OUR CREATIVE CITIES ONLINE: Making Connections, Improving

Visibility and Sharing Knowledge

By Lidia Varbanova

Creative Cities: how we talk about them and how we present them

online?

• Virtual libraries of resources on creative cities

• Single researches and books

• Websites of cities

• Others

Creative city is the one which:

• Improves the life of the citizens through providing multiple cultural and artistic choices

• Fosters a vivid multicultural community relations • Increases the role of culture and arts in urban

and regional regeneration • Develops cultural tourism and business

investments as a result• Brings people together and create interactive

social zones• Has interdisciplinary and integrated approaches

to regionalization of arts and culture

• Announcements and upcoming events

• News

• Reports and studies

• Views from abroad

• Ideas and reflections

www.creativecity.ca

http://portal.unesco.org/culture

Cities in the Global Alliance’s Creative Cities Network

• Berlin, Germany - UNESCO City of Design • Aswan, Egypt - UNESCO City of Folk Art • Buenos Aires, Argentina- UNESCO City of Design • Santa Fe, New Mexico- UNESCO City of Folk Art • Popayan, Colombia- UNESCO City of Gastronomy • Edinburgh, Scotland- UNESCO City of Literature

HOW TO APPLY TO BECOME A UNESCO CREATIVE CITY?

• How to apply to become a UNESCO Creative City

1.  Ideally, who should be involved in the application process?

• Point Person(s) – one or two (more is usually not recommended) person/people who possess an intimate knowledge of the city’s cultural industries, including relevant contacts and networks across public, private and civil sectors.  The Point Person will ideally coordinate the application process, maintain communication and act as a liaison between the stakeholders inside and outside the city.Management Group – a core group of three to four people (including the Point Person) who (ideally) have a history of working/communicating together, but who each bring different perspectives/backgrounds to the project, preferably across public, private and civil sectors.Steering Committee – this may not be necessary in the application process, but if the city is chosen, Steering Committees would be essential in executing partnerships, exchanges, etc. A preliminary list of potential members on a Steering Committee (usually between 10-20 members) would be helpful in assessing the potential extent and level of participation of a city’s cultural community.

•2. How do we prepare and submit the application?

Experience has shown that the preparation stage should ideally be managed by one or two people (referred to as the Application Manager), preferably including the Point Person. The Application Manager(s) is (are) in charge of directing research, compiling documentation and coordinating the final draft of the application, especially since different sections of the application may be written by different people in specialized cultural sub-sectors. In many ways, the application process already starts to bring together sub-clusters within the cultural industry of a city in a creative and collaborative context.

•3. How long should the application be and how should it be organized?

There is no prescribed length for the application. The content should be as clear and concise as possible, while the presentation of the city’s cultural assets (such as the facilities, associations, traditions, etc.) should reflect both breadth and depth in research. The following is a suggested approach for presenting the application, but of course each city is free to organize its application in any way it sees fit.

• Title Page – including thematic network for which a city is applying, name and contact information of Point Person, names and titles of members of the Management Team (if applicable), names and titles of members of the Steering Committee (if applicable) and date of submission.Table of Contents – list and page number of major headings and subheadings in the application.The city in context – brief description of city’s geography, population, economy (if possible provide data on the impact of cultural industries in your city) and social and political conditions.Cultural life/industry in the chosen thematic network in general – brief (and preferably catchy) description of the cultural highlights in chosen thematic network. Extended descriptions of cultural assets – subsections can include, for example:  “Museums,” “Festivals,” “Associations,” with each subsection followed by one or two paragraphs that highlight the significance or the most important features of that subsection.

4. How do we get help/guidance in preparing the application?

Please consult the webpage regularly since it will be frequently updated with relevant information for the application process. You can also contact Arian Hassani at a.hassani@unesco.org if your questions are not answered on the website.  

Richard Florida world tour

The top 10 American creative cities

• Creative Cities and their New EliteEmily Eakins (from the New York Times)• The High-Rise IQ's

Which is the most creative American city? According to the creativity index of Richard Florida, a professor at Carnegie Mellon University, these are the top cities for regions with over a million people. 1. San Fransisco2. Austin, Tex. 3. (tie) San Diego4. Boston5. Seattle6. Raleigh-Durham, N.C.7. Houston8. Washington/Baltimore9. New York10. DallasMinneapolis-St. Paul

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What is at www.creativecities.com?

Our creative cities online: areas to improve

• Absence of online classification on the terminology linked with the creative cities

• Absence of relevant online artistic and creative images to reflect the creative city concept

• More research present online rather than showing real creative life

• Absence of a lively vibrant website to accommodate creative cities research and practice

• No forums and debates online on the topics, no community groups or email lists found

Our creative cities online: areas to improve

• Creative cities concept for South-East Europe is absent

• Presentation of cities from the touristic point of view, little creativity in individual websites about cities

• Static presentation of concert halls, theatres, galleries-addresses and events only

• Absence of artistic profiles and creative processes

• Poor visibility of the website in some cases, difficult to orientate (Sofia, Belgrade)