BACKGROUND

 

This Is Not A Gateway {TINAG} was founded to address FOUR URGENT CONCERNS:

  • The need for accessible arenas for emerging practioners across Europe, who work in and on cities AND for those outside of established circuits. There is complete inaccessibility to existing conferences and regeneration events. At the same time, there is an increasing amount of interesting and critical work being produced by people who do not have the platforms in which to share them. TINAG was established to address this gap.
  • The need for the development of new forms of urban citizenship. Cities are going to be home for the majority of us, right across the globe (it is estimated that 60% of the global population will live in urban areas by 2030). A great deal more agency is needed for people who will inherit these future metropolises. TINAG is dedicated to fostering active participation in cities.
  • The desire for interdisciplinary and cross-cultural exchange. In a climate of increasing professionalism and specialisation, there is limited opportunity to learn and collaborate across fields and cultures. TINAG rigorously advances the possibility for mutually beneficial outcomes and learning.
  • The need to gather, to eat, to drink together, in a self-organised, informal and fruitful context. The most productive aspect of conferences and symposiums are often the informal and secondary elements. TINAG puts this at the forefront of all its activities, advancing innovative and enjoyable forms of engagement.


ACTION TAKEN: TINAG is a not-for-profit company registered in England and Wales (company number 6415761). TINAG was established formally in July 2007 by Deepa Naik and Trenton Oldfield. A cross-disciplinary and inter-European Steering Committee was formed shortly after and currently has a team of 8 members. In July 2007 TINAG partnered with the Institute of Contemporary Arts (ICA) through the Cultural Leadership Programme. In June 2008 TINAG won the Academy For Sustainable Communities' Creating The Future Award. TINAG's four main areas of production are:

  • SALONS

A unique series of salons where speakers, from a range of fields and backgrounds, are invited to investigate a focused urban question in an informal workshop. Presentations are limited to 10 minutes each, with greater concentration on audience participation and discussion. The distilling of the cross-disciplinary outcomes is achieved through the production and circulation of a post-salon essay.

  • FESTIVAL (23-25 OCT 2009, LONDON)

Over the course of four days in October TINAG brings together, people living and working in Europe to collaborate across fields. TINAG provides platforms for emerging academics, activists, human rights canvassers, regeneration professionals, bankers, artists, politicians and more, to share their compelling ideas about cities. The annual festival also provides comprehensive skills development seminars including: A to Z Of Getting Your Book Published; Going Freelance – Taxes & Other Complexities; Organising & New Political Frameworks.

The 2009 Festival is kindly being supported by openvizor and Grassroots Grants.

  

  • PUBLICATION

A comprehensive documentation of all TINAG's activities; including a collection of interdisciplinary texts from Salon speakers and commissioned post-salon essays, festival participants biographies, detailed synopsis of each event, papers from participants, commissioned essays, and images. The aim of the publication is to evidence the outcomes and benefit of cross-disciplinary exchange and learning. The book will be distributed widely and across fields; including university libraries, government departments, community centres and sold in bookshops for specialist fields.The forthcoming book is designed by Karolin Schnoor. It will be available in autumn 2009. The book has been made possible by the support of the Homes & Communities Agency.

  • ARCHIVE AND LIBRARY

TINAG is collecting and archiving work from across disciplines by emerging practioners and those outside of traditional civic society, related to all aspects of cities. The material will be available online through a comprehensive search engine, programmed to provide cross-disciplinary outcomes. The aims are:
1. To address the need for a cross-disciplinary and innovative approach to research.
2. To advance and disseminate the work of emerging practioners and previously unheard voices.

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TINAG's role is that of coordinators (and not 'gatekeepers'). We are responsible for facilitating activities on organisational and infrastructural levels - providing the required support to enable participants to hold their own workshops, film screenings, seminars, parties and more.


TINAG believes key questions, themes and strands will surface through a participant-led directive, becoming clearer post-event rather then being projected beforehand. The resulting urgent questions will then inform our forthcoming activities.

Unconcerned with gloss, kudos nor high visibility...TINAG is importantly not in a rush. As our festival and salons are participant developed it is expected that it will be a few years before they reach a critical mass of awareness, participants and programming. Rigor, fun, integrity and cross – European development are fundamental rather than early and bright stage lights.

 

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Photograph by Rehan Jamil
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