5) Description of initiative: freeDimensional is building a bridge between the human rights advocacy sector and independent artist residency initiatives in order that the accommodation dilemma experienced by the former can be resolved by the accommodation capacity of the latter. By partnering human rights organizations with residential artist communities we are able to facilitate rapid response, tactical placement of human rights defenders in need of assistance. The network provides administrative and organizing support to residency initiatives worldwide that seek to create a flexible web of short-term safe havens for exiled human rights defenders who have been working at the intersection of arts and journalism before fleeing their countries of origin. freeDimensional especially seeks to accommodate:

a. Young communicators working in any media who lack support and the protective recognition of the international community for their creative work detailing oppressive social issues; b. Artists working with new media that are not fully understood in their local area and for which there is government backlash and sanction; c. Artists and communicators expressing themselves on environmental issues, particularly those elucidating the politics surrounding natural resources and migration.

Section excerpted from a Forefront Leaders Report:

Human rights defenders do not decide to leave their homes after one single threat or incident. However in many instances, there is one particular event that eventually triggers the final decision. Examples of these events included detentions (including mistreatment and torture while detained), detentions of family members or co- workers, flogging, harassment, and office raids. Activists living in war zones or amidst heavy conflict often take the decision to leave after a specific political event or a particular action by the government or armed forces that seems extraordinarily alarming to them.

6) Description of innovation: freeDimensional works with artist residency initiatives and neighborhood associations around the world to respond rapidly using their physical space as creative safe haven at crucial times for individual artists, journalists and human rights defenders-in-exile. The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders states that in 2004 “1,154 defenders and over 200 organizations committed to the defense of human rights [were] targeted by acts of repression in about 90 countries.” However, the worst case scenario is that censorship results in death rather than expulsion; a report by the Committee to Protect Journalists shows that between 1995 and 2004, 337 journalists were killed while practicing their profession. Amnesty International states that a human rights defender is someone who exposes "human rights violations, such as torture and disappearances, committed by state agents. They speak out on behalf of marginalized social groups, children, indigenous and poor people. They seek to end impunity by challenging the perpetrators of human rights violations and reminding all states of their obligation to bring perpetrators to justice and to uphold the rule of law. In some countries human rights defenders are often the only credible source of information regarding human rights violations (see www.amnesty.org).” Through quick placement action and safe haven, freeDimensional can save lives and lift the voices of these important communicators. Additionally, artist residency initiatives and neighborhoods benefit from this unique collaboration through enriched community, youth and environmental programs and by using their physical space to counter marginalizing issues at the local, regional and global levels.

7) Delivery model: Traditionally, artist residency initiatives provide temporary housing for artists and rely on individual donors and non-profit funders. Artists' communities are often the first to step up to assist artists who are particularly hard-hit by tragedy, political strife, and funding declines. One artists' community altered its entire residency program to accommodate any New York artists who lost their studios in the World Trade Center. Another has sought out artists from Afghanistan and Iraq. Yet another created special residencies for artists who had been accepted into a state arts council residency that lost its funding. Similar solutions have been created within the residency sector to support artists and centers that are victims of fires, tsunami and, most recently, Hurricane Katrina [excerpted from the Alliance of Artist Communities].

The 20+ artist residency initiatives (see http://freedimensional.org/files/ freeDimensional_map.pdf) that comprise the freeDimensional network serve as regional knowledge hubs and, thus, complement placement recommendations we receive from a range of organizations including Human Rights Watch (www.hrw.org), Global Green Grants (www.greengrants.org), Freemuse (www.freemuse.org), Reporters Without Borders (www.rsf.org), and Cities of Asylum (www.cityofasylum.org). Traditionally human rights organizations provide distress funding, legal aid, vocational and language training, arts-based and other post-trauma counseling. These resources can be bundled and tailored to the individual needs of a human rights defender during the course of his/her stay at a partner center. Placements can last from three to six months while the individual awaits further support and/or conditions necessary for returning home.

8) Key operational partnerships: Strategic linkages are necessary when an artist, activist or citizen journalist experiencing political problems cannot return home after a short-term residential placement. freeDimensional has conducted extensive research on the exile service provision continuum which offers up to five years of support for human rights defenders. In addition to building relationships with approximately 20 partner centers across six continents and the trust of 20 nominating organizations, we partner with complementary long-term placement partners that include: - North American Network of Cities of Asylum (Residential placement with 2 year duration) - Amnesty International Global Placement Program (Residential placement with 1 year duration) - Scholars at Risk Network (Residential placement with 2+ year duration) - Human Rights House Network (Office space and administrative support)

9) Financial model: At each program site, freeDimensional engages in a set of activities designed to sustain its programs and build capacity throughout the network in addition to income generation for individual stakeholders. For example, by engaging the entire network in an online art auction, we can offer member centers a year-round income generation activity that allows them to sell the artworks they have inherited from (or those donated by) past artists-in- residence as well as those specific to freeDimensional placements. This system allows the network to receive a percentage for its overhead costs; freeDimensional stakeholders to sale their work during periods when their normal livelihood activities are interrupted; and the center from which the sale item originates to capitalize its asse

          • Costs as percentage of income: 50

          • Financing: Network membership is based on each partner center gifting three months of space, accommodation and equipment use for artists, activists and citizen journalists in need of assistance. There are currently 4 placements underway (see Effectiveness) and a total of 60 months – or 5 years – of community space for free expression that is available throughout the network. This space is valorized at 300 USD per day, or $547,500, which can be leveraged for additional funding from within a new area of philanthropic funding termed ‘network sustainability’.

10) Effectiveness

          • Project outcomes: We are currently evaluating our first four placements for effectiveness and thereby creating a creative safe haven placement toolkit, or users guide.

          • Number of clients in past year: Shakeb Isaar is a young music presenter from Kabul, Afghanistan. After his colleague was killed, he lived in the TV station for three months before receiving official asylum to live in Sweden. Joelle Khoury is a composer and women’s expression advocate in Lebanon. During the recent military incursion she was forced to flee to the mountains and has been unable to work and function in a normal capacity. Bara Diokhane is a Senegalese painter, whose studio residency focused on transforming the boat into an installation about economic refugees fleeing West Africa on rickety fishing boats bound for Spain. Issa Nyaphaga was a political cartoonist for a newspaper in his home country of Cameroon where he was imprisoned and tortured for his journalistic drawings.

11) Scaling up strategy

          • Stage of the initiative: Start Up stage.

          • Expansion plan: freeDimensional was recently approached by one of our nominating organizations with the suggestion that our model for creative safe haven may also provide a potential accommodation solution to victims of child slavery and sex trafficking. The partner believes that the usefulness of arts-based interventions for censored and exiled artists and journalists can be extended to victims of trafficking as well as economic refugees. We are currently working with our partners to determine how the creative safe haven model can be scaled up to serve regionally-specific vulnerable groups based on lessons learned from placing artists, activists and citizen journalists. There are approximately 2000 artist residencies in existence worldwide.

12) Origin of the initiative: Todd Lester has been influenced by the dedication of – and obstacles faced by – individual artists, activists and citizen journalists during his work in more than 20 countries with a range of organizations and initiatives that include Reporters Without Borders, FilmAid International, International Rescue Committee, United Nations, Carter Center, CARE, Population Services International, 2005 Rwanda Film Festival, Conflict Prevention in the Southern Caucasus, and Vera List Center for Art and Politics. Based on these experiences Todd is currently working with a group of volunteer professionals to launch the freeDimensional network.

Contact Information:
Todd  Lester
executive director
freeDimensional
(NGO)
228 Greene Avenue, #4
United States
Tel: +917 952 4933
Fax: n/a
Email: tl_lester@yahoo.com
Website: www.freedimensional.org