We certainly hope so, and read WolfBrown’s recent paper proposing a nuanced and multi-dimensional understanding of sustainability with great interest.
Alan Brown and his colleagues correctly note that financial health is not enough to build a strong and stable arts organization (although it’s a good place to start.) They point to the essential importance of community relevance, artistic vibrancy, appropriate capitalization, and adaptive capacity in making it possible for organizations to survive and thrive during good times and bad.
Creative Trust always rejected the concept of “arts stabilization†for many of the reasons outlined in Is Sustainability Sustainable: for organizations whose raison d’etre is creativity, stability is an oxymoron. As we wrestle with the question of how to help companies maintain the positive achievements of their work with Creative Trust – which has been based on communication, collaborative problem-solving, and understanding the context in which each company works – WolfBrown’s insights are a very welcome contribution.
