Divergently Together

Emerging to channel the expertise within neurodivergent communities that can be harnessed to support climate action, ‘Divergently Together’—an empowering, co-creative, experiential project—drives new standards of inclusion in STEAM.

‘Divergently Together’ outreach objectives enrich public and cross-disciplinary discourse around the intersection of climate change and disability, and embed future-focused, inclusive climate mitigation strategies into local and national policy. ‘Divergently Together’ collaborates with a key neurodivergent community in Dublin encompassing urban/coastal perspectives in climate action, to engage with local STEM experts and climate action officers. Divergently Together’ concurrently collaborates with a rural/cross-border Cavan-Fermanagh neurodivergent community, co-supported by Creative Ireland and Shared Island funding.

The resulting ecosystem of community, science and advocacy informs the development of an extensive SFI public engagement programme in conjunction with Beta Festival, Climate Action Week and CavanTownhall. The two neurodivergent communities will be facilitated to co-create interactive, multi-space exhibitions. With DCU’s revolutionary material research, brain-computer interface (BCI) technologies will be reimagined using plant-based materials, to immersively project the live brainwaves of audience members as a 360° sensory experience.

The ambitious installations, in addition to online versions and a public symposium, create different access points for broad audiences and advance STEAM as a creative field nationally, opening up receptive spaces to discuss neurodiversity, question stigmas and bolster public values of different ways of thinking.