Advanced Diploma in Cultural Mediation: Community, Arts and Technologies

Originating in Europe and widely developed in countries like Canada, cultural mediation has acquired its status and function in major cultural institutions worldwide. A common definition in Europe describes it as “a set of actions that, through an intermediary (the mediator, who may be a professional, an artist, a facilitator, or a peer), aim to connect an individual or group with a cultural or artistic offering (an original work of art, an exhibition, a concert, a performance, etc.) with the objective of fostering its understanding, knowledge, and appreciation” (Aboudrar and Mairesse 2018, 15). This definition is conceived around processes embedded in traditional cultural spheres, such as museums and major cultural institutions.
This Diploma program takes the premise that many actions and projects could fit the definition of cultural mediation, but that we generally know them under different concepts, depending on the country and academic or intellectual traditions. For example, in our region, the model of the cultural or sociocultural facilitator or the cultural promoter is widespread at different times and with different approaches. Even within the very idea of ​​university outreach or engagement, we could find multiple projects that would fit some ideas of cultural mediation. A common element in all these actions is the idea of ​​connection; that is, thinking of these actions as a way of forging bonds with others, based on cultural and artistic productions, to produce new meanings, deconstruct existing ones, and enable new ways of living in community.
We therefore begin by considering cultural mediation as a practice and as an emerging discipline that has not yet formed a clearly defined field of problems, with the exception of the French case and some Canadian experiences. Although some aspects of the topic have recently been developed in Latin America, for example in Chile (Peters 2019), it is not yet possible to approach it from an international perspective.
Given this scenario, the need arose to initiate a process of systematizing the diverse trajectories associated with cultural mediation in the region, while simultaneously developing specific training that brings together the knowledge that forms a conceptual framework unique to these latitudes. Therefore, in 2019, the National University of the Arts (UNA) of Argentina launched an initial training program for cultural mediators, which served as the starting point for the implementation of this online Diploma in 2020, in conjunction with the Latin American Council of Social Sciences (CLACSO). This program facilitates dialogue between trainees and cultural producers in Latin America and the Caribbean.

The Diploma program is designed for professionals from diverse fields such as the arts, cultural management, teaching, community cultural work, and activism, among others. It is also intended for individuals working in traditional and specialized arts and culture spaces (museums, theaters, cultural centers, libraries, public cultural departments, etc.), as well as those working in non-traditional spaces (community centers, neighborhood clubs, union spaces, foundations, and civil society organizations focused on social intervention, etc.), or for those who wish to work in these areas.

• João Luiz “Juca” Silva Ferreira (Former Minister of Culture (2008 - 2010 / 2014 - 2016, Brazil),
• Sandra Torlucci (UNA, Argentina),
• Victor Miguel Vich Florez (PUCP, Peru),
• Yamila Volnovich (UNA, Argentina),
• Damián Del Valle (UNA, Argentina),
• Federico Baeza (UNA, Argentina),
• François Mairesse (Université Sorbonne Nouvelle Paris 3, France),
• Bruno Nassim Aboudrar (Université Sorbonne Nouvelle Paris 3, France),
• Silvia Susana Alderoqui (C3, Argentina),
• Cecilia Tosoratti (Argentina),
• Rosario Lucesole (UNA, Argentina),
• Marcela Rapallo (UNA, Argentina),
• María Araceli Soto (UNA, Argentina),
• Bianca Racioppe (UNLP, Argentina),
• Daniel Franco (UBA, Argentina),
• Gabriela Augustowsky (UNA, Argentina),
• Pablo Leibson (UMET, Argentina),
• Alejandro Arce (UNA, Argentina),
• Edgardo Gabriel Garzón (ISTLyR, Argentina)