The COVID-19 crisis forced many of us into difficult social isolation–hitting pause on engagement with cultural attractions, traditional education, and in-person events. How can we provide tools to educators and cultural institutions in order to provide rich digital experiences in learning and the arts to mitigate the adverse effects of social isolation?

Join Aspen Tech Policy Hub Challenge Grantees as they showcase their projects focused on the theme: Responding to Social Isolation Through Education and the Arts. Following the presentations of the projects, keynote speakers Dr. Beth Harris and Dr. Steven Zucker, co-founders of Smarthistory, gave further remarks. The projects presented are:

1) Cultural Engagement To Mitigate Social Isolation by Michael Peter Edson & Dana Mitroff Silvers: A diverse group of ten cultural and knowledge organizations are collaborating to create digital initiatives that mitigate the negative effects of social distancing in their communities. Participants will receive expert coaching and support in digital strategy, design thinking, creative development, and online audience engagement techniques.

2) Suggestion Box by Nidhi Hebbar & Yusuf Ahmad: The Suggestion Box enables schools and educators to describe their decisions in two simple sentences and to share them on social media channels used by students and families. Sharing short-term decisions increases trust and offers an alternative means for students and families, who are often excluded from planning, to provide feedback and share their experiences.