The Melbourne Doughnut
Explore how well Melbourne is tracking as a place that supports people and planet to thrive.
Arts & Culture
Arts & culture are a notable part of Melbourne's identity and how people experience the city. Extending from fine arts to sport, theatre to street festivals, heritage architecture to multicultural food offerings, arts & culture in the city provide our diverse communities with relatable platforms for expression and connection with one another and this place. In the same vein, arts & culture play a significant role in engaging with challenging topics and allowing us to imagine and shape the future we want.
Principles for Arts & Culture in a regenerative Melbourne
Arts and culture in a regenerative Melbourne must be:
- Centred on imagination and creativity to encourage and facilitate wonder, curiosity and innovation
- Full of hope and possibility for a different future, creating space to question status quo
- Relationship-based to support connection to community and country
- Visible in the ways that it values diverse voices in society
What we want
Inclusion
Arts & Culture in Melbourne represent and are accessible to all
| What we're measuring | 2030 Target | Now |
|---|---|---|
Proportion of people age 15+ who have attended cultural venues or events in the last year | Over 80% | 61.3% |
Recognition
The Arts & Culture ecosystem is celebrated and valued socially and economically
| What we're measuring | 2030 Target | Now |
|---|---|---|
Creative sector share of the economy by value | Over 7.5% | 7.7% |
Contribution
Arts & Culture in Melbourne are a driver of change and connection to community and place
| What we're measuring | 2030 Target | Now |
|---|---|---|
Proportion of people who feel that creativity and the arts have a big or very big impact on their understanding of other people and cultures | Over 80% | 61% |
Proportion of people who feel that creativity and the arts have a big or very big impact on their wellbeing and happiness | Over 80% | 57% |
Proportion of people who feel that creativity and the arts have a big or very big impact on building creative skills that will be necessary for the future workforce | Over 80% | 47% |
Placing Arts & Culture in the system
Local to global connections
Arts & Culture in Melbourne are intrinsically grounded in and shaped by local identity, talent and place. At the same time, Melbourne’s cultural diversity and role as a globally connected city contribute to the dynamism and uniqueness of our Arts & Culture experiences and sectors. In addition, we both host international cultural events, including major sporting competitions, and share our local talent on international stages. As a result, our cultural assets attract foreign investment and contribute to making Melbourne an attractive place for people all over the world to live.
Learn more
How was this dimension developed?
The Arts & Culture dimension of the Greater Melbourne City Portrait, including the conceptual framing and data selection, has been developed in collaboration with sector experts from academia, government and industry. A detailed description of the City Portrait methodology is outlined in the About section of the website.
Where can I access the data?
Data for Arts & Culture, along with the other Social Founation dimensions are available in the Social Foundations Dataset.
For Ecological Celing dimensions, see the Ecological Ceiling Dataset.
Where can I find more information on Arts & Culture in a regenerative Melbourne?
The City Portrait is informed by extensive research and resources on Doughnut Economics and related frameworks, as well as sector-specific research associated with each dimension. More detailed research that has informed the Arts & Culture dimension will be added to Altiorem's library in future.
How can I get involved?
To get involved with ongoing development of the City Portrait or learn more about Regen Melbourne, email alison@regen.melbourne