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August 23, 2006
Creative Toronto . . . and other cities
Toronto has just released a new report on the future of the city, entitled Imagine a Toronto ...:
The goal of this project is to produce a strategy that addresses the current needs of Toronto's creative economy, that promotes its future growth and that leverages these creative assets to enhance economic and social opportunity.
The report sets out a "Credo for Creative Cities":
Creativity owns imagination. And imagination is what builds our cities. Creativity commands the allegiance and love of the creative person as a way of being, living, thinking. The imagination that comes of that allegiance is powerful, self-renewing, and tireless in delight. It permeates all aspects of civic life. It is the only limitless resource.
To know this is to release an industry in perpetual motion. Allegiance to true creativity defines imagination against the myopia of market greed. For the ethos of creativity left unchecked, by its natural genius, instructs all witnesses to the shared project of wonder. This is what makes a city great, a society great and, yes, even productive.
Creativity must become a way of life. It is not a question of sustainability but of survival, and the beauty that inspires it. And the kinds of risks that true creativity demands are crucial to that end.
The Toronto report has laid down an important marker. Energizing our cities is a key component of a national competitiveness strategy. As Business Week recently pointed out in Slicker Cities:
America is losing its competitive edge. That premise has been pounded into our heads so often by pundits, and reinforced with each report on the rise of China and India, that it's almost taken as a given. But can a nation that has averaged 3.4% growth for three years and keeps posting sterling productivity gains really have a competitiveness problem? Or is that problem much more local?
The BW special report Pushing For Growth: How Cities Succeed goes on to describe what a number of cities are doing:
Even with globalization, location still matters in economic competition. But it is more important than ever for communities to offer distinctive advantages.
Creating that jurisdictional advantage is something that we at Athena Alliance have been stressing for a long time - see our session on the topic with Professor MaryAnn Feldman.
Creativity is part and parcel of that advantage. But it is not necessarily the differentiating factor. All locations need to tap into their creative and innovative capabilities – but how they utilize those capabilities and the direction that their creativity takes them will provide that differentiation. It is not enough to simply say “be creative.”
As Business Week illustrates, cities can take different routes:
Stockholm shows how to succeed in the Knowledge Economy: It serves as a base for major companies and tech universities, it subsidizes broadband, and it offers a vibrant urban environment that lures young talent. Orlando has diversified its economy by nurturing a new industrial cluster: digital media. Singapore thrives by persuading multinationals to use it as a base for R&D and as regional headquarters, and even anticipates companies' needs five years out.
Edinburgh is an example of a city that has successfully taken the “creative route,” as Lorna Jack of Scottish Development International pointed out in a comment on the BW story:
I was interested to read that as the international marketplace becomes more globalized by innovative and competitive communities, regions are shaping unique infrastructures to meet the need. Edinburgh’s strong creative and digital media industry was built upon a hub of academia, an expert labor force, and the wildly creative Edinburgh Festival. Paired with support from economic development agencies within governments, it’s no wonder business flocks to these communities.
But this route – what I call the traditional arts path – is not for every location. Just as every city can’t be Silicon Valley, every city can’t replicate the Edinburgh Festival. Each location needs to understand and build upon its own strengthens and resources. The creativity of individuals, companies and communities is a part of that mix. “Creative industries” aka, the arts, may also be part of the mix depending upon the location. But the two are different.
As the Toronto report stated "creativity must become a way of life." Let us foster creativity in all its forms and manifestation – and in all industries and sectors. And let us help communities discover the creative forces in all of their economic activities.
Posted by Ken Jarboe at August 23, 2006 9:18 AM
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