THE first-ever Scottish Ethnic Minority Talent Summit and Festival opens its doors eight days from now. The five-day summit will be held at Tynecastle Park (home of Heart of Midlothian Football Club) in Edinburgh, from October 28 to November 1.
The summit will be followed by a one-day multicultural festival on Saturday, November 2, to be hosted at the Box Hub Warehouse in Whiteinch in Glasgow.
The Summit and Festival follow from the success, in 2022 and 2023, of the Scottish Black Talent Summits. The programme’s manager is Chuks Ododo, a Scots-Nigerian who is the community connecting manager for DataKirk, an Edinburgh-based social enterprise that is dedicated to closing the attainment gap in digital training, and thereby improving the employment prospects of people from Scotland’s ethnic minority communities.
READ MORE: Historic Scottish theatre set to reopen after seven years
The 2024 events mark an important change in emphasis from the programmes of the last two years. By changing its name – shifting the focus from Scotland’s Black communities to people from all of the nation’s ethnic minorities – the event is widening its social base considerably.
Also, by launching a multicultural festival – in addition to the workshop-style, employment-oriented environment of the summit – Ododo and his team are laying the basis for the involvement of much larger numbers of people. The festival in Glasgow will include music, dance, a bazaar, and, importantly, food from Scotland’s many and varied ethnic minority communities.
The broadening of the programme’s community focus, the manager explains, came about from the experience of the Black Talent Summits. “A lot of people who attended the summit last year were from Asia and from other communities,” Ododo said.
“This is also true of some of our advisers, people who support what we are doing. These people were telling us that they were committed to the event, but they were not Black.
“We listened to this feedback and we took it seriously. We realised that we couldn’t remain where we were.”
Speaking about the breadth of communities that the Summit and Festival now aim to serve, Ododo was very clear. “If you are not white Scottish or white British, then you are a member of an ethnic minority in this country.” With diversity, of course, comes difference, and the programme’s organisers are very keen to promote inter-community dialogue.
“We want to celebrate the unique contributions from diverse communities in Scotland,” Ododo said. “We want to create a safe space in which we can celebrate the uniqueness of our communities, network with one another and understand each other better.”
When it comes to the breadth of voices in the summit, Ododo invites people to look at the list of speakers that is in place for the event at Tynecastle. “The line-up of speakers this year means a lot to us, in terms of what we want to achieve in relation to diversity and inclusion,” he added.
Among the dozens of professional speakers lined up are such figures as Lara Oyedele, CEO of the organisation Black On Board, which seeks to address the underrepresentation of Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) people on the boards of companies across the UK. Also speaking will be Sadia Hussain-Savuk, an education consultant who specialises in anti-racist education.
One can add to these speakers people like Professor Max Chipulu of Napier University Business School in Edinburgh and Fiona Hogg, the chief people officer for the Scottish Government (with special responsibility for the NHS leadership in Scotland). Indeed, looking at the sheer number of speakers taking part, it’s clear why the summit requires a five-day programme (in contrast to the two days given over to last year’s Scottish Black Talent Summit).
Last year’s summit had an impressive 268 participants, Ododo tells me. However, with this year’s wider focus and bigger programme, he is hoping to attract as many as 400 people.
The programming of the inaugural Scottish Ethnic Minority Festival takes Ododo into entirely new territory. Whereas the focus of the Talent Summits has been on skills, training and employment, the festival is all about connecting Scotland’s ethnic minority communities through culture.
The eclectic programme includes a talent show, a fashion show and a cultural parade (in which an array of national attires – ranging from Mexico to Ghana and Mongolia – will be on display). There will even be a little time for romance with a speed-dating event.
READ MORE: Review: The Baddies is delightful, and not so frightful
The busy schedule also includes a dance programme and a DJ set that encompasses such diverse music and dance phenomena as Afrobeat, Salsa and Bhangra. Add to that a wide variety of food providers from across Scotland’s ethnic minority communities, and a very full day of multicultural experiences is in prospect.
It truly is an impressive inaugural programme. However, if Ododo is overwhelmed by the scale of what he is putting together, it doesn’t show.
His experience with the Scottish Black Talent Summits teaches him that there is a continued enthusiasm in Scotland for the idea of “one nation, many cultures”. In this regard, he was impressed by the Govan Footbridge Festival, which celebrated the opening of the newest bridge over the River Clyde back on September 7.
The Footbridge Festival brought together diverse musical artists such as Horse McDonald, Colonel Mustard And The Dijon Five, and, significantly, Musicians In Exile (a band composed of musical artists who have sought refuge in Scotland from a variety of countries). There was also a community cèilidh on the Govan Road.
The Govan festival “was very good”, Ododo said. “There were people from across the communities, nice performances, a variety of food vendors. I loved it.”
He hopes that his programme in Whiteinch on November 2 will replicate the inclusivity and fun of the Govan Footbridge event and attract around 1000 people through its doors. Ultimately, he says, the guiding principle of the first-ever Scottish Ethnic Minority Festival is simply, “to provide a safe space for beautiful conversation and celebration.”
And who can say fairer than that?
The Scottish Ethnic Minority Talent Summit and Festival takes place between October 28 and November 2.
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here