A music venue at Vancouver's Folk Music Festival
Vancouver Folk Music Festival Society, image: Clayton Wong

City Council approves more than $5.5M for Vancouver cultural organizations and festivals

April 14 2026 –

Today, Vancouver City Council approved more than $5.5 million in grants to 86 cultural organizations supporting festivals, events, programs and infrastructure that benefit artists, the cultural sector and communities across the city.

With this latest round of funding, the City has approved more than $11.1 million in cultural grants in 2026 to date, including $5.6 million earlier this year.

“Vancouver’s cultural organizations play a vital role in bringing people together and showcasing the best of what our city has to offer,” said Mayor Ken Sim. “These grants offer stability to organizations, allowing them to continue delivering the festivals, programs, and services that make Vancouver an incredible place to live and visit.”

Funding highlights

The $5.5M in cultural operating grants support ongoing operations and programming across Vancouver’s cultural sector and reach a diverse range of organizations including: Gallery Gachet, Out on Screen, Raven Spirit Dance, Vancouver Asian Canadian Theatre, Vancouver International Bhangra Celebration, Vancouver Folk Music Festival, Vancouver Fringe and more (75 KB).

The distribution and impact of the City’s grant programs are reported annually in the Arts, Culture and Community Services (ACCS) Grant Impact Report.

Grant recommendations are informed by a rigorous assessment process that includes review by a peer assessment committee. To advance equity in the assessment process, more than 50% of peer assessment committee members are from historically underrepresented communities.

Cultural grants are also investments in the City’s strategic priorities, including:

To learn more, access the Council meeting agenda, reports and minutes here: https://council.vancouver.ca/20260414/regu20260414ag.htm