On April 10, Venue was abuzz with excitement as audience members awaited the start of the Create Change Show Night, the final installment of several recent art events spearheaded by a diverse array of university societies including Global Justice Stirling and Student Action for Refugees (STAR).
All performances highlighted social and environmental change and the showcase aimed to raise both funds and awareness for two vital causes: enhancing scholarships for refugees and asylum seekers and promoting a petition to support the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty initiative.
There were many fabulous music, dance, and spoken-word acts throughout the evening. Dan played some very impressive folk songs on his 12-string guitar which was mesmerizing to watch and Emile, Isabelle, Corin, and Beth all gave beautiful vocal performances. Jani also demonstrated the impact that spoken poetry can have.
Agnese and Jubilea commanded the audience’s attention with their interpretive dance routine featuring plastic bag costumes to highlight climate issues. A group named The Greeks performed a powerful dance piece about the tragic self-sacrifice of Greek women during the invasion of Ottoman troops in 1803.
The night was also sprinkled with informative videos about climate change, as well as thought-provoking presentations, and Jamie used his speech to make the audience question: “What does global justice mean to displaced people?”
Rhianna Knisely from Global Justice spoke to Brig about multiple societies banding together to make the Create Change event initiative and said: “Everyone kept pitching in ideas and it blew up into a whole event.”
Knisely also emphasised their determination to highlight the interlinked nature of refugee issues and climate issues.
“As the climate gets warmer, weather patterns become unpredictable, and areas become less liveable, the number of refugees around the world who don’t have anywhere to go will increase and lots of countries don’t have plans for how to move them in an effective way,” Knisely said. “They are just displaced out in the wind and our event hopes to bring awareness to this.”
Laila Hisham Anter Faried from the STAR society explained to Brig the need to raise money for refugee scholarships: “Currently refugees and asylum seekers only get a maintenance loan of up to £3,000, which is around £250 a month, and this is not enough.”
Everyone involved did excellent at mixing art with activism and using their skills as a form of protest. Donations to Create Change can be made through Just Giving.
Featured Image Credit: Nathan RuoYu Hua
