Over the last twelve months, while juggling a course load within the Dance Department, directing the development of the Movement Lab, and keeping up with her artistic practice, Gabri Christa was an Atlantic Fellow for Equity in Global Brain Health. Hosted by the Global Brain Health Institute (GBHI), the fellowship is a training program that consists of weekly readings, course work, leadership development, clinical engagement, and collaboration that aims to connect the next generation of leaders in brain health.
Christa got involved with the fellowship through the development of her multimedia piece, Magdelena; a performance about her mother that grew out of her desire to destigmatize dementia and catalyze public conversation. While a majority of other fellows approached the year’s trainings with backgrounds in neuroscience and medicine, Christa tackled the year as one of the only artists in her cohort. This ultimately reaffirmed for Christa the value of art making as a research practice. Although immensely grateful for the program’s help in widening her knowledge base, Christa is excited to renew her commitment to filmmaking, dance, and teaching, while instilling her work with reflections from the fellowship.
The fellowship ended with a five week intensive at the University of San Francisco Memory and Aging Center where the fellows spent hours of clinical observation studying patterns of diagnosis, the development of new research tools, and the implementation of community prevention and intervention. Catch Christa this fall in the Movement Lab and stay tuned for the Moving Body-Moving Image Festival; founded and curated by Christa, the festival will build upon her work with GBHI through the themes of “Aging & Othering” on April 4th.
