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Current 
Projects

This is an exciting time for Creative Coast. Some of our multi-year projects are really starting to produce compelling insights and results, and some of our partnerships are starting to solidify in important ways.

 

Our next big project is to secure funding to realize our vision for an inclusive, connected, thriving Creative Economy in the Vancouver Island/rural Islands ecosystem. 

Super-regional activities

  • Our Central Island Digital Creation Hub, or DCH (launched Nov 2022) is proving wildly popular with artists across the Central Island area. Mid-year report coming soon. We're so pleased that a second DCH has opened! Welcome Comox Digital Creation Hub (launched March 2023). More about these hubs on our ArtCoach page.
     

  • We're doing a LOT of grant writing / grant supporting these days:

    • To try to secure funding for more staffed Digital Creation Hubs: at the Victoria Native Friendship Centre and the Tofino Arts Council. Early-stage discussions are underway to see if we can also make space for one in Port McNeill. Email us to join the DCH club! 

    • To remove barriers for Indigenous artists to access new Indigenous funding programs at BC Arts Council, Canada Council for the Arts and more.

    • To enable the Alberni Valley Makerspace to obtain stable funding to fulfil its potential as a driven of economic diversification and a builder of a culture of innovation.
       

  • We are starting to get much interest in our asset mapping exercise and are encouraging communities to use our dead simple and free template to create their own (which we can then feed into the super-regional map). Get in touch to start making yours! 
     

  • We're doing a remarkably good job keeping the all-islands event calendar current. And they said it couldn't be done! Help us by using the short submission form at the bottom of the calendar page AND by hashtagging all your events with #creativecoastbc 
     

  • ​Our 'Meet me in the middle' podcast will hopefully get going again soon, but in the meantime, make sure to check out earlier episodes on our youtube channel (and subscribe!) or via the podcast page. Nathalie Grice's interview is the top-most viewed at the moment! We also have some excellent resources on our ArtCoach page.
     

  • We're involved in several impact measurement and data empowerment initiatives with Canadian universities, including a 2-year, $500k Government of Canada New Frontiers In Research Special Call grant focused on Vancouver Island/rural Islands super-region, co-led by Simon Fraser University (Sheelagh Carpendale, Canada Research Chair in Information Visualization, and her students from Simon Fraser University Interactive Experiences Lab) and Creative Coast! Read our recent blog post about data empowerment. This SSHRC project intersects beautifully with MassCulture's Data Narratives for the Arts (and they have a much bigger budget) so we anticipate a strong collaboration emerging as these projects get underway in the summer of 2023.

Upcoming collaborations 

Cross sectors & geographies

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Ongoing conversations 

Just the tip of the iceberg!

  • Island Coastal Economic Trust: islandcoastaltrust.ca

  • Creative City Network of Canada (CCNC): creativecity.ca

  • Nancy Duxbury (founder of CCNC) and lead on INSITU - a 2022 through 2026  project involving 13 European countries, similar to our Creative Economic Development Pilot

  • Creative Manitoba: creativemanitoba.ca

  • Independent Media Arts Alliance: imaa.ca

  • 4VI – Tourism Vancouver Island: forvi.ca

  • Vancouver Island Economic Alliance: viea.ca

  • Nuu’chah’nulth Economic Development Corporation: nedc.info

  • Community Futures Port Alberni: cfac.ca

  • North Island Regional Library: virl.bc.ca/branches/port-mcneill

  • BC Museums Association: museum.bc.ca

  • Association of Vancouver island and Coastal Communities: avicc.ca

  • Curated Now: curatednow.ca/curators-picks

Past Activities

Sample post from 2022 ArtCoach workshop

Future project ideas 

  • Filling considerable gaps in supports/services to Indigenous and other under-served creative populations (e.g. piloting digital creation/tech hubs in rural/remote areas)

  • Designing artist residency and mentorship programs that take advantage of our considerable artistic and geographical assets

  • Removing siloes or barriers within our sector (e.g Fostering greater coordination of off-season creative events/activities so that more communities benefit from off-season tourist activities)

  • Building data competency - the 'other side of the coin' to digital literacy

  • Supporting artists/arts orgs to expand audiences and markets (e.g. strengthen the connection with tourism)

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