Everyone Benefits from The Arts

The Arts make a difference in all our lives:

  • improve quality of life
  • create stronger communities
  • help people feel a sense of belonging and involvement
  • create a forum for intercultural understanding and friendship​ (1)

Canadians support the arts. In a 2015 study for Business for the Arts:

Over 80% said the following are good reasons for supporting the arts:

  • The arts enhance creativity and innovation
  • Arts education can assist children at risk in channeling their energies in a more productive direction
  • Arts education assists in the emotional and intellectual development of children
  • The arts help people understand other cultures
  • The arts can contribute to personal well being (2)

Over 70% agreed that good reasons for supporting the arts also included:

  • Communities with an active arts scene tend to be vibrant places to live and work
  • Arts activities help reduce youth alienation and crime
  • The arts can deepen emotional experience
  • Participation in the arts can lead to enhanced self awareness
  • The arts promote understanding and tolerance
  • The arts contribute to deepening personal awareness
  • The arts have the potential to contribute to the economic wellbeing of the community (3)

Arts Access: Good for People and Communities

Canadians believe that the performing arts benefit their communities, whether or not they attend (according to a 2012 EKOS/CAPACOA survey). In fact, the less likely Canadians are to attend, the more they believe that the performing arts benefit their communities rather than only individuals attending.(4)

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(1) Canada Council, Impact of the Arts on Canadian Life.
(2) Environics Research Group, Arts and Heritage Access and Availability Survey 2016-2017, Department of Canadian Heritage and Canada Council for the Arts, POR number: 051-16. 2017.
(3) Strategic Counsel, Building the Case for Business Support of the Arts: A Study Commissioned by Business for the Arts, Feb. 2015.
(4) Value of Presenting – Survey of the General Public, 2012 (EKOS Research Associates/CAPACOA).