Advocacy and Research

Learning how to make an effective case for support and building community relationships

Community Relations Teams
Marketing and advocacy must be done on both the local level and region-wide. Members are organized in five community areas to develop and implement collaborative, grassroots marketing efforts and to introduce local officials, leaders and media to the many ways that arts and culture brings value to the community. The five CRTs are: Washtenaw and Livingston Counties; Oakland County; The City of Detroit; Western Wayne and Monroe Counties; and Eastern Wayne, Macomb and St. Clair Counties. The Cultural Alliance coordinates these efforts with the larger, inclusive regional effort. Download our 2011 Action Plan here. 

Mapping the Cultural Landscape: The Cultural Census
Funded by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, this innovative research project is exploring the relationships between member organizations and other community sectors such as businesses, faith-based organizations, local civic groups, government, education and others. This research studies audience relationships and reach for arts and culture. Download our PowerPoint Presentation as a PDF.

Americans for the Arts Research Projects
Southeastern Michigan has an extraordinary arts and culture community, which is now part of national data collection efforts. This will help member organizations to benchmark their performance nationally and to learn important market trends, both in our region and nationally. The Cultural Alliance is supporting the Local Arts Index and the Arts & Economic Prosperity IV Study of the Americans for the Arts; and also supports the Cultural Data Project, a powerful budget and other data reporting system operated by the Pew Charitable Trust.