Delaware Arts Alliance is preparing the launch of its CREATE plan this summer.
The Arts Alliance advocates for artists across the First State and the CREATE plan seeks to monetize the arts impact on local economies.
The Alliance’s Executive Director Neil Kirschling says “Delaware will actually be the first state in the country to put forward any sort of creative economy plan like this, that is so inclusive of nonprofit organizations, for profit organizations, and individual artists. We also have analyzed and put forward recommendations that relate to the state, the counties and municipal levels of government - so really, a multifaceted approach that will put Delaware in the lead across the nation.”
Community organizations, governments, artists and businesses can tap into that interactive resource for information on First State artists and the communities that support them.
Planners will find information on ways to include the creative economy in future community considerations.
Kirschling adds the plan is a new approach to recognizing value in the arts, and Delawareans are behind it.
“I think folks get this intuitively. They understand if we make an intentional investment in terms of policy and funding in the arts there is a high ROI, return on investment that we can see. I think a lot of us have heard anecdotally about the needs, and this will be the first time that Delaware has put forward a comprehensive plan about the things we’ve been hearing in pockets.”
Kirschling says the plan will start with an online searchable index of creative economy assets across the state - helping community organizations, governments, artists and businesses connect and learn how to incorporate the creative economy in their planning.
For more on the Delaware Arts Alliance and CREATE, visit the DAA’s website at delawareartsalliance.org.
Delaware Public Media' s arts coverage is made possible, in part, by support from the Delaware Division of the Arts, a state agency dedicated to nurturing and supporting the arts in Delaware, in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts.
