Listen to an engaging and inspirational journey from Duncan Craig, a psychotherapist and the Chief Executive of Survivors Manchester.

Survivors Manchester is a Greater Manchester based charity offering therapeutic and advocacy support to boys and men affected by sexual abuse, rape, and sexual exploitation. Duncan started the charity in 2009, when he identified a gap in support provision for boys and men, and continues to develop new services today, most recently across the male prison estate.

As a qualified accredited trauma-informed psychotherapist, Duncan’s personal and professional experience of sexual violation has presented him with the opportunity to be involved in a number of national inquiries, projects and forums, including The Stern Review; the National Rape Working Group; and the Office of the Children’s Commissioner on the Child Sexual Exploitation in Groups and Gangs.

Dr. Scott Midson is a Postdoctoral Research Associate at The Lincoln Theological Institute. He is the lead researcher on ‘Living with and Loving Machines’. This project brings together questions about how we understand humans and technologies in their relationships, and seeks to encourage an alternative way of reflecting on these using the theological notion of ‘love’.

In this talk he explores how theological and religious ideas shape how we ineract, and even love, robots.

Using none of the wisdom learned over ten years in the design industry, Ben Clark will teach you how to make a jumping paper frog in 20 ribbeting slides. 

Beth Taylor asks:

How do parents form bonds with their children?

Why on earth do women go through childbirth more than once?

Why is it more common for women to want to cuddle after sex than men?

How can I make other people give me their money?

How can I make people trust me more?

Why does my mum love the dog more than me?

When can I legally play with a woman’s nipples?

If you want to know the answers to any of these age old questions, and more, watch this talk!

For some of us, meeting new people sucks. Small talk. Struggling for shared interests. Forgetting names. But when we share our stories, we can connect on an emotional level. And that's where the fun begins. Chris Tomlin talks about telling stories, making friends and growing beards.  

Why swap a career in bookselling for a life of moloko, ultraviolence and a bit of the old in-out in-out? Writer and performer Fat Roland long felt a connection to the works of Anthony Burgess and A Clockwork Orange. This is the story of how a former bookseller found a horrorshow (good) rabbit (job) at the International Anthony Burgess Foundation, the famous author’s estate, archive and event space based in a converted Victorian Manchester mill.

Christine Charnock will be sharing her experience as a mentor – and the challenges and surprises discovered along the way. There will also be tips on how to start mentoring and finding a mentee.

After experiencing meeting, interviewing, collaborating, and working with some inspiring individuals in Japan, Hamid Shahi decided to reach out to his friends to initiate a global collaborative community with other amazing creative people who are interested in joining together and contributing to projects in pursuit of a higher purpose.

At Unify Design Art, we believe everyone is creative and we think of designers and artists as people who exhibit the attitude, approach and abilities of forward thinking. We believe that creators around the globe can support and inspire each other to make positive change in their local communities. 

For us it’s not a question of thinking or doing, but what to think about and how to do it through unified systems and strategies. 

Making Connections (dot to dot thinking) 

Exploring design ideas and how tacit knowledge influences how we produce work as designers and makers. For Jonathon Briggs, it’s in the fabric of your thought process, having a poor memory helps too! It allows you to see something new in everyday objects and re-interpret their meaning. 

How do you look at the ordinary everyday and turn it into meaningful stuff, then navigating how you post-rationalise this into a commercial product? How does this work in a creative studio, does it liberate everyones thinking or become an insular creative process?

Community consultation is essential to successful design: architects need to understand how people use existing spaces before setting to work. However, this process often follows an uninspiring, tried and tested formula. In her presentation, Gillian Harrison will explore a range of emerging techniques that encourage collaboration and engage local people, ultimately leading to the design of happier and healthier places for all.

Hear Ben Davies tell the story of Ziferblat Manchester, the sitting room space, where everything is free, except the time you spend. 

Visitors can work, study, relax, play, attend and put on events, eat cake, have a brew or breakfast or afternoon tea or anything!...