Full Day Convening Commences with State and National Leaders

Thank you for joining us in celebrating Arts, Culture, and Creatively Month. This is the time we unify our voices to effect policy and budget allocations for the State of CA’s next fiscal year. It is also a time to gather to network with fellow arts and culture colleagues and inspire all with the power of the arts. To do so with up, please join us for our full day convening of panel discussions, updates, keynotes, and performances.

Thanks to our coalition of members, the event on April 27th will be FREE, but you do have to register for each session you would like to attend. Full Convening schedule here.

Stay tuned as we highlight individual sessions leading up to the event. First up, the Opening Session led by our very own Executive Director Julie Baker.

From a Campaign to a Movement: Arts Advocacy Today

What has COVID taught us in terms of advocating for the arts that we did not know before? Who are the current leaders for arts advocacy and what has changed in terms of our case making and our strategies? Join our opening session and get the pulse on arts advocacy today as we shift from single campaigns for arts funding and legislation to a national coalition led movement to recognize that arts are a critical industry, artists are essential workers and the creative sector is an economic and community driver for healthy outcomes prioritizing racial and cultural equity.

The opening session kicks off with guest speaker Mayor Todd Gloria as he shares his story of civic engagement from being a staff person for Susan Davis to City Council member to CA State legislator to now the first person of color and the first openly gay person to serve as San Diego’s mayor and how arts and culture fits into his leadership framework.

Then join Californians for the Arts Executive Director Julie Baker in conversation with national and statewide advocacy leaders to get specific details on what we are advocating for today and to be informed of important legislative and budget priorities. Be inspired to become part of the movement and hear from new and long time leaders as they share their stories of engagement, success and activation in support of the creative industries.

Lead Moderator
Julie Baker, CFTA Executive Director

Featured Speaker
Welcoming keynote: Todd Gloria, Mayor of San Diego

Panel Discussion
Betty Avila, Executive Director, Self Help Graphics & Art
Jeff Chang, Vice President of Narrative, Arts and Culture for Race Forward
Tom DeCaigny, Executive Director, Create CA
Matthew Lee Erlbach, Co-founder, Be An Arts Hero
Jenny Koons, Theater Director and Organizer
Harini Krishnan, San Mateo County Arts Commissioner & South Asians For Biden CA Director
Casey Lowdermilk, National Independent Venues Association (NIVA) CA
Michael Strickland, Live Events Coalition
Nina Ozlo Tunceli, Chief Counsel of Government and Public Affairs, Americans for the Arts
Cat Willis, Founder, Executive Director, Tannery World Dance and Cultural Center and “Black Health Matters”

Register for the Session