Little Penang Street Market - Evaluation of Artisan Market in Malaysia
Team: Kadijatu Conteh, Alexa Degioannini, Rachel Elin, Hanna Kadlec, Ryan Short
Semester: Spring 2009
Little Penang Street Market, George Town, Malaysia
community :: arts :: economicdevelopment :: heritage tourism
Project Summary
During Spring 2009, student consultants designed an evaluation module and other survey methods for a community-run artisan market in George Town, Malaysia, a UNESCO World Heritage site. This survey, prepared for the Little Penang Street Market, will be an integral part of a larger capacity building initiative. Funding permitted, students had an opportunity to implement the survey as in the field during Summer 2009.
Students who choose this Practicum enrolled in the GPIA course Designing Collaborative Development for their PIA section.
Organization
Founded in March 2006, Little Penang Street Market (LPSM) is a community's response to the gradual loss of cultural vibrancy and intangible heritage in the heart of Penang Island, Malaysia. LPSM aims to provide a sustainable infrastructure through incubating small cultural entrepreneurs, hosting exhibitions and performances, networking opportunities, and educational outreach to the public.
At the core of LPSM's activities is an open-air street market. Launched in July 2006, the market is held monthly at a pedestrianized street in Penang's historic George Town, a former British colonial port city. The first community-based and not-for-profit cultural market of its kind in Malaysia, it features local crafts, food, cultural performances and children's programs. Each month, 60 to 80 vendors display their handmade products, heritage food, and art works for sale. LPSM operates under the auspices of Penang Arts Council, and is endorsed by the Penang State government and the Penang Tourism Council.
Background
LPSM was founded by a group of volunteers with seed funds from New York-based Institute for Cultural Enterprise (ICE). Former GPIA student and ICE fellow, Irene Leung, investigated Penang's potentials in stimulating cultural enterprises during summer and fall of 2005. She found that since the 1970s, traditional arts and craftshave begun to disappear due to industrialization, modernization of the economy, and availability of cheaper consumer goods from other parts of the region. While there have been urgent calls to revive dying trades and crafts in Malaysia, many artisans continue to work in isolation from one another. Many rely on word-of-mouth to sell their products. Acting as their own agents, some lack sufficient capital, marketing expertise, and basic book keeping skills to expand their businesses.
The research in Penang resulted in a $15,000 grant from ICE aiming to catalyze the flow between community cultural assets and economic development within the framework of cultural tourism. Discussions with local stakeholders led to the decision, in March 2006, to create a community-owned and operated artisan market that celebrates the diverse art forms of Malaysia as well as an incubator of homegrown design and innovative cultural products.
In just four months, Little Penang Street Market opened to the public July 30, 2006. Held monthly for the last two and half years, LPSM has been phenomenally successful in sustaining public enthusiasm and interest with its arts market and cultural performances (approximately 2,000-4,000 visitors per market). In 2006, the founding committee also assisted two home-based women entrepreneurs with logo design, printing, and packaging of their products (e.g. natural herbs and spicy fruitpickle).
Project Description
Culture and development has been an emerging field in international development during the last couple of decades. A sustainable cultural development project needs to create links between artistic productions, cultural patrimony, and socio-economic development. Since cultural and social value creation could not be quantified in a business cost-benefit framework, an evaluation module that integrates business analysis as well as cultural and social factors may benefit from using a 'capabilities approach' pioneered by Amartya Sen.
The Little Penang Street Market presented an opportunity to develop and implement an impact assessment through using a combination of business and social indicators.
Through Spring 2009 course «Designing Collaborative Development», students worked as a team to develop an evaluation module and other survey methods for this practice-based project. The project has multiple objectives:
1) To incorporate a 'capabilities approach' in an evaluation of a development project that aims to increase economic, social andcultural values;
2) To develop a comprehensive survey of a community-run artisan market;
3) To research and develop any number of the following:
- income generating schemes (e.g. product development);
- various networking platforms (e.g. online or in person);
- business workshops and design clinics for emerging and professional artisans and performers;
4) To develop strategies for cultural tourism in a UNESCO World Heritage site.
Funding permitted (through fundraising throughout the semester or students' own resources), a six-week field survey, to be launched in Summer 2009, will be conducted in the field.The final product will include a set of capacity building recommendations, tobe incorporated into the client's strategic plan.
Outcomes
Students learnt how to create an evaluation module that could be applied to other development projects with strong cultural and social dimensions; they would also gain valuable experience by working with a small community-based cultural organization in a developing country.
Contact information
Project Manager: Irene Leung
Email: irenesleung@hotmail.com
For more information on LPSM,visit: http://www.littlepenang.com.my/
Core Documents
Terms of Reference
Timeline
Final Presentation
Additional Documents
LPSM Assessment Guide.pdf
Navigate: All Spring 2009 practicums