Initiatives

In addition to cultural funding, the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs serves the city’s creative communities through a variety of ongoing initiatives that seek to increase the agency’s values of equity and access to arts and culture for all New York City residents. Ongoing initiatives include DCLA’s Diversity, Equity, & Access initiative to work towards a diverse and equitable cultural workforce; partnerships between the Mayor's Office of Immigrant Affairs and cultural institutions to provide free memberships for IDNYC card holders; Building Community Capacity program to assist small cultural organizations to thrive in neighborhoods undergoing community planning efforts; the Affordable Real Estate for Artists (AREA) to ensure that artists continue to live and work here in New York; Creative Aging partnership with the Department of the Aging to enrich the lives of artists and seniors alike; and ongoing Energy support for cultural organizations.