ENCATC launches NEW book by Research Award winner Rocío Nogales
ENCATC is proud to share a new valuable addition to its Book Series: "Social Innovation, Social Enterprises and the Cultural Economy" by Rocío Nogales Muriel, published by Routledge. The book offers a new perspective on the role of socially-minded agents and entities in the arts and cultural sectors and their response to the crises of our time.
Through a multidisciplinary approach, Rocio Nogales Muriel examines SMart, a cultural and artistic social enterprise operating in 8 European countries, that has pioneered innovative arrangements for cultural workers and artists to address the precariousness and intermittency of work in the cultural sector.
The book sheds light on how SMart's activism has transformed the governance of culture at individual, collective, and institutional levels. It illustrates the interplay between social innovation and culture and how the former can drive transformative change. The book is not only relevant to academia but also to policy-makers at national and EU levels, practitioners, and social activists. It provides critical insights into scaling up and diffusing social innovation in cultural and artistic social enterprises.
This new book is the result of Rocío Nogales Muriel, Managing Director of the EMES International Research Network, winning the ENCATC Research Award back in 2020. In the words of the author: "Starting a PhD path has some similarity to entering terra incognita; therefore, finding the support and joy along the way is crucial. In the case of cultural management and policy, there are not really many fora to continue exchanging and learning once the thesis has been defended. ENCATC plays a unique leadership role in this sense, creating a unique space that gathers various agents involved in culture and the arts in Europe and welcoming the new generations. Through the ENCATC Research Award it also contributes to consolidating these practice and policy areas as academic areas of study with plenty of opportunities for early career researchers. It is also a pleasure to join such an incredible group of award recipients, most of them women, whose effort is advancing the field and opening new avenues for inquiry."
The first book issued by Routledge in the cultural economy, "Social Innovation, Social Enterprises and the Cultural Economy" marks a significant milestone in the field. It is a must-read for anyone interested in social innovation, culture, and the arts and a valuable resource for scholars, students, and practitioners and It is highly recommended for anyone seeking fresh insights into the role of culture and social innovation in addressing today's complex challenges.
The book is available for purchase here.