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How Creative Expression Enhances Civic Engagement

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Has it ever seemed to you that there are more ways to be a citizen of Black Rock City than there are to be a citizen of anyplace else you live? Your home town, your county, your state?

Well, it’s not actually true, but it can certainly seem true. And the reason it seems true, according to Walker Fisher, is that there is a link between creative freedom and civic engagement. People who feel creatively empowered in turn make creative spaces, and creative spaces are easier for people to engage with as citizens than conventional spaces. That’s because creative spaces as you who you want to be, rather than forcing you to choose from a list of prescribed options.

In this Philosophical Center podcast, we talk about the link between creative freedom and civic engagement. Walker was a Philanthropic Engagement Associate with Burning Man Project at the time this was recorded.

About the author: Caveat Magister

Caveat is Burning Man's Philosopher Laureate. A founding member of its Philosophical Center, he is the author of The Scene That Became Cities: what Burning Man philosophy can teach us about building better communities, and Turn Your Life Into Art: lessons in Psychologic from the San Francisco Underground. He has also written several books which have nothing to do with Burning Man. He has finally got his email address caveat (at) burningman (dot) org working again. He tweets, occasionally, as @BenjaminWachs

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