MAP 2025 Conference Highlights: Recordings and Slides

23rd July 2025

From 10–11 July 2025, MAP hosted the International Online Conference, bringing together youth researchers, practitioners, and academics to advance arts-based peacebuilding with and for children and young people.

The conference marked a significant moment in MAP’s journey, as the UK National Commission for UNESCO has endorsed the proposed UNESCO Chair in Arts-Based Methods for Peacebuilding with and for Children and Young People. This milestone underscores MAP’s ongoing commitment to building a global community of practice, supporting creative, multidisciplinary approaches to peace, and contributing to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The six sessions explored key themes:

1. UNESCO Chair Endorsement
2. Local Cultural Forms and Arts-Based Methods
3. Adapting MAP to Different Contexts
4. Youth Research and Leadership
5. Informing Curriculum and Policy

Presenters joined from Indonesia, Rwanda, Kyrgyzstan, and Nepal.

Read the Session Summaries Report of the MAP International Online Conference 2025 and below you can access the recordings and the slides.

Session 1: UNESCO Chair Endorsement

Key Speaker: Professor Ananda Breed
Guest Speakers: Jaco du Toit and Nabha Basnyat Thapa (UNESCO Nepal)

The first session opened with the announcement of the proposed UNESCO Chair in Arts-based Methods for Peacebuilding with and for Children and Young People, endorsed by the UK National Commission for UNESCO. Professor Ananda Breed introduced its aims and four key objectives, including promoting inclusive practices, strengthening partnerships, and supporting education and cultural policy linked to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Jaco du Toit, UNESCO Representative to Nepal, reflected on the Chair’s potential as a platform for global collaboration in arts education and the creative economy. Nabha Basnyat Thapa, Head of the Culture Unit at UNESCO Nepal, shared how MAP’s approach could complement local initiatives involving youth in cultural learning and creative expression. This session laid the foundation for the rest of the MAP International Online Conference 2025, offering a space to reflect on the MAP project’s journey and to explore future opportunities for synergy and collaboration.

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Session 2: Local Cultural Forms and Arts-Based Methods

Chair: Dr Vina Puspita
Speakers: Dr Simon Dancey and Nar Bahadur Saud, Dr Anna Smirnova, Satria Yanuar Akbar, Nub Raj Bhandari
Respondent: Edem Agbe

This session explored the intersection of local knowledge, cultural forms, and arts-based methods. Speakers presented case studies on community music, folk storytelling, participatory theatre, and traditional visual arts, highlighting how culturally rooted practices engage communities and support data generation, analysis, and communication. Dr Simon Dancey and Nar Bahadur Saud shared how Deuda, a traditional performance from western Nepal, was embedded in their research to support inclusive dialogue. Dr Anna Smirnova reflected on her doctoral research in Kyrgyzstan, highlighting body mapping as a powerful tool for storytelling, cultural understanding, and participatory expression. Satria Yanuar Akbar spoke about using Angklung performance to support children’s participation in Indonesia. Nub Raj Bhandari shared how young women use Mithila art to express aspirations and challenge patriarchal norms. Edem Agbe concluded with reflections on how creative expression enables deeper understanding, and urged practitioners to support reflection and policy engagement throughout the research process.

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Session 3: Adapting MAP to Different Contexts

Chair: Professor Ananda Breed
Respondent: Dr Sarah Huxley

This session brought together MAP colleagues, youth researchers, and institutional partners to share how MAP’s values and methodologies are being adapted across cultural and institutional settings. Jean Claude (Rwanda) reflected on how MAP transformed his teaching and inspired his initiative, Hope Creation, supporting students with non-communicable diseases. Dr Chaste Uwihoreye described how MAP tools are used in counselling and mental health programmes across Rwanda’s 46 district hospitals. From Kyrgyzstan, Anara Eginalieva shared how Forum Theatre continues to support trust-building, community dialogue, and work with women returnees. Nub Raj Bhandari (Nepal) highlighted youth-led engagement and the importance of safe, open spaces. Haikel Buchori’s (Youth Advisory Board Indonesia) short film Jangan Main Bola di Lapangan, based on his MAP workshop artwork, illustrated the power of youth storytelling. Respondent Dr Sarah Huxley emphasised values-led practice, the dynamic role of art in research, and the challenge of translating creative insights into policy spaces.

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Session 4: Youth Research and Leadership

Chairs: Juhi Adhikari and Emmanuel Kigundu (Youth Researchers)
Respondents: Maria Kypriotou (UNESCO) and Dr Kirrily Pells

This session highlighted youth-led arts-based research, with young researchers from Nepal, Rwanda, Kyrgyzstan, and Indonesia reflecting on their journeys through MAP. Juhi Adhikari and Emmanuel Kigundu opened the discussion, followed by powerful stories from Rasid (Indonesia), Ayana (Kyrgyzstan), Ramila (Nepal), Celeste (Rwanda), and others. They described how creative methods supported leadership, advocacy, and emotional expression, and called for continued support for meaningful youth participation.

In their responses, Maria Kypriotou (UNESCO) identified three areas to strengthen: fostering intergenerational dialogue, translating practice into policy by working with decision-makers, and developing a shared understanding of youth engagement. She pointed to UNESCO tools that could support this work.
Dr Kirrily Pells (UCL) reflected on the importance of connection, among youth, across generations, and between inner and outer peace. She emphasised that participation should remain flexible and context-driven, and recognised the session’s strong message of hope, creativity, and transformation brought forward by young people.

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Session 5: Informing Curriculum and Policy in Rwanda and Nepal

Chair: Dr Sarah Huxley
Speakers: Binod Prasad Pant, PhD, Nub Raj Bhandari, Dr Chaste Uwihoreye
Respondent: Professor Tim Prentki

This session highlighted how arts-based approaches and local partnerships have helped shape curricula and influence education policy in Nepal and Rwanda. Dr Binod Prasad Pant shared an arts education framework developed with Kathmandu University, grounded in Nepal’s cultural values and focused on child-centred, holistic learning. Nub Raj Bhandari presented a local curriculum centred on Mithila art, co-developed with communities in Madhes Province and now ready for classroom pilot. Dr Chaste Uwihoreye shared how MAP’s arts-based mental health initiatives have been integrated into Rwanda’s CPD system and recognised at national policy level. A short documentary from the Gira Ingoma (One Drum per Girl) project was also screened. Responding to the session, Professor Tim Prentki reflected on the power of intergenerational knowledge, the revival of critical pedagogy, and the importance of recognising young people not just as contributors, but as policymakers.

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Session 6: Informing Curriculum and Policy in Kyrgyzstan and Indonesia

Chair: Professor Richard Hazenberg
Speakers: Anara Eginalieva, Nurlan Asanbekov, Dr Yohana Ratrin Hestyan, Rendiansyah Putra Dinata, Dr Vina Puspita
Respondent: Professor Tim Prentki

This closing session reflected on how MAP’s arts-based approach is influencing education and policy in Kyrgyzstan and Indonesia. Anara Eginalieva shared the Dialogue Through Art initiative in Kyrgyzstan, where youth-led School Clubs produced 16 policy briefs through arts-based dialogue. Nurlan Asanbekov highlighted how theatre classes foster community connection and personal growth, supported by new national theatre guidelines.

In Indonesia, Rendiansyah Putra Dinata from Save the Children presented GENPEACE, where children used traditional arts to engage policymakers. Dr Yohana Ratrin Hestyan shared Beyond Tradition, which revitalised Betawi arts for peacebuilding and psychosocial support, advocating their inclusion in Jakarta’s school curriculum. Dr Vina Puspita presented a youth mural-making project in Jakarta that reimagined public space and culminated in a guidebook.

Respondent Professor Tim Prentki emphasised meaningful participation, youth as policymakers, and MAP’s role in connecting tradition and transformation through the arts as a vital tool for resilience and dialogue.