An invitation to Irv's Eye View

Dear BakaFORUM Friends,

Although it has been a few years since the last BakaFORUM, I know some of you check this blog from time to time. So I am inviting you to view and read my personal blog at

irvseyeview.blogspot.com

Some of the ideas and themes are consistent with what we enjoyed about BakaFORUM. Others stand on their own.

Wishing you all the best. I hope one day we can all gather together and revisit the energy that made BakaFORUM unique and special.

Best wishes,

Irv

BaKaFORUM's End?

In case you have not yet heard, BaKaFORUM has become a casualty of these difficult economic times. I will paste the notes from general manager Michael Koechlin and program manager Markus Nikel, below, for those who not have seen them.

Here is part of what I wrote to Michael and members of the program committee:

"BaKaFORUM was indeed a forum. But it was also a stage, a platform, a source of friendship, and a gathering place for men and women from every region of the world to dream and share those dreams. My hope is that the seeds sown at BaKaFORUM over the years may become something powerful in the future, obviously now in a different form, or maybe not.

"Perhaps in the coming days, weeks, and months, the many of us who were
enriched by our association with BaKaFORUM can create something new
from what BaKaFORUM began."

(Signed, Irv Kass)

Here are the notes from Michael and Markus:

A Sad End for the BaKaFORUM

"Dear BaKaFORUM Community

I am afraid I have to inform all our supporters, friends and visitors that the BaKaFORUM will cease to exist by the end of 2011. At the end of october, the government of Basel has rejected our application for the funding (subsidy) of the BaKaFORUM and transfer into the department of education as from 2012. Earlier on, the two founders, the SRG and the DEZA, had already reduced their financial support. In these economically difficult times we could not find sponsors who would compensate for these substantial losses of funding. The denial of the official support by the city of Basel logically also ends the partnership Basel-Karlsruhe in funding the BaKaFORUM. Given this situation, the foundation council had no other possibility but to decide in its meeting of 10th November 2011 to dissolve the foundation and to liquidate the BaKaFORUM by the end of 2011.

"I want to thank everybody, especially those many, many BaKaFORUM participants, collaborators, contest participants and winners and all those wonderful partners and friends who have always generously supported the BaKaFORUM over such a long time. I do very much hope that the ideas, the goals, the commitment and the network of the BaKaFORUM will live on in some way, in some place and find other ways of support.

"With all my best wishes and kind regards,

"Michael Koechlin
General Manager

"Dear all

"it's been a pleasure and very enriching professional and human experience to work
for and with the BaKaFORUM. After the decision taken by the City of Basel to end this event, I think it is very important to make sure that the network related to BaKaFORUM finds a new reference and continuity, and I would like you to know that I am working on this matter. Talks have been started already with the EBU's Science and Education Experts Group, and my feeling is that there is a strong interest in maintaining the network alive and in making it productive for the future.

"For any suggestions in this sense, please do not hesitate to contact me at m.nikel@rai.it

"Thank you and best wishes,
Markus Nikel"

A Final Thought--(from Irv Kass)

Please feel free to use the "comments" area of this blog to share ideas in an open forum. My personal hope is that the extraordinary energy, talent, and commitment of those who made BaKaFORUM a success over the years will evolve into an even more exciting future. As economies improve, a second act may become even more powerful than the first.

Thank you.

BaKaFORUM 2012 will not be in January

For those who check this blog from time to time, please take a look at the BaKaFORUM homepage for more information about the decision to not schedule BaKaFORUM 2012 in late January as has been the practice for the last several years. According to BaKaFORUM.net, the hope is to convene BaKaFORUM during the fall of 2012.

We will pass along more information as it becomes available.

A different take on media literacy

Hello, again, everybody. As our memories of BaKaFORUM 2011 become more distant, I continue to reflect upon and process our three days together. One of the key discussion areas was media literacy. This topic is so important for all of us as producers and consumers. The educational efforts of several organizations, quite notably different United Nations entities, help spread the word. Many schools, at every level, have embraced media literacy. Subsets of the topic include news literacy and advertising literacy, to name just two.

As I thought about BaKaFORUM, last week, I wrote a personal blog that was not specifically about media literacy and certainly did not reference the topic. But, as I look back it may have some relevance. So, I post the link for your consideration. My comments refer to the current media environment in the United States. I'm interested in knowing how you see things from other parts of the world.

BaKaFORUM and other gatherings that celebrate the best in media help us also recognize, by contrast, the toxic messages that have always been around. This serves as an antidote to "crap" in its many varieties. And that too is a form of media literacy.

The trip home & pictures from Awards Night

The 6,400 mile (10,300 km) journey home went rather smoothly. The nearly full Boeing 767 that flew us from Zurich to the New York area landed just 20 minutes behind schedule leaving plenty of time to make the connecting flight to California. The only minor excitement happened as the plane from Newark to San Diego was taxiing to the runway. The captain came on the plane's public address system to tell us the emergency vehicles racing to the left side of our aircraft were, in fact, for us. He quickly added that it was nothing to worry about. As our jet's crew fired up the 737's left engine, the pilots in the plane behind saw the engine "belch" (his word) out a little flame. Our captain seemed unconcerned as he explained this happens some time and it's usually not a problem. Safety being most important, this fiery belch required an inspection by emergency crews to be sure the plane was safe to fly. As the fire trucks retreated, the captain got back on and said we were number one for departure. About a minute later, we were in the air headed west, the considerable New York and New Jersey snow on the ground fading in the distance. A little more than five hours later, we landed at San Diego's Lindbergh Field where the temperature was a pleasant 55 F (13 C) degrees at 8:00 in the evening. So, 24 hours after leaving the hotel in Basel, I was home.

BaKaFORUM's attendees come from near and far. Whether close or distant, I hope everybody's journey home went as smoothly as mine. As we all get back to our daily routine, here are some of Werner Laschinger's fine photos from the closing ceremony and reception to help keep the BaKaFORUM spirit fresh in our minds' eyes. Thank you all, particularly our hosts in Basel and the BaKaFORUM team, for an inspiring three days. Enjoy.






 

BaKaFORUM 2011 Prize Winners

2011 BaKaFORUM Awards, photo by Werner Laschinger

The juries have made their selections. Here are your 2011 BaKaFORUM prize winners and finalists:

Cross-Media Prize for School and Youth Education

 Highrise-Out My Window       National Film Board of Canada (PRIZE WINNER)


13 at War                                      NTR                           Netherlands (Finalist)

Lisa’s Mission                              KRO                           Netherlands (Finalist)

Una Ma de Contes                       CCRTV Interactive    Spain (Honorable Mention)

Cross-Media Prize for Adult Education

The Anxiety Monster                 UR                               Sweden (PRIZE WINNER)

Collapsus: The Energy Risk
Conspiracy                                   Submarine                    Netherlands (Finalist)

The Behaviour Challenge            Teachers TV                 United Kingdom (Finalist)



Youth Jury Prize

13 at War                                     NTR                        Netherlands (PRIZE WINNER)

Evolution of Life                          CNDP                      France (Finalist)

Highrise-Out My Window           National Film Board of Canada (Finalist)


Proposal Prize


Let’s Play Please                    Doordarshan             India (PRIZE WINNER)

Bata Ang Bukas                       Anak TV, Inc.              Philippines (Finalist)

SORCERY: A Weapon of
Power                                       Corp. Paz y Media      Colombia (Finalist)

Media literacy and a short, powerful message

This afternoon's media literacy and democracy workshop offered several "enlightening visions" of how educating students and teachers will serve our common interests. Each of the presenters shared projects and strategies to help promote media and information literacy. The United Nations, in particular, was well represented with three presentations having a connection to the UN. Here's a link to the page on the BaKaFORUM website that includes all the links to today's workshop.

Here's one highlight from a project that teaches young people to make one minute "films" in order to tell their stories. What you'll see is how a Black student from the Ukraine chose to produce a message designed to combat racism. It's from the http://theoneminutesjr.org project.