Planetism and Creativity: Personal value systems as a way of developing human sustainability in education through the arts

Imagining the voyage

"If we want to create an outstanding education system we must imagine it first. We cannot work to create a future which we do not first imagine." – Peter Ellyard, 2004

The Queensland Academy for Creative Industries (QACI) is a new educational initiative imagined and administered by Education Queensland. It is a selective Academy, positioning the International Baccalaureate Diploma Program within the context of the Creative Industries and the Queensland University of Technology.

We position contemporary research into creativity as a key driver in educational reform, within the conceptual and operational frameworks of the Queensland Academy for Creative Industries . The Academy vision "To be the world-class learning environment of choice for the inspirational creative generation" is drawn from research by Richard Florida, whose notions of talent, technology and tolerance inform the synergies of ethical pathmakers, supported by the research of the Australian futurist Peter Ellyard.

Imagine a voyage of venturers sharing connected visions, values and virtues travelling in the same vehicle. Peter Ellyard encourages us to imagine students embracing a personal value system compatible with 21 st century realities of future markets, industries and ethics. Imagine  teachers informing curricular responses through the arts to global issues of sustainability: economy, technological change and cultural innovation.

Similarly, the work of Sir Ken Robinson (pdf 151kb), who positions creativity as another form of literacy and numeracy, informs our commitment to empowering student voices of inquiry, critical thinking, responsible citizenship and positive innovation at the Queensland Academy of Creative Industries.