Valuing the Intersection Between Arts, Culture, and Community
Practice and research exchange, photo: Tom Oesau
On September 12, 2013, NOCD-NY organized an exchange with arts and culture practitioners and leading researchers. The conversation lives on through this Valuing the Intersection Between Arts, Culture and Community: An Exchange of Research and Practice report.
Participants included:
Mindy Fullilove, Professor of Clinical Sociomedical Studies and Professor of Clinical Psychiatry at Columbia University
Maria Rosario-Jackson, Senior Advisor, Kresge Foundation and professor, Arts management Program, Claremont Graduate University
Susan Seifert, Director, Social Impact of the Arts Project (SIAP) and Mark Stern, Kenneth L.M. Pray Professor of Social Policy, University of Pennsylvania
Holly Sidford, President, Helicon Collaborative
Alaka Wali, Curator of North American Anthropology and applied cultural research director, Field Museum of Natural History
We designed the exchange to build dialogue and understanding between researchers and practitioners in different fields and learn about what each other is thinking and doing. Our goal was to join together to demonstrate the essence and value of arts and culture in communities and for the city and to identify opportunities and strategies for becoming part of broader conversations about rebuilding, community revitalization, health, and the city’s political leadership transition. We hoped that the exchange would strengthen a network of allies who could continue to be resources for one another.
Through a sharing of presentations, questions, and dialogue, we learned about the structural inequities in our cities and in philanthropy and the power of neighborhood cultural clusters, purposeful cross sector collaborations, and coming together to amplify our voice. Questions included terminology, definitions, and data, as well as strategies for addressing gentrification, incorporating new cultural practices, and shifting narratives to reconstruct policy.
The report has also been featured in Philanthropy News Digest.