The Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance is proud to host "Cultural Dynamics: Co-Creating a Vision for Philadelphia," a groundbreaking convening featuring Maria Rosario Jackson, PhD, Chair, National Endowment for the Arts, with opening remarks from Shawn McCaney, Executive Director of the William Penn Foundation. As we look forward to the enactment of Mayor Parker’s new strategies and initiatives, and as we prepare for a landmark year in 2026, Philadelphians will come together to envision how arts policies can foster social impact and economic prosperity. On November 19, 2024, Cultural Dynamics will unite civic leaders, artists, and community members to explore strategies that integrate arts and culture into transformative civic decision-making. We invite the public to join us for a livestream of this important conversation and a series of community-based meetings that will follow. 

Due to extremely limited capacity, registration for the in-person event is available by invitation only.
 

REGISTER FOR THE LIVESTREAM

Featuring 

Maria Rosario Jackson, PhD | Chair, National Endowment for the Arts

In January 2022, Maria Rosario Jackson, PhD became the 13th chair of the National Endowment for the Arts. Her appointment by President Biden is historic as she is the agency’s first African American and first Mexican American woman to serve as NEA Chair. Jackson’s career has focused on understanding and elevating arts, culture, and design as crucial elements of healthy and equitable communities.

An urban planner, researcher, and academic, Chair Jackson is a tenured professor on leave from Arizona State University, where she led the Studio for Creativity, Place and Equitable Communities. For almost ten years, she served as a senior advisor on arts and culture and strategic learning, research, and evaluation at the Kresge Foundation and has advised other foundations. For 18 years, Chair Jackson worked at the Urban Institute in Washington, DC, where she was the founding director of the Culture, Creativity and Communities Program. She has served on numerous boards on national and local nonprofit organizations.

Shawn McCaney | Executive Director of the William Penn Foundation

Shawn brings more than 10 years of leadership experience at the Foundation to his role as Executive Director. Prior to his appointment as Executive Director, he was the founding program director for the Creative Communities program and managed National Initiatives for the Foundation, seeking to expand philanthropy in the region and share the Foundation’s learnings with others focused on similar issues nationwide.

Recently, Shawn oversaw the Foundation’s grantmaking strategy revision process, which is conducted every 10 years. This effort resulted in the adoption of a new mission statement and grantmaking values and principles, the establishment of expanded and new grantmaking priorities, and key changes to the Foundation’s application process to increase its accessibility and transparency. The strategy revision was informed by an extensive stakeholder engagement effort that included nearly 400 conversations with local stakeholders and community members.

Shawn received his graduate degree from the University of Pennsylvania and his undergraduate degree from Temple University. He is a member of the American Institute of Certified Planners, an International Member of the Canadian Institute of Planners, and is a licensed Professional Planner in the State of New Jersey. Shawn serves on the board of the Central Philadelphia Development Corporation and is chairman of the Haddonfield Borough Planning Board.

Anne Ishii

Anne Ishii is the program director at United States Artists, and previously the executive director of Asian Arts Initiative. She is Co-Chair of the Board of the Asian American Writers Workshop, and volunteers service to the field of arts and culture as a writer and musician herself. Anne is an editor and translator by trade, with a background in Japanese letters. Her work hinges on issues relating to gender and sexuality. In 2013 she co-founded MASSIVE GOODS: a lifestyle brand and arts agency representing queer and feminist artists from Japan. MASSIVE has produced multiple volumes of graphic novels and a line of clothing and accessories. She has been published in BUST, Nylon, Slate, Publishers Weekly, the Village Voice, the Philadelphia Inquirer and many other publications. She has translated and rewritten over twenty books.

Panels

The Role of Arts & Culture in Building a Thriving Philadelphia

Join leaders in business, research, and arts and culture as they explore the pivotal contribution of the creative sector in shaping thriving communities in Philadelphia and across the country. Learn how innovative cultural initiatives are driving positive change, fostering collaboration across sectors, and building a more resilient, thriving Philadelphia. The conversation will delve into the multifaceted impacts of the creative and cultural sectors on city development, social cohesion, and economic prosperity.

Panelists 

• Prema Katari Gupta, President & CEO, Center City District
• Alba Martinez, Director of Commerce, City of Philadelphia
• Isaiah Thomas, Councilmember At-Large, City of Philadelphia
• Tayyib Smith, Founding Partner and Chief Strategist, The Growth Collective / 7th Ward Tribute
• Moderated by Jamie Bennett, Interim Co-CEO, Americans for the Arts

Arts, Culture, and Community Power-Building

Arts, Culture, and Community Power Building will illuminate how communities can harness their unique cultural heritage to shape and celebrate their identities and redefine their futures. National models confirm that enduring, equitable change can be achieved when historically marginalized communities are supported to build and wield their power to shape, govern, and protect their futures. Be part of a dynamic conversation with grassroots and cultural leaders mobilizing art and culture to ensure that those most impacted by long-standing inequities are at the forefront of building a just, equitable and, economically viable future.

Panelists

• Dave Kyu, Interim Executive Director, Asian Arts Initiative
• Vivian Chang, Executive Director, Asian Americans United 
• Jamie Brunson, Executive Director, First Person Arts
• Asali Devan Ecclesiastes, Executive Director, Ashé Cultural Center in New Orleans
• Moderated by Aviva Kapust, Co-Director, The Culture and Community Power Fund

Creative & Cultural Pathways to Healthier & Greener Communities

Unlock the transformative potential of arts and culture in creating healthier, greener communities. The Creative & Cultural Pathways to Healthier & Greener Communities panel will investigate how arts and culture interventions are powerful agents of creative collaboration and community well-being. Hear from local and national practitioners about impactful artistic and cultural activities that create essential spaces for collective recovery, empowering people to process trauma, reconnect with nature, and build a stronger, more resilient social fabric. From the groundbreaking initiatives of the CultureRX pilot to the healing spaces at Bartram’s Garden, and the empowering storefronts of the Mural Arts’ Porch Light program, this panel will showcase how arts and culture initiatives are not just uplifting—they are essential tools for creating healthier places for Philadelphians to live and thrive. 

Panelists

• Maitreyi Roy, Executive Director, Bartram’s Garden
• Nadia Malik, Porch Light Program Director, Mural Arts Philadelphia
• Moderated by Matt Rader, President, Pennsylvania Horticultural Society
   

Cultural Dynamics is made possible by the generous support of The Culture & Community Power Fund, The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage, The Pew Charitable Trusts, and the William Penn Foundation

Special thanks to our partners, Pennsylvania Humanities and Creative Philadelphia

Thank you to our in-kind sponsors Drexel University’s Antoinette Westphal College of Media Arts & Design and Drexel University’s Leonard Pearlstein Gallery