Creative Enterprise Leadership

Catalyst is a platform of the graduate programs in Creative Enterprise Leadership in Arts and Cultural Management (ACM) and Design Management (DM) at Pratt Institute, School of Art. It is presented by its program participants, alumni and faculty who search the world for the voices and visions that inspire and catalyze (activate) 21st century creative leaders to lead as if life matters. Leading as if Life Matters. We demonstrate that by connecting creativity with strategy and generativity, today’s leaders can design experiences and economic exchanges that can re-define who we are and who we might become. We provide examples of a future that has arrived. And evidence the power of using the arts and design to address complex cultural challenges and to innovate for advantage. In 2009, the Pratt Design Management program launched CATALYST, a publication addressing the value of strategic design in addressing complex problems. The premier issue was entitled "Benign by Design: NYC" and considered New York City as an incubator of complex social, environmental and economic challenges. CATALYST authors have included designers from Pentagram and frog Design, a New York Times Magazine contributor, activists such as Dr. Vandana Shiva and others. CATALYST has been featured on Design Observer, Core 77, Dexigner and other reputable resources. "CATALYST’s timely coverage of strategic design and its outcomes, its social and environmental consciousness, its lively and beautifully crafted layouts, its liberal mix of topics make it unique among publications. These merits are especially noteworthy in the context of academic journals, known for their over-intellectualizing of their subjects and bland writing--CATALYST is a pioneer in the field." - Susan Szenasy, Editor in Chief of Metropolis Magazine