Creative Hubs from Malawi, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe met at Moto Republik Creative Hub in Harare, Zimbabwe, on April 11, 2017 for a Creative Hub Think Tank workshop. The theme was Room of Open Minds (R.O.O.M).

Using the ‘World Café’ workshop methodology, the objective of the one-day gathering was for creative hub convenors and communities to reflect on the operating environment, challenges, opportunities and priorities for hubs and spaces in the region.   

Participants agreed to the following principles, actions and priorities for creative hubs in not only the focus countries, but also for the entire Southern African region:

• Creative hubs are important spaces for the advancement and protection of free expression, civic engagement, creative arts, and social innovation/entrepreneurship in Southern Africa, which must be nurtured, promoted and protected.
• Creative hubs in Southern Africa must collaborate and network much more closely in country and across borders in order to promote free expression, civic engagement, creative arts and social innovation/entrepreneurship.
• Creative hubs must promote safe, inclusive spaces for young change-makers in the Southern African region.
• Creative hubs in Southern Africa Creative should provide an inclusive, welcoming and safe atmosphere for women.
• Creative hubs in Southern Africa must strive for sustainability through funding models that are contextual, realistic, self-funded and not singularly dependent on donor funding.
• Creative Hubs must harness the full potential of the internet to advance free expression, civic engagement, creative arts and entrepreneurship. 
• The engagement of urban based and rural based hubs is of great importance for the advancement of free expression, civic engagement, the creative arts and entrepreneurship.
• Creative hubs must engage policy makers, the private sector and other stakeholders in order to enable an open, transparent and democratic operating environment in the region.