What happened next?
In today’s unpredictable world, more diverse people included in contributing and testing more diverse ideas more often, could help solve more local and global problems sooner, and create better opportunities for people and planet.
Unfortunately, regional towns often struggle to tap into the abundant ideas present in their communities. Everyday people, who may not consider themselves creative or entrepreneurial, and may not want to start a business or change the world, possess untapped potential for creativity and innovation. Termed by this study as the ‘creative underground,’ they can contribute to social and economic outcomes for the city. Unfortunately, government and industry initiatives often overlook this resource, hindering its full potential.
This QUT PhD research, aligned with the Digital Media Research Centre’s ARC Linkage project (LP190100677) on “Advancing digital inclusion in low income Australian families” in partnership with The Smith Family (https://www.thesmithfamily.com.au/) and the State Government of Queensland’s Department of Communities, Housing and the Digital Economy (Pure ID 144978239 “Improving Social Inclusion Pathways for Low-Income Families in Townsville through Place-Based Creative Collaborations”), focuses on the creative underground in the regional city of Townsville. Specifically, it explores how individuals from low-income families, who are digitally excluded, and may experience social isolation and/or loneliness, engage in creativity and innovation. The study aims to (i) uncover the social and economic impact of their creative practice, and; (ii) investigate ways to foster collaboration between the creative underground, government, and industry. This should create mutually beneficial progress that may include economic empowerment and opportunities for positive social impact for both the city and the residents of Townsville.
Research Question: How can regional governments and industry organisations collaborate better with the creative underground for social and economic outcomes?
1. What motivates the creative underground to engage in creative practice?
2. How do the creative underground practice creativity and what are the social and economic outcomes of their practice?
3. How do pathways and relationships form between the creative underground, government, and industry and what are the social and economic outcomes of these pathways?
4. How does the initiative impact a participant’s sense of digital and social inclusion and combat social isolation and loneliness?
This PhD utilises Participatory Action Research (PAR) as the chosen methodological paradigm, and employs interviews and workshops for data collection and co-construction of knowledge, to explore how the creative underground (humans with dreams and ideas) interact with organisations that have resources, structure, and power (industry, government, universities, non-profits) in the regional city of Townsville and the social, economic, and ecological outcomes for themselves, their families, and their community.
- Hidden within your local neighbourhood are ambitious humans who chase dreams, pursue ideas, and solve problems, for themselves, their friends, and their communities.
- Visible in your city are places that help humans create, connect, learn, innovate…
- Helpers guide the underground to produce new knowledge, skills, and opportunities.
- Organisations engage the underground, providing resources and initiatives to help humans pursue dreams and ideas.
- Researchers develop knowledge so that communities can better understand how to activate their creative underground.
The communities we love don’t just happen. They grow through imagination, ambition, creativity, collaboration, evolving innovation, and participation.