The mental health crisis has become impossible to ignore. Nearly 1 in 8 people—close to a billion worldwide—are living with mental health disorders, and the pandemic only made things worse, with anxiety and depression rising by over 25%.

In this context, many cultural workers and creatives have expressed a sense of isolation, struggling without the support of nourishing communities.

In a way, much of the mental health crisis afflicting the world is directly proportional to our disconnection from each other. In other words, a culture of alienation deeply affects our collective well-being. So, how can we turn this around? How do we move from isolation to meaningful connection?

This critical issue was at the heart of a powerful live conversation that took place during the Creativity Revival Unconference in Milan this past October. Three incredible Creativity Pioneers came together to explore how to move from distress to collective healing—and how to cultivate resilience and vitality in our chaotic world.

In this episode, we hear from Rachel Nelken, who leads Raw Material Music & Media in Brixton, UK, a community-focused center empowering young people and adults through music and the arts. We’re also joined by Izabela Smela, President of Associazione “é” in Turin, Italy, an organization dedicated to fostering well-being, awareness, and growth through art and education. And finally, Léa Luiz de Oliveira, Creative Director of Spit it Out, shares how she uses creativity to spark conversations around mental health, consent, and healing. The wonderful psychotherapist and Moleskine Foundation advisor Ronke Oluwandare moderated all.

Welcome to the Creativity Pioneers podcast. I’m Adama Sanneh, CEO of the Moleskine Foundation.

Let’s dive in.

From climate change to social justice to racial equity and gender identity, Creativity and Culture are playing a critical role in solving the main issues affecting the planet. But creativity practitioners worldwide are isolated, undervalued, and overlooked as changemakers.

How can creative brands convene a new discourse on creativity's role in galvanizing Social Change? How can they inspire, amplify, support, and develop the vision to create a better future for the new generations?

Welcome to Creativity Pioneers, a podcast by Moleskine Foundation).

Today's episode was recorded during the last Milano Design Week in a panel discussion in partnership with Highsnobiety and Moleskine.

With:

• Daniela Riccardi, CEO of Moleskine
• Herbert Hofmann, VP Creative & Buying at Highsnobiety
• Lidi Grimaldi, CEO of Interbrand
• Marta Foresti, Founder and CEO of LAGO and Visiting Senior Fellow ODI

Creating spaces where imagination and criticality can happen is crucial. And this talk aims to be one of those spaces.

Creatives thrive in cities, and cities move, change, and grow with the creative minds they host. Urban landscapes are shaped by creative practices rooted in local communities, which can lead to transformative urban agendas with increasing attention to sustainability and inclusion. This happens because of people, collaboration, and experimentation, at the individual and institutional levels, often across borders.

Welcome to Creativity Pioneers, a podcast by Moleskine Foundation. Today’s episode was recorded during the last Milano Design Week in a panel discussion on how creative minds and talents contribute to social and economic changes in global cities, focusing on emerging markets and economies. And why this is seriously worth investing in.
With:

• Gabriella Gómez-Mont, former CMO of Mexico City and Founder of Experimentalista
• Marta Foresti, Founder and CEO of LAGO and Visiting Senior Fellow ODI
• Linda Di Pietro, Artistic Director of BASE
• Marcus Desando, Director of the Prince Claus Fund
• Emilia Terragni, Associate Publisher at Phaidon Press

The event was in partnership with ODI, Lago, and BASE.