ACTION LABS IN PROGRESS: → Shared Ground Initiative (click to learn more) → Social Impact Evaluation in the Arts (click to learn more)
Arts Ottawa is listening closely to the local arts community. We are working to understand how we can collectively address the opportunities, challenges and priorities the sector is facing, that shape the sector’s role in city building.
Arts Ottawa held three Collaborative Strategy Sessions to pilot a Core Leadership Circle (CLC) in late fall 2025. Community advisory members, partners, and sector leaders—those actively engaged in addressing challenges around spaces, local economic development, and impact measurement—shared experiences, tested ideas, and explored ways to coordinate collective action. By convening this CLC, we began building stronger connections across the sector to ensure Arts Ottawa’s work is informed by and reflects the realities of, Ottawa’s arts community. During our Collaborative Strategy Session on November 27, 2025, Ava Marguerite, one of our CAMs, joined to observe the session and share their experience and key takeaways as an Arts Correspondent.
You can read the full article here.
From these conversations, we and the CLC identified three Strategic Priority Pillars. Arts Ottawa is reframing these as interconnected components of Ottawa’s civic infrastructure.
Physical Infrastructure: Artists need clearer pathways to engage with physical spaces, along with practical guidance on civic systems (planning development, zoning), and capital projects.
Knowledge Infrastructure: Capturing and communicating sector impact is critical. Currently, data and storytelling are fragmented, and participants emphasized the need for simple, shared tools to make this work more effective.
Economic Infrastructure: The sector is exploring ways to strengthen local economic development by supporting fair work, local ownership, equity, and long-term sustainability. Effective coordination and shared messaging are key to making this possible.
Together, these layers create the infrastructure of cultural life — physical, economic, and social systems that sustain creativity and civic connection.
Through this work, Arts Ottawa’s role in the sector has become clear: we serve as a backbone, convener, knowledge hub, and capacity builder, centering equity and representation. Looking ahead to 2026–2027, we will focus strategically on these core roles, engaging in project leadership selectively to maximize collective impact, support sustainable and coordinate sector growth.
More about the Core Leadership Circle
The Core Leadership Circle acts as a catalyst for activation, formed around each of our Action Labs. These purpose-driven groups bring together individuals, organizations, and advisors from both within and beyond the arts to support, shape, and champion the work being done. Each CLC is dedicated to exploring a key issue in the arts, offering insight, strategy, and connections, and is dissolved once that phase of the work evolves. Through its leadership, the CLC will help guide outcomes from Action Labs such as Shared Ground (which explores the potential of underused spaces as cultural hubs) and the Arts Ottawa Awards (which celebrate and elevate the contributions of local artists and cultural leaders).
More about Action Labs
Action Labs are central to how we address key issues in the arts community. Each Lab focuses on a specific topic identified as important to artists and the community by our CAM. They may take the form of research groups, planning teams, advocacy hubs, or spaces for idea-sharing and collaboration. Each Lab is supported by a Core Leadership Circle, a group that helps guide the work and ensure its impact is shared with those who can drive broader change. Labs are formed in response to clear needs and conclude once their objectives are achieved, such as completing a project or sharing insights with the community.
A Dual Approach to Change
Project-Based Labs: These labs are designed to achieve specific goals, such as organizing a campaign or launching a new initiative. They have defined timelines and objectives and disband once the project is completed, or the goals are successfully met.
Issue-Based Labs: These labs focus on ongoing challenges or policy-related issues. While they often operate on longer timelines, their purpose and impact are regularly reviewed to ensure they remain relevant and effective.