Dear Friends in the Pd Forum,
We are delighted to report that The 4th annual Carnival of e-Creativity (CeC
- is scheduled to be held February 27 to March 1, 2009 (a
Friday-Saturday-Sunday in springtime/late-winter, as usual) , in the sylvan
spaces of Sattal Estate, just above Bhimtal, near Nainital, in the Lower
Kumaon of the new Himalayan Indian state of Uttarakhand.
A basic webpage on this has now been posted up at
http://www.theaea.org/cec_cac/cec09/index.htm, with just a few images and
overviews of location, venue(s), and also some participant-accommodation,
for planning and general information. Links are provided to the iterations
of 2006-07-08, but the 2009 site itself will be fully updated only just
before, and then just after, the actual incident.
As you'd expect, this migration of The Carnival of e-Creativity has come
about as a result of given circumstances and several months of consultations
with advisors, trustees, past-participants, partners and others, all over
the world.
Sattal was eventually deemed to be the best option out of the 4 outstanding
alternatives that were before us from around India, including Delhi itself,
on account of its immediate promise and also its longer term potential.
As CeC looks to progress into the future, it cannot constructively do so on
an ad hoc year-to-year basis. And, the potential to actually connect with a
lively local community on an ongoing basis, as opposed to featuring once a
year in the unending lists of entertainments and diversions of a
market-driven metropolis, goes a long way towards achieving our broad
general intent that the incident should be *meaningful* to society at large,
rather than to just the participants and some small random coteries.
However, participants will find that the opportunity for networking and
working amongst themselves as well as with select local practitioners, which
emerged to be one of the most beautiful aspects of this incident in the
past, is something that will be stronger in the new situation.
It therefore gives us immense pleasure and satisfaction that the Sattal
Estate was in fact the very first venue we had thought of, and even explored
as a possibility, 3-4 years ago.
Nonetheless, we are very specially grateful to India International Centre
and our past participants in Delhi, for having unstintingly and
enthusiastically given us the three years of robust momentum and credibility
upon which we can now so confidently build this huge, and possibly-risky,
move.
Yes, there are "downsides" ~ for example, it will be cold, and living
conditions inside the cottages are very austere; some potential participants
and partners will prefer city options, for various reasons; others will just
not have the extra time for the extra travel; and so on.
On the upside ~ we can have bonfires, even crowd up in the better cottages
to get cozy; no one will feel alone amongst millions; there are all sorts of
good reasons and lovely nearby places that could make one want to actually
spend more time here; and so on.
What do you think?
We look forward to having your goodwill, association, support, participant
and content, in CeC 2009 and onwards.
Keep well ~ Shankar
Shankar Barua
Managing Trustee ~ The Academy of e-Arts
.... presently at:
The 2nd Last Resort, on The Chill Street
near Nal Damyanti Tal / Sattal
Bhimtal (Uttarakhand) - 236136
INDIA
tel: (91-5942) 247598, mobile: (91) 9868732876, or 9837667355