15 05 2018
Openki festival 2018 impression
Over the course of five days we celebrated self-organized education: With more than 30 courses from the local population, discussions on the topic of self-organized learning and concerts.
The festival kicked off on Wednesday evening at the Kunsthalle, where we welcomed helpers and mentors, answered questions, and toasted the festival in high spirits. Our lively community immediately provided the first spontaneous course with a salsa lesson.
On Thursday and Friday, participants took up the challenge of designing a course in the morning and then running it that same afternoon. This led to spontaneous canon singing, philosophical discussions, explanations of online encryption, sauerkraut kneading, and JavaScript programming.
We officially opened the festival on Friday evening with the first announced courses, homemade risotto, and a presentation on the Openki project. From Electro Boogie (dance) and homemade deodorant to learning Walliser German, there was a course for everyone. In the discussion round “Self-Organized Education – Does It Work?”, we took a critical look at self-organized learning. At the end of the evening, we said goodbye to the Kunsthalle Zürich and looked back on the numerous Openki Courses, that had taken place there over the past six months.
On Saturday, we opened up new spaces in Zurich and moved the festival center to the Photobastei. Even before the homemade falafel at lunchtime, you could learn traditional Thai massage and contact improvisation. In the afternoon, we continued with acrobatics, knitting, and Monkey Management. We also met with course mentors and organizers to share experiences and challenges. Lila Lisi, Manu and Jerry, and DJane Nadia then accompanied us into a lively evening.
On Sunday, a balafon band gave us the energy we needed for the final round of courses and a discussion on the next steps toward a self-organized learning community in Zurich.
At the closing aperitif on Sunday evening, we celebrated a successful festival with a mix of joy and exhaustion.
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