You can check the official Handbook and Timetable here:
http://futureeverything.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/FutureEverything_Handbook.pdf
The FutureEverything Summit of Ideas & Digital Invention is centred around the Conference on Thursday 21 and Friday 22 March at Four Piccadilly Place, Manchester.
The Conference brings together artists, thinkers and industry figures from around the world, across multiple disciplines to take part in presentations, debates, panels and participatory sessions. Alongside the main Conference programme we also present a series of workshops, fringe events, innovation labs and an art programme over six days.
There is a 48 hour innovation challenge on Saturday 23 and Sunday 24 March with cash and development prizes available for new, useful applications using open data. Workshops include The Business of Open Data, the Europeana Mashup, and the RGBDToolkit Workshop- crafting an entirely new form of 3D media and film. Art events include Quays Culture present Speed of Light by NVA, an extraordinary public art performance at MediaCityUK; Crafts Council present Weave Waves by Scanner and Ismini Samanidou; and an art performance by Michelle Teran at Manchester Art Gallery. The music programme presents some of the finest contemporary electronic and experimental music from around the world at Islington Mill, and a unique multi sensory performance from Throbbing Gristle’s Carter Tutti at MediaCityUK.
The FutureEverything Summit looks at three themes – The Data Society, Future Cities and Creative Code:
The Data Society
Big Data and Open Data are reshaping whole industries and institutions as web technologies mature, mobile access becomes dominant and new devices allow people to consume, learn, create and share with each other. Business, education, culture and government have the opportunity to create completely new possibilities for engagement with citizens and users through data driven services and platforms. In the Data Society it’s essential we all understand our relationship with Data: Can we use it? Do we own it? What can we learn about ourselves from the data we produce?
We look at the idea of the Digital Public Space, an ambitious international initiative that FutureEverything is helping to champion. The goal is to give everyone everywhere unrestricted access to an open resource of culture and knowledge. There is a huge opportunity to unlock our rich digital archives of knowledge and personal expression and bring them to life through intelligent design and open standards. New online platforms are transforming the creative and economic ecosystem, and in many cases replacing institutions as they become direct points of contact between start-ups and users, artists and audiences. Speakers from Google, BBC, Europeana, Vimeo, Kickstarter and Creators Project will reflect on their impact on culture and the creative industries.
Future Cities
Technologists, urbanists, developers and citizens are working to make our urban environments better by rethinking the fabric and infrastructure of cities, transport, energy use, and the density of urban life. Cities around the world are hitting the same impasse. No one has so far found a way to intelligently bring together the big technology platforms offered by the global corporations, with local technology projects and the interests of citizens.
A group of influential thinkers including Dan Hill (CEO of Fabrica and renowned expert on future cities), Anthony Townsend (Institute for the Future) and Usman Haque(founder of Pachube-COSM) will shift the debate towards ‘Smart Citizens’ and answer a defining challenge facing smart city developers around the world – how to build a bespoke smart city.
Creative Code
Code is the language humans use to design technical systems. It has become the primary construction material of our civilisation. It permeates our products, architecture, institutions and identity. Artists who use code as their media are augmenting cities, manipulating matter, creating robotic agents and gaming our communication systems. Code mutates our creative capacities, it affects our language, taste and ethics.
In this strand we present digital media artists who work with code as their material, often as a part of collaborative, open source communities. Working as both artist and engineer, they build the platforms that other artists and agencies use in their own practice. They will discuss their projects and principles, and we will see how the art world is responding to its developing relationship with technology. They will discuss their projects and principles, and we will see how the art world is responding to its developing relationship with technology. Creative Code by FutureEverything is a part of the 2013 programme of the ECAS network.