Brave New Literatures 2022

With two extremely successful editions of the Festival of Hope, which took place during the covid-19 pandemic, we gave a clear signal that poetry is one of the major vessels of hope. In a time of uncertainty, we connected artists from all over the world, offered a voice to the oppressed, weak and excluded, called for dialogue, nurtured diversity and human creativity, as well as built a bridge between continents and cultures.

After two editions of Festival of Hope, in 2022 we asked ourselves if pandemic instead of becoming a connective tissue, has in fact pronounced our antagonisms even further and shattered our visions of the common future. As an answer came to the life the digital initiative, Brave New Literatures, which took place between January and March 2022, with the main focus to counter the all-encompassing pessimism, while providing a platform to those brave literary actors that have developed practices and frameworks that surpass the status quo, that offer novelty, raise awareness and perhaps even mobilize.

While addressing the global community in our search for already existing or upcoming projects that tackle the issue of the future of literature, be it on the level of the publishing industry or the art itself, we focused on 6 different categories:

• Literary activity of tomorrow
• Artificial Intelligence Imaginaries
• Publishing of the future
• The environment
• Brave new digital worlds
• Connect not divide

Together with more than 50 international organizations and individuals, participating from all around the globe we were researching the role of literature and arts in the future, we asked ourselves of current and future challenges of our industry, use of artificial intelligence and digitalization, protection of our environment, examples of good practices in culture and society, while raising awareness and giving the voice to the voiceless. Together with you, we have proven that literature is not and has never been obsolete, but can function as a laboratory of new, progressive ideas that strengthen communities, as well as individuals.