Updates on activities carried out by Creative Coalition (Board & members), as a 'Champion for Auckland's Creative Sector'
Radio NZ’s Arts on Sunday programme covered our recent public meeting which invited the local sector to help us co-create the creative ecology model we are developing.
Justin Gregory talks to key researcher Elise Sterback, as well as CC board members Candy Elsmore and Charlie McDermott, amongst other attendees at the meeting (Michael Hurst, Q theatre, etc.)
Read the full project proposal here >
As a strong champion for Auckland’s arts, culture & creative sectors we are undertaking a project to chart Auckland’s creative ecology for the first time.
This will provide an independent sector-led perspective and robust data - illustrating what our sector looks like, how we are connected, and what our needs and aspirations are.
Senior officers at Auckland Council, ATEED and Creative New Zealand have acknowledged the project and shown support and encouragement for its approach.
We also have good reason to believe this report will be used by Council and central government agencies to inform their policy and strategy development in the immediate future.
My work as part of Arts Regional Trust is primarily concerned with helping creative, entrepreneurial practitioners and producers to increase their capability and capacity, towards greater sustainability of their practice. I think it is important that Auckland’s decisionmakers understand the value of what our creative sector provides to the whole community through the social, economic and community development benefits and opportunities it provides. I really want the creative sector recognised as a significant driver and originator of the ingredients that makes living, working and playing in Auckland a great proposition. I think this is beginning to happen, and certainly the Auckland Plan espouses this vision. I also want the creative sector to be valued as an ‘intersector’ – that is a ‘home’ and originator of creative thinking and innovation that in turn drives innovation and makes change happen across all sectors. However, in order to unlock the potential and really deliver on the Auckland Plan vision, the creative ecology in Auckland needs more backing and greater resourcing for us to leverage off.
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Candy Elsmore is a member of the Creative Coalition Board. She is also the Project Director for Arts Regional Trust and previously held roles at Te Tuhi Centre and MOTAT.
After forming earlier this year, our leadership board has just released its first major piece of work - a strategic plan and advocacy strategy to guide the activities of Creative Coalition for the next three years.
Click to view the full plan here >
With thanks to Studio Alexander for their design work on this document.
I think a group like Creative Coalition operates in a very interesting and very important space within the public sphere. The divide between government and the people it serves is getting increasingly wider due to its complexity. CC, in its conduit role between the two, can help to filter information from government through to those whose lives it affects, and report back to help government understand the needs of the sector in a more meaningful way. As a recent graduate, I am very aware of the pull overseas. Despite this, I feel strongly rooted in Auckland and I’m excited about how I can contribute to the creative sector here as it continues to evolve. Auckland seems to be in a unique position - its creative sector is relatively young, but there appears to be a strong appetite within the city to provide increasing support and exposure to creative activities and ideas. I look forward to working with CC to ensure these developments are carried out hand-in-hand with the sector at all the levels that make up its creative ecology.
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Elise Sterback is a member of the Creative Coalition Board. She is an arts policy researcher, cultural strategist, and creates immersive art experiences through her company Vibracorp.
Creative Coalition has lodged a submission opposing the Flavell Bill
(click here to view).
The Commerce Committee is reporting back to Parliament on 9th November. Should you wish to readdress any concerns, please contact the committee members (click to email):
Our position:
The Creative Coalition strongly supports efforts to reduce the far-reaching harm to the community that problem gambling creates. However, it is our view that the passage of this Bill in its current form puts at risk the availability and distribution mechanisms of a broad range of funding channels. The funds currently granted from gaming trusts to a large number of charitable organisations deliver valuable cultural services to the wider community that could suffer if interrupted without a plan for their replacement.
There is concern that the proposal to replace the “four well-beings” (social, economic, environmental, and cultural) would remove key responsibilities from local government and threaten the maintenance of local government activities that foster community cohesion and welfare.
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Local Government & Environment Select Committee report back to Parliament after consulting with the public about the proposed amendments to the Local Government Act 2002.
See our full review of the report and related documents in this release on The Big Idea.
Placing wellbeing as the target of policy redirects policy thinking and reminds us what policy is ultimately trying to achieve.
— Sebastian Fleuret and Sarah Atkinson quoted in Emma Blomkamp’s submission in response to the Local Government Act 2002 proposed amendment.
Creative Coalition has made both written and oral submissions to the Bill to reform the Local Government Act 2002. View these documents and further information about the progress of this Bill here.
Why this piece of legislation is significant:
The Bill proposes the removal of the ‘four wellbeings’ which are a cornerstone of the existing LGA 2002 Act. The ‘wellbeings’ are referred to throughout the Act as: social, economic, environmental and cultural wellbeings. This will remove the requirement for local government organisations to work to support and promote the well beings through the functions and purpose of local government.
This blog will be used to provide regular updates on Creative Coalition activity, news and resources.
We hope to use this to give our community a chance to get to know the members of the leadership board better and to be aware of our plans as they unfold.
Meaningful consultation will be a core feature of our activities going forward, so we hope this can be a space to begin dialogue with our community of interest.
Contributions are warmly welcomed - please send opinions, resources, or useful information to info@creativecoalition.org.nz to be shared with our community.
