No More Nowt

Arts Council England; North East; Remote; GBP 18,000 - 22,000; Full time

Job summary

Arts Council England in County Durham invites artists and collectives to imagine a socio-technical digital residency that links culture with climate action. The commission seeks inclusive, community-led practices that empower people to shape a greener local future.

Artists will work with local communities and Cultural Hub partners to develop open-source artworks, public engagement, and a final showcase across multiple venues. The project runs December 2026 to August 2027.

Qualifications

• Open to artists at all career stages.
• Experience in community-engaged art projects is a plus.
• Ability to work with multi-disciplinary teams and local partners.

Responsibilities

• Deliver a digital residency across County Durham engaging at least two communities.
• Coordinate with Cultural Hub network and partners.
• Manage budget, travel, materials, and event planning for a culminating showcase.
• Ensure ethical and accessible practices throughout the project.

Job description

Thu, 15 Oct 2026">published - Thu, 15 Oct 2026

Job Summary

Digital artists, creative technologists, collectives, or multi-disciplinary creatives are encouraged to dream with communities to discover what a 'socio-technical' digital residency can achieve around the community-powered climate solutions in County Durham.

Job Description

We want to pivot from fear-driven climate fatalism to a celebratory, hands-on reimagining of the future. Rather than paralyzing people with apocalyptic climate predictions, we're looking for artists to work with an empowering grassroots invitation to construct a localised world where people would genuinely love to live.

Our biggest problems need big ideas and new solutions. We have a generational opportunity to establish a new momentum for a more sustainable, community-focused and creative future that is more closely in sync with nature. But is the actual reality of our present standing in the way? Let's find out.

Ideas around evolving the driving framework of community-powered climate solutions by building public, participatory, and open-source artworks, sculpture, offline physical media and communication are welcomed.

*We'd like artists to approach this commission through a 'Socio-technical' lens: This refers to the interrelation between the social aspects of people and society and the technical aspects of organisational structures and processes. The foundational idea that an organisation performs best when both its social system (people, culture, values) and technical system (tools, technologies, processes, rules) are designed and improved together.

Job Requirements

Through this commission we hope to achieve:

A digital residency with a strong connection to our county, responding to current realities, places, people, histories and hopes.

A successful shape of how a socio-technical inspired project can explore, test and achieve community-powered climate solutions that are artworks in themselves.

An opportunity for local people to engage with their locality, meet new people and be involved with cultural opportunities they may not have engaged with previously.

An innovative approach to working with community partners (ie. our Cultural Hub network and strategic partners).

Consider ethical and societal impacts of emerging technologies.

Delivery of an artwork that can be redistributed at the needs of the community that welcomes new people, ideas and amplification to the world.

We are open to artists at all stages of their careers.

Job Responsibilities

£20,000 in total.

We expect the artist or organisation to work with a minimum of two communities and with various partners in County Durham.

The artist or organisation will deliver a minimum of 24 days' worth of engagement/contact sessions with local communities (based on 1 day a week/2 half-days) between December 2026 - August 2027. We expect sessions to be delivered in line with the AUE rate of pay.

The remaining budget should include travel, materials, planning/prep time, VAT, access costs and any other expenses as well as costs associated with the culmination event. For example, a celebration event exhibiting artwork and garden across one or multiple locations.

We would also expect commissioned artist / collective / organisation to factor in any community costs e.g room hire, food and energy bill contribution where applicable.

No More Nowt will provide marketing and publicity support, as well as producing support for the overall project where needed.

• Job Title: Digital Residency Commission - WE ARE HOPE
• No More Nowt was founded in 2014 (formerly … … …