The CIF Talks project was created in 2020 to provide a space within the Cultura Inglesa Festival for reflection, dialogue, and the collective production of knowledge on relevant contemporary issues. This edition features two panel discussions focused on youth, exploring climate change, social media, and mental health.
PANEL 1 | 3:00 PM to 4:30 PM
Listening is essential: youth, mental health, and social media
The conversation is sparked by an excerpt from the show Famehungry, by Louise Orwin, presented at the festival. The work takes place simultaneously for an in-person audience and a live TikTok audience, bringing the attention economy and the price of being seen to the stage.
The panel proposes an act of listening: hearing from teenagers and young people before diagnosing them, listening to what clinical practice and research already record about the effects of virtuality, and also listening to those who create content, not just those who consume it.
The idea is to hold both potential and risk in the same debate, recognizing what social media opens up in terms of creativity, belonging, and collective organization, without losing sight of the toll it takes on mental health, privacy, and exposure.
Participants:
- Louise Orwin. Performance artist and creator of Famehungry. An internationally acclaimed multidisciplinary artist from the UK, Louise Orwin works across performance, text, film, and movement. Her projects revolve around liveness, the female gaze, and radical feminist theory, having recently turned her focus to contemporary themes such as social media, the attention economy, and what the future holds for us.
- Marília Velano. Psychologist, psychoanalyst, and PhD in Psychology from the Institute of Psychology at USP. She specializes in child and adolescent development, with research on the impacts of virtuality and social media on the mental health of teenagers and young adults.
- Haron Miquilno. Public Relations (PR) professional, content and career strategist, and founder of the RP no Mundo community.
Moderator: Isabela Villas Boas Executive Director of Learning Products and Experiences at Cultura Inglesa and Director of the Cultura Inglesa Faculty. She holds a PhD in Education, with a focus on second language reading and writing development, from the University of Brasília, and an MA in Teaching English as a Second Language (TESL) from Arizona State University, USA. She is the author of several books and academic articles.
PANEL 2 | 5:00 PM – 6:30 PM
The Right to the Future: Youth and the Climate Crisis
The starting point here is A Citizens’ Assembly, by Andy Smith, written to be performed by the people in the room, addressing the climate emergency through a collective act of dialogue between differing viewpoints.
If the play turns the audience into an assembly, the panel takes on the same question: who has a seat when the future is being decided? The Right to the Future names a concrete struggle: the fact that the generations most affected by the climate crisis are the ones with the least participation in decision-making bodies. The goal is to bridge scientific evidence, public communication, and youth organizing.
Participants:
- Daniela Vianna. Journalist, senior researcher, and consultant on climate adaptation. She works through the lens of Planetary Health, connecting ecosystem integrity to human health, climate justice, intersectionality, and resilience. She holds a postdoctoral degree in Climate Communication from George Mason University and in Planetary Health from the USP Institute of Advanced Studies; she has a PhD in Environmental Sciences from PROCAM/USP / Newcastle University (UK). She is a co-author of the handbook “Climate Education: A Practical Guide for Families and Educators” and lead author of the research “Advancement and Integration of Climate and Health Policies: Perception of Brazilian Stakeholders ”. Both publications are available on the USP Open Books Portal.
- Cleicí Patauá. Lawyer and corporate sustainability specialist, host of TV Cultura’s Repórter Eco. She holds an important position as an Indigenous presenter and anchor on Brazilian television, and also serves as a columnist for CBN Amazônia. A daughter of the forest and of community leaders, she grew up on the banks of the Unini River in Jaú National Park and today connects ancestral knowledge, sustainability, business, and communication, bringing the Amazonian perspective to major debates on climate, regeneration, and the future.
- Lara Bonfim. Youth activist from the Creative Earth Alliance collective, formed during the last edition of CIF following a COP simulation event. Lara is a 16-year-old artist and student from Santa Catarina with a passion for music, theater, and journalism. As a singer, actress, musician, and writer, she explores various forms of artistic expression, often incorporating environmental themes. She seeks to channel her creativity into projects that connect people and believes in art as a way to inspire and spark change.
Moderation: Cia Arthur Arnaldo. Facilitator of the Create for Change program, which engages students in climate crisis issues. Founded in 1996. It has been developing projects with and for young people since 2007 through professional theatrical productions and artistic-pedagogical initiatives in various contexts, both in Brazil and abroad.
Location: CBB Centro Brasileiro Britânico | Rua Ferreira de Araújo, 741 - Pinheiros, São Paulo - SP
Date: October 21st
Time: Panel 1 - 3:00 PM to 4:30 PM - Panel 2 - 5:00 PM to 6:30 PM
Age Rating: 14+
Accessibility: Brazilian Sign Language (Libras)
