The Canadian Independent Music Association (CIMA) and MusicOntario have now submitted its views on how music must and should be a key component of the Ontario Government’s pending Cultural Strategy. The submission to government addresses issues that are of key importance to Canadian-owned music companies that call Ontario home.
As our members and longtime readers know, a new cultural strategy is an important opportunity for music (and all cultural industries) to have a say in how Ontario’s cultural landscape develops. The resulting strategy, expected to be released next summer, will inform government priorities in the cultural sector, and is the first strategy of its kind for Ontario.
CIMA and MusicOntario’s submission supports the argument that music (and the music industry) should be positioned as a foundational element of Ontario’s cultural strategy. Beyond lauding the Government of Ontario for its leadership in the development of Ontario’s music industry (particularly through the Ontario Music Fund), the submission offers some insight on what we believe are some key strategic areas to grow the sector.
These suggestions include:
- Strengthening the Ontario Music Fund’s ability to support the Canadian-owned music businesses that call Ontario home.
- The importance of music education in both stimulating the growth of skills associated with the needs of the digital economy, as well as building cultural support of music (and thereby diminishing the practice of piracy).
- Exploring and strengthening the connection between music and business tourism.
- Growing opportunities for collaborations across cultural sectors.
- Encouraging the ability of local communities to build and develop culture.
- Harmonizing the cultural strategy with international agreements, like the Convention for the Protection and the Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions.
Read the CIMA/MusicOntario submission in full here: CIMA and MusicOntario Submission – Ontario Cultural Strategy Consultation