On a Friday afternoon in the Spring of 2021 people from 8 universities across Europe, met in an online space in the times of pandemic, curious about each other and what might be learnt by reimagining creative democracy. In a digital word-cloud they wrote ‘Freedom’, ‘Equality’ ‘Responsibility’, ‘Community’, ‘Responsibility’ ‘Diversity’ and one of them said that this is the task before us - democracy as a way of life - remembering that in 1939, as today, the ways to reimagine are all ours. Before departing they wrote a poem and agreed to meet again most enjoyably on Monday 26th April.

 

This is the poem Written at the end of our first encounter: A ReCreade Co-Creation@ April 2021.

 

Re-imagining creative democracy

 

It is how we live-out life and a set of white steps in Liverpool,

idea Islands, the dust in the corner of my room in Vienna,

meeting new people and a beautiful sunny day,

it is diversity of our group, river Emajõgi in Tartu, Estonia

using names of people, we read about or see,

a Robin Hood poster in Linköping, Sweden.

It is what is possible in the future,

windows all around me in Budapest

starting from a blank space, an empty flowerpot in Vienna,

caring about the little things on a grey wet day

interaction, a collection of covid face masks in my room,

a crisis of democracy - a mirror in front of me.

It is excitement over the course to start and

a plastic bag on the street outside my window,

freedom of expression, clear sky with sunshine

the chimney outside the window

transcending reality, the sky between the leaves of trees,

the challenge of diverse perspectives, a yellow house, Flensburg.

It is interdisciplinarity and a blossoming tree,

I saw sunlight in the sky, it was all grey the whole morning

and so, what even is maths in Budapest?

It is sharing experiences with people from many different countries and contexts,

I have drawn a tree and I see a lot of trees out of my window in Sweden

being in the middle of almost nowhere, this empty University building in Viljandi.

It is what we all have in common and the raindrops sliding down

my balcony windows in Jyväskylä,

transcending reality, the sky between the trees' leaves,

it is a seed that will grow, and I don't know what it will be,

but it will be good with plants and right-angled triangles –

my art lessons from primary school.

Is it too much democracy? A construction site in Flensburg

no expectations, at the end feeling close to lovely people

learning from a blank page coloured in a room of southern Spain

I have drawn a flower and I see a sunny day -

from my window in Flensburg

tender branches of birch tree in the storm.

I have drawn a Europe map - all together and big enough

to make difference in world.

I do not even realise, sorry!

The way my bookcase looks, it is a mess, but it does make sense

till we meet again,

the true essence of democracy.