News
Art Responsible holds workshop on recycling plastic waste at Street Academy
Art Responsible, a non-profit organisation dedicated to promoting sustainable artistic practices, last week held a workshop for students of the Street Academy, a sports and cultural organisation.
The workshop focused on transforming plastic waste into stunning works of art, highlighting the importance of recycling and environmental stewardship among local youth.
The groundbreaking initiative also aims at merging creativity with environmental consciousness.
Welcoming the students and guests, the Executive Director of the Street Academy, Ataa Lartey, expressed his enthusiasm for the collaboration.
“Today’s workshop is not just about art; it’s about understanding our responsibility toward the environment,” he said.
“We are excited to partner with Art Responsible to inspire our students to think critically about waste and creativity.”
According to him, it was important to expose the children to such educational programmes, considering the damage human activities are having on the environment. They are the future; if they get a good understanding of recycling, it will help the effort to make the environment better.”
The workshop began with an engaging presentation by an environmental artist and activist, Ms Lauren Sey.
Known for her large-scale installations, she spoke passionately about the impact of plastic pollution on the planet.
“Every piece of plastic we use has a story,” she explained. “By turning waste into art, we can raise awareness about recycling and inspire others to make more sustainable choices.”
Participants, aged from 10 to 18, were eager to try their hands on activities that followed.
They were divided into small groups and provided with a variety of plastic materials—bottles, fabric waste, and containers—collected from local recycling centres and from the beaches.
Under the facilitators’ guidance, students learned how to transform these discarded items into creative sculptures, and mixed-media artworks.
By Spectator Reporter
News
Ghana-Colombia strengthens ties through diplomatic engagement
In an important diplomatic engagement, the Colombian Ambassador to Ghana H.E. Daniel Garces Carabali paid a courtesy call on the Minister for the Interior, Muntaka Mohammed-Mubarak, at his office in Accra to discuss some key areas of collaboration.
The meeting focused on pressing issues, including security, decongestion of Ghana’s prisons, prison reform programmes, training programmes, improving the welfare of prisoners and enhancing disaster management in the country.
The courtesy call underscores the growing bilateral ties between Ghana and Colombia, building on previous engagements, such as the visit of the Colombian Vice President to Ghana in 2023.
The meeting demonstrates the commitment of both nations to fostering cooperation and addressing shared challenges.
News
Ghana to host African Catholic Journalists from August 10
The Union Catholique Africaine de la Presse (UCAP), also known as the African Catholic Union of the Press, in collaboration with the Catholic Association of Media Practitioners-Ghana (CAMP-G), is set to host its prestigious Triennial Congress from August 10 to 17 August, 2025.
The programme would be held at the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA), Legon, Accra, Ghana.
This landmark event, the most significant gathering of Catholic journalists in Africa, will bring together media professionals, researchers, and experts in digital technology from across the continent and beyond.
The theme for the Congress is: “Balancing Technological Progress and the Preservation of Human Values in the Age of Artificial Intelligence.”
Congress Highlights
The UCAP Congress 2025 will feature discussions and deliberations on critical issues arising from or related to integral human development, particularly within the framework of Artificial Intelligence (AI).
Some of the key sub-themes to be addressed include:Corporate Social Responsibility in Managing the Impact of Artificial Intelligence on Human Values, Deploying AI in Eco-friendly Business Start-ups in Africa: Opportunities and Challenges, Technology and the Reprogramming of Social Reality, Distortion of Reality in Social and Digital Media, Ecological Education and Action Against Unsustainable Exploitation of Natural Resources, and Media and the Promotion of the Recommendations of the Synod on Synodality in Africa.
Participants will include media professionals from both ecclesiastical and lay organisations, media researchers and academics, representatives from the Vatican, government agencies, NGOs, civil society, and the digital technology sector.
Objectives of the Congress
The primary goal of this Congress is to strengthen the capacities of media professionals and educate the public on the necessity of preserving human values amid rapid technological progress. Specific objectives include; Training 100 media practitioners in Artificial Intelligence and emerging technologies, with a focus on balancing innovation and human values.
This will include promoting ethics and bioethics in technical research and technological innovations through media.
Advocating for human values such as respect for life, human dignity, charity, solidarity, and human rights and assessing the impact of technological progress to better understand the challenges, risks, and opportunities presented by AI will be part of the objectives.
UCAP is a continental organisation dedicated to promoting communication within the Catholic Church and its partners in Africa. With a mission to foster spiritual growth, collaboration, and responsible journalism, UCAP works to spread the Gospel, uphold human values, and support developmental initiatives across Africa and beyond.
UCAP is an independent, autonomous, non-political, and non-profit organisation comprising African Catholic journalists, communicators, academics, researchers, and institutions in various media fields.
