Partners in the community are vital to community engagement and can be the glue that holds your outreach plan together. They often have a deep reach into the community, they already hold community trust, they may have a physical place where members of the community gather, and they will have established communication channels through which they can assist with ongoing promotion. Get to know the residents, businesses, organizations and park friends’ groups in the community surrounding the park. They will be your best allies.

To build engagement with community partners and residents:

• Be present, welcoming and available in the park
• Reach out to local service organizations such as social service agencies, schools, seniors’ centres, etc., who can help bring people to the event
• Be responsive and flexible when community members give you feedback; be prepared to change your planned activities (if not this year then in the future)

If you are a non-Indigenous organization interested in collaborating with Indigenous artists or communities, be sure to seek out resources -- articles, books, websites, individuals, organizations, etc. --  that will provide more information and understanding.

To date the most successful Arts in the Parks events have been those that take the time to establish deep and long-lasting community connections and tailor their event to the community they are in. In some cases, artists or presenting organizations are located in the community; in others, they may have few connections and little prior knowledge. Understanding the cultural geography of a park is as important as developing the arts event itself, and is key to programming and community outreach. A good rule of thumb for community engagement is to be aware and be considerate.

A great example of tailoring programming to the community is the work of MABELLEarts in Broadacres Park in Etobicoke, where for the past three years they’ve worked with local residents of all ages and backgrounds to co-create a variety of arts-based projects. The work is created for community members by community members.

MABELLEarts stays in touch with community members year-round and conducts thorough outreach each year. They maintain a neighbourhood database of those interested in their work and, prior to any events, volunteers make personal phone calls to residents. As the area is home to many newcomers and refugees, these phone calls are offered in English, Arabic, Tigrinya and Bangladeshi. MABELLEarts further provides translation in Arabic at events and workshops as well as in ASL.

“I absolutely loved the artist spotlight program because it highlighted talent from the community. Because of this initiative we got to meet amazingly talented performers living right next door and we were able to give them a breakthrough opportunity and make them so happy. For some this was the first time they performed in front of people and also outdoors, and they loved it.”

– North York Community Organizer 2018
 

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  MABELLEarts Toolkit 

  With their success in Broadacres, and numerous other parks, MABELLEarts has created their own toolkit, Placing Parks in the Cultural Landscape, for artists and community organizers wanting to create collaborative arts projects in public parks.