Funding for HOP(P)E

Funding for HOP(P)E

What do you think of when you hear the word change? Often, images and feelings of discomfort, protests and even upheaval come to mind.   But this is not always the case.   In our group of first years students at the Home of Performance Practices (HOPP) at ArtEZ the University of the Arts, we believe that change is that which shifts conditions, attitudes and perceptions. It has a water-like resistance, which can only be overcome by that which is soft, susceptible, and open to cooperation and negotiation. This is what we are here to do.

We are a group of 12 artists currently studying an MA Theatre Practices at ArtEZ University. We are a diverse group made up of dancers, designers, performers and directors, coming together from Germany, Estonia, Latvia, Turkey, South Africa, Israel, Poland, Finland, Brazil and Greece.

Towards the end of our first year of study, a sudden threat to the ecology of our diverse and harmonious group suddenly came to light when we realised the disparity between the EU and non-EU tuition fees. While students who are EU citizens are required to pay € 2,143 for their tuition fees, non-EU students are required to pay € 9,616. Not too long ago, we received an email explaining that in light of the COVID-19 pandemic,  all students would be offered a reduction in fees for 2022. The difference between non-EU students and EU students, however, came down to a 10% reduction vs. a 50% reduction.    This means that while 10 of us will be paying half of what we are usually expected to pay, 2 of us are only receiving 10% off a fee that is already almost 5 times more than our peers.  We have thought, discussed and speculated over this issue, concluded that this is unjust, and thus unacceptable. This is where the desire to organise a collective change was born.

At the Home of Performance Practices, we learn the importance of building an ecology, in which transparency, solidarity and liquidity (to move what is stuck) are vital components. We believe fully in the potential affect and impact that our micro ecology could create once it finds a connection with wider ecologies beyond the academy.   For us, the change has already begun! We want to make a difference germinated from hope: as it says on the wall of an underground art studio in Istanbul: “Don’t get accustomed to despair!”

Once hope is put into practice, it generates a butterfly effect, igniting hope-filled changes greater than we can fathom. Hope is capable of elevating both micro and macro ecologies where transparency, solidarity and liquidity are the intermediaries for a more equal and sustainable community.

As an ecology we are here to embody hope and inspire change. The aim of our campaign is to raise the sum of the entire tuition fee for our two non-EU peers. By contributing to this campaign you are contributing to the furthering of the arts across the world and allowing our ecology to continue to grow and learn.  For more information about us, the segregation in higher education and future events and performances please visit our website.

Have a look in our campaign video here.

You can donate here!

1st Year Students of Home of Performance Practices