Why Culture Matters: a talk by cultural commentator Max Wyman

Those wanting to learn more about the positive economic and social impact of arts and culture will be interested in reading this speech, and perhaps getting a copy of his book. I have a copy, should anyone like to borrow it.

The following are (lengthy) exerpts from Max Wyman's luncheon speech from 2004:

We have known for a long time that the availability and variety of cultural activity is one highly significant factor in this complex livability equation. Businesses increasingly choose to locate in cities that not only satisfy their needs in terms of transportation, distribution, and access to materials, but also provide the cultural density that will attract that workforce.

But as we move toward a society in which imagination is supplanting physical production as the basis of work, a city or region's economic health becomes increasingly to depend on its ability to attract what's been called the creative class - innovators - scientists and engineers, poets and architects, doctors and computer programmers, editorial writers and choreographers (sometimes hard to tell apart in their fancy footwork) ... as much as 30 percent of the workforce.

What they have in common is the ability to add creative value to a society; creative value that contributes to a climate of innovation and economic growth. They also generate, as a group, certain requirements from the places they choose to call home - not just the traditional elements of livability but an openness to eccentricity or difference; a broad range of cultural diversity and acceptance; and an active participatory, multi-dimensional lifestyle with a youthful orientation.

Now, these elements of openness and diversity of lifestyle are particularly interesting as cities begin to realize that traditional infrastructure investments like retail malls and sports complexes and industrial zones are less important than investment in people oriented amenities: parks, performance spaces, galleries.

Not everyone benefits from the public swimming pool, but we all pay for it. Very few individuals, in proportion to the size of our population, can take advantage of Canada's network of national parks, yet an overwhelming proportion of Canadians support their funding. The plain fact is, funding culture is neither an imposition of taste nor an act of charity - it is an investment in the health of the community, in the same way that building roads and hospitals is an investment in the health of the community.

What's clear is that both government and the private sector have a vested interest in making sure culture thrives. If nothing else, it's an investment in social health.

The full presentation is found here.