-level concepts of importance, including corruption in the criminal legal system, difficulties with laws and enforcement, a lack of child protection, and exploitation. The youth reported that adults often perpetuated these risks, leading to ineffective or harmful community responses. The youth sought to address high-risk areas and developed targeted interventions. To raise awareness for social action, video and art-advocacy exhibitions featuring youth photos and quotes were disseminated to the community.
