Global Artivism Month Launches Worldwide Call to Harness the Power of Art and Culture for Change

Global South and Global Majority-led initiative invites creative action in communities worldwide, 1 November to 10 December, culminating on Human Rights Day

SãO PAULO, SP, BRAZIL, September 28, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- The Global Artivism Movement today launched Global Artivism Month, a new worldwide mobilization inviting artists, activists, schools, community groups and movements to use the power of arts and culture to advance social, economic and environmental justice.

Running from 1 November to 10 December 2026, Global Artivism Month will connect locally rooted creative actions under one shared global identity, making visible thousands of separate acts of creativity, resistance and imagination. The inaugural year targets more than 100 countries and 5,000 participating organizations and collectives.

Participation is completely free. Communities are invited to bring what they already make, where they already are, and connect it to something the whole world can see: a mural in Bogotá, poetry in Kathmandu, a street procession in Salvador, theater in Beirut.

"For too long, those of us working for social and environmental justice have often spoken primarily to people's heads, while failing to reach their hearts, bodies, souls and imaginations," said Kumi Naidoo, co-founder of the Global Artivism Movement, former Secretary-General of Amnesty International and former Executive Director of Greenpeace International. "Facts and policy matter enormously, but people do not build movements on facts alone. Culture shapes how we understand ourselves, each other and what we believe is possible."

Forty days of art, culture and action

Global Artivism Month is decentralized: activities remain locally owned, in participants' own languages and political realities. At its heart is a Sunrise Relay: as the Earth turns, the spotlight will move from region to region. Contributions will also form a growing Global Artivism Mosaic, a collective visual record of cultural action.

The 40 days coincide with a concentration of global moments for justice and solidarity, from COP31 in Antalya, Türkiye (9 to 20 November) and the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence (25 November to 10 December) to World AIDS Day (1 December) and Human Rights Day (10 December).

This is an invitation, not a restriction. Participants choose their own issues and forms, while Global Artivism Month acts as a cultural amplifier for movements already working for dignity, justice, peace and a thriving planet.

From regional convenings to a global movement

Six virtual regional convenings between 25 August and 8 October enable people to connect regionally and help shape the mobilization. A Global Artivism Convening from 3 to 7 November will open the month and connect the network internationally.

Global Artivism Month is coordinated by Natalia Mallo, Global Artivism Month Specialist and a São Paulo-based multi-artist, curator and cultural strategist, working with the Global Artivism Secretariat, Regional Fellows and partners.

"The creative work needed to change our societies is already happening everywhere," said Mallo. "Our role is not to tell communities what to create. It is to help connect what they are already doing, make it visible and enable people working in very different places to recognize themselves as part of a shared movement."

Culture is power

The movement's premise is simple: art is not decoration added after the "real" work of social change has been done. Culture itself is power.

In 2025, the Global Artivism Convening in Salvador, Brazil, brought together more than 1,000 people in person and hundreds more online, from 86 countries.

"The world does not suffer from a shortage of creativity," Naidoo said. "What we have lacked is enough connection between the creativity already alive in our communities and the movements trying to change the world. Global Artivism Month is an attempt to close that gap."

The Participation Form is the single entry point for participation: https://form.jotform.com/262294214279057

To learn more: https://www.globalartivism.org/artivism-month

Social media: @globalartivism #GlobalArtivismMonth #GlobalArtivism #Artivism #CultureForChange

About Global Artivism
Global Artivism is a Global South and Global Majority-led movement harnessing the power of arts and culture to drive social and systemic change. It connects artists, activists, cultural practitioners, organizers and allies across regions to strengthen cultural power, shift narratives, build community and mobilize for justice and a thriving planet.

MEDIA CONTACT
Natalia Mallo
natalia@globalartivism.ca
Telephone / WhatsApp +55 11 98184 3775

NATALIA MALLO
Global Artivism
natalia@globalartivism.ca
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Second Global Artivism Convening - Salvador, Bahia - Brazil