BUILDING COLLECTIVE POWER AT THE 2026 CREATIVE SECTOR SUMMIT
Emma York and Maia Livramento presenting at the 2026 Creative Sector Summit in New Bedford. Photography by Ethan de Aguiar.
On June 12, 2026, 350+ artists, cultural leaders, advocates, educators, public officials, and community partners came together in New Bedford for the 2026 Creative Sector Summit. This year's theme of "Art, Culture and Creativity as Civic Infrastructure" reflected a growing recognition that the creative sector is essential to building thriving communities, strengthening local economies, and advancing civic life across Massachusetts.
The Summit served as more than a day of learning - it was an opportunity to strengthen relationships, build advocacy skills, and align around a shared vision for the future of the creative sector. Throughout the day, attendees connected across disciplines and regions, exchanging ideas and forging partnerships that will continue to support statewide organizing and local action long after the event.
Workshops highlighted the many ways arts and culture intersect with public policy. Participants explored strategies to expand affordable creative spaces, examined how municipalities can better support artists and cultural organizations through local policy, and discussed the role of creative businesses in workforce development and economic growth. Sessions also demonstrated how public art, cultural planning, and creative placekeeping can address community challenges while strengthening civic engagement and spacial identity.
Other conversations focused on cross-sector collaboration - from integrating artists into housing, public health, and economic development initiatives to building stronger partnerships between cultural organizations, local governments, and community-based organizations. Attendees also heard from journalists, organizers, and policy leaders about effective advocacy, communications strategies, and the importance of ensuring arts and culture have a seat at decision-making tables.
Underlying every session was a shared understanding: meaningful change happens when the creative sector organizes together. Whether advocating for increased public investment, advancing local cultural planning efforts, protecting affordable spaces for artists, or building new partnerships across sectors, participants reinforced that collective action is essential to creating lasting policy change.
You can watch recordings of these sessions on MASSCreative’s YouTube channel:
As MASSCreative continues its work at the State House and in communities across the Commonwealth, the connections and conversations sparked at this year's Summit will help shape our advocacy priorities in the months ahead. Together, we are building a stronger, more connected creative sector: one that is equipped to advocate for itself, collaborate across sectors, and ensure that arts, culture, and creativity are recognized as essential public infrastructure.
Thank you to everyone who joined us in New Bedford and contributed your time, expertise, and vision. We are especially grateful to Mayor Jon Mitchell, State Rep. Tony Cabral, our speakers, partners, and attendees for making this year's Summit a powerful reminder that when the creative sector comes together, we build the relationships, momentum, and collective voice needed to advance policies that benefit artists, cultural organizations, and communities throughout Massachusetts.
Thank you to our sponsors at Buttonwood Park Zoo, MassDevelopment, Massachusetts Health Connector, New Bedford Creative, The New Bedford Light, O’Neill and Associates, Portugalia Marketplace, SouthCoast Community Foundation, The Trustees of Reservations, UMass Dartmouth College of Visual and Performing Arts, WaterFire Providence, and Women’s Fund SouthCoast for supporting this year’s Summit.
PHOTO GALLERY
Photography by Ethan de Aguiar
