Image of Helen Dang, a featured street dancer from MISCELLANEOUS Productions' OVERWHELMED. She is wearing a corduroy jacket and black burret, with her hands closed in fists and raised above her head, crossed at the wrists.

Vancouver City Council approves $4.3 million in funding for cultural organizations

New initiative offers multi-year funding to participating groups

This investment not only supports the cultural community, but also helps to enrich the cultural landscape of our city, and we’re thrilled to support Vancouver arts and culture with these grants.

Mayor Ken Sim

January 18 2023 –

Yesterday City Council approved $4.3 million in grants to 208 cultural organizations. As directed in Culture|Shift, our 10-year culture plan, this funding centres reconciliation and equity and will support a range of programs and services for artists, cultural groups, and the public and introduces a new initiative offering multi-year funding to participating organizations.

Through multi-year funding we aim to give cultural organizations the confidence and flexibility to plan and implement long-term programs and initiatives, allowing them to continue to serve their communities and contribute to the city's cultural landscape. The program also aims to reduce administrative burdens for applicants and provide new groups with access to city resources.

This investment aligns with our Reconciliation Framework (150 KB), UNDRIP Strategy (1.4 MB), Equity Framework (4 MB), and Accessibility Strategy (2.5 MB). It also supports the economic and cultural recovery of the city through the COVID-19 Economic and Business Recovery program.

Included in this announcement is $85,000 in multi-year funding over three years for MISCELLANEOUS Productions Society , a hip-hop dance theatre boot camp for culturally and socially representative youth.

Funding highlights

Review the full report, including the full list of recipients and the Cultural Learning and Sharing Grants 2022 report back (291 KB)

Quotes

Mayor Ken Sim

“We’re excited to be making this significant investment in arts and culture organizations in Vancouver. These groups play a vital role in the city, and this funding will allow them to continue offering important programs and services to artists, cultural groups, and the public,” said Mayor Ken Sim. “This investment not only supports the cultural community, but also helps to enrich the cultural landscape of our city, and we’re thrilled to support Vancouver arts and culture with these grants.”

Elaine Carol, Artistic Director at MISCELLANEOUS Productions

Elaine Carol, Artistic Director at MISCELLANEOUS Productions, said, "We are deeply grateful to the City of Vancouver for this funding. It will enable us to conduct outreach, and give access and free professional performing arts training to the most challenged young folx in Vancouver. It will also enable us to create original performing arts and digital projects featuring the voices of young folx using the arts as a tool for social change."