Needs Assessment: Arts Administration Skills and Resources in Nunavut’s Arts and Culture Sector

The report is also available in Inuktitut and in Inuinnaqtun.

This needs assessment study highlights many complex business and arts administration needs in the Nunavut arts community, ranging from individual financial literacy to organizational planning and management. It was commissioned in response to feedback from Nunavut artists and arts organizations that building business and arts administration capacity is key to the growth and stability of the territory’s arts and culture sector.

The study was commissioned on behalf of the Nunavut Arts Funders Tri-level by the Canada Council for the Arts, the Department of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development and the Department of Economic Development and Transportation. The objective was to gain a clearer understanding of the community’s capacity issues and how funders could, in collaboration with many others, work to address them. Nordicity Ltd conducted the study over the winter and spring of 2014.

Next steps:

The Canada Council and its partners on this study welcome the findings and recognize that no one agency, organization, service provider or training institution can address all of them. They will be convening discussions with the arts community and other stakeholders on who can address key issues, where there are opportunities for collaboration and where other, new players with specific expertise can be brought to the table. The Council acknowledges that the findings of the report go beyond its areas of responsibility but is hopeful that other agencies, organizations and individuals will use the report to inform their own services to the Nunavut arts community.

The Council is exploring how, within its programs and policies, it can help the Nunavut arts community thrive. It will be looking at opportunities to support professional development for individual artists and how best to support capacity development in arts organizations, especially in the context of the current Aboriginal Arts Programs Evaluation and revisioning of the Aboriginal Arts Office. It will also examine what tools are available and how to make them relevant to artists and arts organizations in Nunavut.

The Council welcomes input and feedback on this study. Contact: Alexis Andrew, Policy and Planning Coordinator.