Harrison Owen shared a story from Bill Cleveland, of the Center for the Study of Art and Community, who facilitates numerous OST events addressing the question:

How can those involved in the arts and community development work together to create caring and capable communities?

Bill says that:

One interesting aspect has been the increasing space that has emerged within the OST process for the use of the arts themselves as tools for communication and making meaning.

One event that I have facilitated for the past eight years is a gathering of 150-200 artists and educators called the Minnesota Artist/Educator Institute. This gathering has a rotating cast of returnees and newcomers who come prepared not only to discuss and debate the best practices in arts education, but also to MAKE ART using OST… We take over all the arts facilities on campus. Theaters, dance studios, print making studios, welding studios, clay studios, computer graphics suites …. for FIVE DAYS of 24 hour, OST driven creative insanity…

…I am thinking that these arts-infused OST practices might be an interesting addition to your evolving peace program…

Read the rest here.