If you thought politics is a circus, think again | Māra Pāvula | TEDxRiga

Would you say that sometimes political processes can become… a circus? Consider this the next time you want to use this metaphor — in reality, the circus is a tight-knit community of hardworking individuals with a deep trust in one another. The circus’ diverse history can teach us a lot about cultivating a diverse and inclusive society — Māra Pāvula, a facilitator of contemporary circus in Europe — shows us how. Mara is an enthusiast of a very unique and special culture - that of contemporary circus. She had been studying Intercultural Relations between Latvia and France when in 2012 Mara headed to Paris to fulfill her dream of entering the circus world, as France had always played an important role in the evolution of contemporary circus culture. While studying her Masters in University 8 of Paris, she established “Next Door Circus”, a platform dedicated to contemporary circus in the Baltics. Since 2013 she has been co-organizing the contemporary circus festival Re Riga! In 2016 Mara returned to Latvia, established the artist residency program "Sansusī", and continued her research and production activities. As of September 2017, Mara has been running the Riga Circus School, a platform that provides amateur and professional educational activities as well as audience development strategy under the Riga Circus. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx