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The Government of Canada Launches a National Competition to Determine the Location of the Future Portrait Gallery of Canada

On November 9, 2007, the Honourable Josée Verner, Minister of Canadian Heritage and the Honourable Michael Fortier, Minister of Public Works and Government Services, announced that the Government of Canada was launching a Request for Proposals to determine where the future Portrait Gallery of Canada will be built. This Request is addressed to all public and private sector presenters in the following nine cities: Halifax, Quebec City, Montreal, Ottawa-Gatineau, Toronto, Winnipeg, Edmonton, Calgary and Vancouver. These cities were selected because they have large populations and efficient transit networks, and are likely to attract foreign visitors.

This announcement clearly marks the death of the previous plan involving the conversion of the former American embassy, across the street from the Parliament Buildings, a plan on which over 11 million dollars has already been spent. We note as well the aborted plan to build the Portrait Gallery in Calgary, with funding from the private sector. The current call for tenders marks a clear turning point in government policy concerning national institutions, one already evident in last year’s announcement of the Canadian Museum for Human Rights in Winnipeg, based as well on the idea of partnerships between the government and the private sector and of decentralization away from the National Capital. Ms. Verner, expressed her desire to circulate the new Gallery’s collection, so that as many Canadians as possible can see the faces which have made their mark on Canadian history. This new policy direction is eliciting both favourable and critical reaction.

The government hopes to make the announcement concerning the new site of the Portrait Gallery of Canada next spring, which leaves little time for presenters to find partners for such a project. According to the government’s timeline, this new cultural installation should welcome its first visitors during the 2011-2012 season.

A New International Organization is Formed: the International Federation of Coalitions for Cultural Diversity (IFCCD)

On September 19, representatives of 37 national coalitions favouring cultural diversity meeting in Seville, Spain, formed the International Federation of Coalitions for Cultural Diversity (IFCCD). The Federation will take over from the International Liaison Committee of Coalitions for Cultural Diversity (ILC-CCD), which has coordinated and provided support for the work of various national groups since 2003, and has liaised with UNESCO and with the International Network on Cultural Policy (INCP).

Organized through the efforts of the Spanish Coalition, the founding convention was an opportunity to set out the structure of the Federation. A ten-person Board of Directors was chosen, chaired by Rasmane Ouedraogo, president of the Burkina Faso Coalition. The Federation will be incorporated in Canada, its headquarters will be in Montreal, and its Secretary General will be Jim McKee, Executive Director of Canada’s Coalition for Cultural Diversity. Solange Drouin, co-chair of the CCD, was elected treasurer. The French Coalition will serve as the Federation’s representative to UNESCO.

In the closing declaration of the Seville meeting, the representatives of the participating coalitions set out the mandate of the new Federation. For example, the IFCCD will support countries’ ratification of the Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions, so as to reach the goal of ratification by 150 countries by 2010, in particular, by those countries from under-represented areas (Asia, the Middle East, Africa). As well, the Federation will support the creation of new national coalitions, and will work to speed up the implementation of the Convention.

On October 29, the CCA sent a letter to the Honourable Jim Prentice, Minister of Industry, urging him to use his discretionary powers to assure that Statistics Canada’s Survey on Giving, Volunteering and Participating be continued. This survey, conducted in its present form since 2001, provides an indication of the dollar value of all donations and of the time given by citizens to non-profit and charitable organizations. The survey, and the budget associated with it, are now at risk as a result of budgetary adjustments taking place at Statistics Canada.

The CCA letter notes that the arts and cultural sectors provide a livelihood for over 600 000 Canadians, many of whom work for non-profit organizations. In many cases, these organizations are heavily dependent on the work of volunteers and on income from donations. The information provided by the Statistics Canada survey is, therefore, of great importance to many organizations in the arts and cultural sectors (and in other sectors), which rely on it as a yardstick to evaluate their fundraising efforts among private donors, as well as their audience growth.

On September 12, 2007, the Minister of Canadian Heritage, the Honourable Josée Verner, announced the creation of a new program called Building Communities Through Arts and Heritage. This announcement fulfills a commitment made in the 2007 federal budget to devote $30 million a year over two years to local festivals and special events.

One of the strong points of this announcement is definitely the news that $7 million from this program will be added to the budget of Arts Presentation Canada, to provide support to professional arts and heritage festivals. This funding will be gradually introduced, and will be fully available in 2009-2010.

An implementation process for these recommendations has been established under the direction of the Treasury Board, with representation from concerned parties. Imagine Canada has formed a working group, which meets every six weeks with government representatives. During a meeting this past June attended by the CCA, the non-profit sector identified three clear priorities, which were accepted by the Treasury Board:

The gradual establishment of a multiyear funding scheme
The establishment of a uniform implementation regime for all departments
A commitment by the government to set measurable standards regarding the handling of applications (e.g. standardized forms, time limits for processing applications, verification requirements, etc.)

Given that the administration of many subsidy programs and contribution agreements has been transferred to the provinces, the working group formed by Imagine Canada will look at the need for provinces to take measures similar to those being developed at the federal level. Significant progress on this question should take place during 2008, and the CCA will keep you informed of any major developments.

CCA Bulletin 36/07 – Update on various files

November 20, 2007