First off, and more serious, is the "J8" school competition organised jointly by the Department for Education and Skills and the Morgan Stanley International Foundation and administered by Eductation Direct.

"J8" brings to mind the date based shorthand used for many anti-globalisation protests since J18 - June 18th 1999 - or The International Carnival Against Capitalism.

Its an educational programme coupled with a competion for uk school kids aged 13 - 16yrs.

The website  http://www.j8changetheworld.com says:

"The J8 programme is the first global citizenship initiative of its kind to be launched in secondary schools across the United Kingdom, and is open to pupils aged 13 to 16.

J8 is the opportunity for young people to address some of the most important issues facing our world today. The programme will culminate in a J8 Summit, modelled on the G8, where competition winners will debate topical issues with other participating schools, and communicate their views on how to change the world to the leaders of the G8 countries."

The programme of course has been designed to fit with the national curriculum, to provide a G8 framework for tackling many issues. It also of course seeks to paint Tony Blair and the UK Government as the global pioneers in terms of Debt and Climate Change. A quick look at the initial material shows what you can expect from the full programme.

(nb it's also supported by the Scottish National Executive, the National Assembly of Wales, and the Dept of Eduction, Norther Ireland)

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YA BASTA!

The other is just a bit cheeky. A call for artistic projects around the G8 next year in scotland has nicked the name of Italia group Ya Basta - it's a good idea for an initiative, but a bit of a cheek!...

This from a post on G8 Alternatives forum:

CALL TO ARTISTS, ACTIVISTS, VENUES AND PROMOTORS

Ya Basta! - a period of cultural action confronting the G8

Ya Basta! is a period of cultural action leading up to the G8 arriving in Scotland in July 05.

It will involve performances from Scotland’s leading political theatre makers including 7:84, Birds of Paradise and Theatre Workshop as well as residencies, participatory workshops, film screenings and exhibitions. We hope that a wide range of people from every part of Scotland will become involved. If you are planning an event between mid May and early July, you may want to be part of the Ya Basta! programme. Venues, such as The Arches and Tramway, in Glasgow, are already getting involved.

Our Philosophy

Ya Basta!, like those who protest at the G8, is a broad movement of people who want to say enough is enough, the agenda of the G8 leaders is not our agenda and we want to make our voices heard through the activity that we know best – the arts.

We also hope to demystify both the G8 and the protests by making work on themes held dear by both sides. Participants in Ya Basta! are free to identify which particular theme they wish to focus on whether local or global.


We want to reach out to those who are already active in organising protests and engage them both in using and enjoying the arts as alternatives to mass media.

We dream of engaging with people who believe that the economics of the G8 is the only possible world order and showing them an alternative.

We want to wake up those who have never considered the power of corporations and faceless institutions. By profiling the non-dominant world view, we can explain and show just why those protesting feel so passionately about the power of the G8.

Cultural Action

As well as the companies already mentioned, we are still hoping to fill a programme running from mid-May to the beginning of July. Therefore we want to invite companies, individuals and groups to be part of Ya Basta!

Existing companies and venues might consider sympathetic programming as a way of fitting into the action.

Grassroots and community groups might find Ya Basta! to be the ideal platform from their creative campaigning.

Individuals could become involved through residencies, exhibitions or publications or simply by engaging with newfound networks.
At the moment the programme is wide open and we hope to be able to respond to as many ideas as possible.

Ya Basta! is being organised by a team of interested colleagues, who believe that by working together we can make this happen. Although we do not have funds for commissioning work we hope to be able to publicise events through print for Ya Basta!, which will be distributed nationwide.

Get involved

To facilitate planning and collaboration we are holding a meeting:

15th Dec 04
5pm -7pm
The Arches

Refreshments Provided. This will provide a forum for artists, activists and venues to meet with a view to creating projects.

The deadline for submissions is 20th Jan 05.

For further information contact;
Jean Cameron, The Arches on 0141-565-1000  jean@thearches.co.uk
Morven Gregor, Birds of Paradise on 0141-339-1155  morvenbop@aol.com