Organisations and individuals working in creative and cultural fields, and the community members who support them, are the focus of a new draft strategy for East Gippsland Shire Council.

Now available for public feedback, the draft Culture and Creativity Strategy aims to create a thriving environment for cultural and creative communities to deliver experiences for the region.

To help gather feedback on the draft, an online discussion is being held on Wednesday, January 18 from 6pm. For more details and to register for the session, see Council’s engagement website yoursay.eastgippsland.vic.gov.au

The draft Culture and Creativity Strategy’s four goals are: to foster the growth of cultural and creative communities; embed creativity into the fabric of the shire; support communities to undertake their own initiatives; and champion the region’s diverse cultures and creative activities.

To help prepare the strategy, Council officers engaged with creative and culture stakeholders, visited key spaces in the shire, held public forums, spoke to traditional owner groups and held a First Nation’s workshop.

Mayor Cr Mark Reeves said the findings of this work provided a great foundation for future focus and support.

“We found while there are strong groups of creative and cultural people in the shire, they are often invisible to each other and their audiences. The region has limited resources to provide production and technical support to these groups, as well as there being a lack of suitable spaces for development and presentation of creative and cultural work,” Cr Reeves said.

“It was also recognised that there are minimal opportunities for formal education and training and for young people to enter the field whilst remaining in East Gippsland.

“This strategy aims to support and elevate our arts and culture industry, practitioners and audiences. It is important the strategy meets the goals of stakeholders and community, so I encourage everyone to read the draft and give their input,” Cr Reeves said.

To read the draft strategy and give your feedback, visit Council’s engagement portal eastgippsland.yoursay.vic.gov.au

Feedback closes on Friday, January 27.

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