Victoria, BC– Over the past year, CRD Arts & Culture has completed the first four phases of an Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Implementation Framework, resulting in top to bottom modifications of the policies and processes governing its grant programs and operations.
Informed by community engagement through the Arts Champions Summit and consultations, and led by an EDI Subcommittee made up of a diverse group of volunteers, CRD Arts and Culture has modified its grant programs to reprioritize support to organizations serving and representing equity-seeking communities, lower unnecessary barriers and ensure there is representative and equitable adjudication.
“The changes we have implemented over the past year aim to better support the full diversity of artistic and cultural expression across the region,” says Cris Caravaca, Chair of the EDI Subcommittee.
Most recently, the Arts Commission approved doubling the maximum request amount for the Equity Grants program for 2023. This initiative, together with the EDI lens applied across all granting programs, will result in more funding for arts activities benefitting equity-seeking groups in the capital region. The next phase of the EDI Implementation Framework will involve integrating planning considerations into the next CRD Arts & Culture strategic plan.
View a list of CRD Arts & Culture EDI Implementation Framework changes.
The CRD Arts & Culture Support Service is supported by Saanich, Victoria, Oak Bay, Esquimalt, View Royal, Highlands, Metchosin, Sooke and Southern Gulf Islands. Learn more at www.crd.bc.ca/arts.
Proud to be recognized as one of BC’s Top Employers and Canada’s Greenest Employers, the CRD delivers regional, sub-regional and local services to 13 municipalities and three electoral areas on southern Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands. Governed by a 24-member Board of Directors, the CRD works collaboratively with First Nations and all levels of government to enable sustainable growth, foster community well-being, and develop cost-effective infrastructure while continuing to provide core services to residents throughout the region. Visit us online at www.crd.bc.ca.
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For media inquiries, please contact:
Chris Gilpin, Manager
CRD Arts & Culture
Tel. 250.360.3205
cgilpin@crd.bc.ca