New York: Cultural Blueprints

Cultural Blueprints is a statewide series of public forums initiated by the New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA) to identify regional and statewide strategies for the arts to serve as a catalyst for cultural, economic and community development. Over the past several months, NYSCA staff, working with Empire State Development’s (ESD) regional directors and local arts councils, has brought together more than 1,000 people in nine regions of the state to discuss strategies for strengthening the creative sector and maximizing the impact of the arts on economic renewal. These conversations gather leaders from the arts, business, economic development, tourism, transportation, labor, philanthropy and education communities to identify opportunities for coordinated action. The Cultural Blueprint process geographically and thematically corresponds to the ESD Regional Blueprint process, a set of conversations in the economic development sector that had taken place across upstate New York in the previous year. Each regional session lasts approximately five hours and includes introductory remarks by representatives of NYSCA, ESD regional directors, regional arts partners and local political leaders. Facilitated breakout sessions focus on five key themes: infrastructure, intellectual capital and work force development, international and global thinking, investment and financial models, and image and identity. The sessions conclude with a plenary focusing on the identified priorities and actionable next steps. NYSCA will conclude the Cultural Blueprint series this summer in the five boroughs of New York City. NYSCA has documented summaries of each regional meeting, in addition to press coverage, on the Cultural Blueprints Web site. The Cultural Blueprints blog serves as a forum to continue conversations from the regional sessions. For additional information, contact NYSCA Director of Public and Governmental Affairs Sasha Soreff.