Artificial Intelligence, Sustainability, Creative industries, and Place garnered four financial supports from PEC in the realm of networking.
In a significant move to advance research and innovation in key creative sectors, the Creative Industries Policy and Evidence Centre (Creative PEC) has announced the awarding of four new Small Network Grants. These grants, worth £10,000 each, are designed to support new networks led by Creative PEC Research Fellows.
The four new networks focus on various aspects of the creative industries, including artificial intelligence (AI), digital production, civic creativity, and place-based creative practices. Each network aims to foster interdisciplinary collaboration, enhance understanding and evidence in these thematic areas, and support projects that explore how creativity interacts with technology and society to influence economic growth, social impact, and cultural development.
The AI network, convened by Professor Joanna Woronkowicz and Professor Doug Noonan from Indiana University, will investigate the implications of AI for creative industries, including ethical, governance, and innovation challenges. The aim is to build knowledge about the integration of AI in creative practices and policy frameworks.
The digital production network will support research into new forms of digital content creation and production workflows, focusing on technological advancements that enable creative innovation and shape industry practices.
The civic creativity network, led by Dr Tom Fleming and Francisca Patrício from TF Consultancy (TFCC), will explore how creative activities and collaborations can drive community engagement, participation, and social cohesion, emphasizing inclusive and participatory approaches.
The place network, convened by Dr Heidi Ashton and Professor Pietari Kaapa from the University of Warwick, will examine the role of creativity in place-making and regional development, assessing how creative sectors contribute to local economies and cultural identities.
In addition to these networks, another new network, Building an Infrastructure for Research in AI and the Creative Industries, is yet to be explicitly detailed.
The projects under these networks will commence in September 2025 and be completed by April 2026. The intended completion date for the Green Transitions and Sustainability network is March 2026. The Small Networks' future outputs will be shared on Creative PEC's social channels and website.
The networks are designed to promote research and policy understanding in key areas, foster collaboration within the Research Fellows Network and beyond, and develop the infrastructure needed to support this emerging field, including shared data resources, empirical evidence, and frameworks to guide future work.
The Research Fellows Network aims to become the global network of choice for researchers working on policy-facing creative industries research. Key outcomes of the project include an open-access wiki and actionable recommendations for advancing research on AI and the creative economy. The networks will also make original contributions to the creative industries' evidence base, producing discussion papers, hosting seminars, and presenting at conferences.
Creative PEC, led by Newcastle University with the Royal Society of Arts and funded by the UKRI Arts and Humanities Research Council, works to support the growth of the UK's Creative Industries through the production of independent and authoritative evidence and policy advice.
These Small Network Grants are part of Creative PEC’s commitment to strengthening the evidence base for creative economy policies by supporting small-scale, networked research projects that generate insights relevant to both practitioners and policymakers across these emerging and impactful areas.
[1] Creative Industries Policy and Evidence Centre [4] Small Network Grants
Read also:
- Exploring the Advantages of Outdoor Group Meditation for Enhancing the Mind-Body Union
- Hidden beneath the appealing aesthetic of Consume Me's artwork lies a more ominous nature
- Elderly Competitor: 96-year-old Donald makes Countdown history as the oldest contestant ever
- Reflection: Ponder the Fate of City Pigeons
