Building a Just Community

“The Catawba Vale Collaborative is a groundbreaking partnership whose mission is to comprehensively redefine rural economic development in Appalachian communities”

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New Directions

Blair L.M. Kelley, a noted scholar of Black history and the African American experience, will be the next director of the Center for the Study of the American South and co-director of the Southern Futures Initiative.

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“In Its New Season, Carolina Performing Arts Turns Toward Southern Futures”

“GRAMMY and MacArthur Award-winning musician-and longtime CPA collaborator Rhiannon Giddens will begin a three-year research residency as part of the initiative.”

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Our Mission

Southern Futures works for equity, justice, and possibility, using the arts and humanities to imagine and create positive change for Carolina’s home region. Bridging UNC-Chapel Hill’s College of Arts & Sciences, University Libraries, and Carolina Performing Arts, Southern Futures is a collaborative network for the students, scholars, creators, and community leaders doing extraordinary work to reimagine the American South.

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OUR FOCUS:

Southern Futures harnesses the arts and humanities to reimagine justice, equity, and possibility in the US South by supporting three core, interconnected areas of focus:

Emerging + Innovative Leaders

Southern Futures inspires, informs, and connects people committed to communities across the region. We support students, artists, and leaders with scholarships, grants, partnerships, commissioning funds, internships, and curatorial experiences. We look to a rising generation of leaders, encouraging new perspectives and collaborations to expand our understanding of what is possible for our shared futures.

Students in Katherine Turk's class titled "Women in the History of UNC-Chapel Hill" learn about resources available to them at Wilson Library
Students in Katherine Turk's class titled "Women in the History of UNC-Chapel Hill" learn about resources available to them at Wilson Library

Transformative Arts and Humanities

Southern Futures uses the arts and humanities to build a future where all southern communities can thrive. We connect community expertise and creativity with Carolina’s resources and people to facilitate equitable partnerships, and use the energy and life-changing perspectives of performance, visual art, research, and storytelling to understand where we are and imagine where we could go.

The Hip Hop South Festival celebrated the art and culture of hip hop at venues across campus, Chapel Hill, and Carrboro. In this image, artist Artie Barskdale poses for a portrait in front of the hip hop-themed mural he created on Henderson Street in Chapel Hill.
The Hip Hop South Festival celebrated the art and culture of hip hop at venues across campus, Chapel Hill, and Carrboro. In this image, artist Artie Barskdale poses for a portrait in front of the hip hop-themed mural he created on Henderson Street in Chapel Hill.

Forward-looking Scholarship

Southern Futures fuels cutting-edge scholarship, artistic research, and creative processes that move the academy and the region forward. We're transforming systems in partnership with and in service of southern communities. Working across disciplines, we listen deeply and dream big to invest in the future of the South.

 

Members of the North Carolina Digital Heritage Center scan documents in Camden County. (Photo by the University Libraries)
Members of the North Carolina Digital Heritage Center scan documents in Camden County. (Photo by the University Libraries)

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