Economic Convening & the Arts in San Francisco

On January 12th, over 300 individuals met at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts for a timely and critical discussion on the economic recession and its impact on the arts community in San Francisco. The event was intended as the first step in a multiple-objective process linking local government, the philanthropic community, businesses, and the general public. The goal of these organizations' collaborative actions is to ensure that the Bay Area’s cultural community survives the current serious economic crisis.

The convening was hosted by San Francisco Arts Commission, San Francisco Foundation, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, Arts Forum SF.

View the complete 26 page report by clicking here. (PDF)

Breakout sessions were organized around four core issues:

1) How does the economic recession impact you and/or your organization?
2) What are you doing in response?
3) What do you need?
4) Possible solutions?

Participants were invited into five breakout groups, and then discussed those questions as they related to their current work conditions.

All guests participated in a Q&A session with Jeremy Nowak, President and CEO of the Philadelphia, PA based company, The Reinvestment Fund. Mr. Nowak was also a keynote speaker at the October, 2008 Grantmakers in the Arts Conference in Atlanta, where he discussed methods for the arts sector to stay financially secure amidst a financial crisis.

Further reports from this event will be posted soon. Please stay tuned!