Arts and belonging:
A strategic focus for 2023-2028
The arts not only uplift and inspire; they are also a driving force for just and equitable communities. They bridge differences, create new ways of understanding one another, and foster a sense of shared purpose and belonging.
This is why, as we develop our strategies for social cohesion—one of two pillars of our strategic plan—our first step is investing in arts and belonging.
According to a 2022 report, “WE-making: How Arts and Culture Unite People to Work Toward Community Well-Being,” arts and culture amplify the four drivers of social cohesion: strong relationships, a sense of belonging, an orientation toward the common good and a willingness to participate.
As part of our strategic plan, we are developing a multi-phased, arts and culture strategic initiative in partnership with local arts and culture nonprofits, artists, and community stakeholders. These programs will invest in arts for social cohesion and meet key needs in our local arts and culture sector. Learn more below.
Then and now: Arts and culture work at CCF
CCF has a long history of supporting arts and culture through grants to community organizations that enhance Cambridge’s cultural richness.
In 2020, we established the Cultural Capital Fund to preserve cultural vibrancy in Cambridge in the present and future. When the pandemic hit, the Fund met urgent needs in the local arts and culture sector. The Foundation also created the Cambridge Artist Relief Fund to support artists who lost their livelihoods due to COVID-19’s impacts.
In 2023, CCF joined the Barr Foundation’s Creative Commonwealth Initiative (CCW), a project engaging community foundations across Massachusetts and providing resources and support to build and strengthen arts and culture strategies within their local context. With CCW support and drawing from discussions with local arts organizations and practitioners, CCF is developing strategies to harness the power of arts as a building block of social cohesion.
RootsUprising by Cambridge Arts
Our first steps in arts and belonging
CCF’s Programs and Grantmaking team has been conducting research, collecting data, connecting with artists and arts organizations, and working with a consultant to execute a landscape analysis of organizations with direct or indirect ties to Cambridge’s arts and culture ecosystems and capacity to drive social cohesion. This work is shaping a multi-phased, arts and culture strategic initiative, that begins in Spring 2025 with two new grantmaking opportunities addressing the need for stable, long-term funding, support for marginalized communities, and the opportunity to grow and sustain impactful programs. Learn more about CCF’s newest arts and belonging grant opportunities.
Arts and belonging grants
