The WHERE NEXT: CREATIVE WRITING, NARRATIVE, FILM AND CONTEMPORARY ART symposium over the last few days was a fabulous, generous and generative event – it was great to see so many colleagues, students and members of the international community there!

The symposium featured keynote presentations by Concordia University Director of the Initiative for Indigenous Futures Jason Edward Lewis, Portland-based indisciplinary artist Francesca Capone, and Toronto-based author and poet Liz Worth, a performance by recent BMO 1st Student Art Invitational winner Tamara Cardinal (Himmelspach), and talks by Christian Bök, Victoria Braun, Cheryl Foggo, Sarah Grodecki, Wendy Hill-Tout, Joe Hospodarec, Heather Huston, Silas Kaufman, Larissa Lai, Natalie Lauchlan, Alex Link, Naoko Masuda, Ashok Mathur, Jen Miziuk, Natali Rodrigues, Riley Rossmo, Devyani Saltzman, Nick Sousanis, and Andrew Wreggitt and Elders Darryl and Linda Brass.

**
It takes a community to create an event like WHERE NEXT — and I’d like to extend my deepest thanks to

ACAD’s Daniel Doz (and the Office of the President); Marianne Elder (and the Office of the Associate Vice-President of Student Affairs); Alison Miyauchi (and the Office of the Associate Vice-President of Research and Academic Affairs); Marc Scholes (and the Office of the Associate Vice-President of Instructional Affairs); Jo-Anne Clarke (and the School of Continuing Education and Professional Development);

Katie Potapoff, René Martin, JoAnn Reynolds, Steven Hodges, Myra Miller, Laura Vickerson; Natasha Peshak and the ACAD Board of Governors; ACADSA, and the the amazing ACAD Technical support team;

Beatroute, Wordfest, Chartwells and Calgary Arts Development;

the Where Next volunteer team: Daniela Amieva, Alexia Mitchell, Alicia McKenzie, Carly Munro, Ian Nicholas, Polly Orr, V’sheal Lyons, Judith Aldama, Courtney McFadden and Mark Giles;

Stephanie Dewar for all of her incredible energy;

and Michael O’Neill for all the patience and for stepping-up at the last minute.