“Embedding Cultural Diversity in Toronto’s Arts, Cultural and Heritage Sector: The Way Forward”

Date: Wednesday 28th September 2011
Venue: Columbus Centre, 901 Lawrence Avenue West North York, ON M6A 1C3 
Cost: $60 and $40 (breaks and lunch included)
The Museum Studies Masters program (represented by Lynne Teather)and the i-school at the University of Toronto, the Royal Ontario Museum, the Culture and Heritage Institute- Centennial College, the Multicultural History Society of Ontario and Clara Arokiasamy of KALAI in United Kingdom are proud to present a cutting edge cultural diversity seminar with difference. 
Purpose of the seminar:1 
This one day seminar will focus on the sharing of best practice in embedding cultural diversity in services and workforce across the public sector. We are bringing together best practice models from Toronto’s arts and heritage agencies as well as from the health sector, academic institutions, community/NGO organisations and the City Hall.
The keynote address will be given by Clara Arokiasamy of KALAI who chaired the London Mayor’s Heritage and Diversity Task Force on the diversification of London’s heritage services and workforce. She has 25 years of experience as a senior manager and extensive experience of developing culturally diverse public services in the UK and other parts of Europe. KALAI have been closely involved in designing this seminar along with the Prof. Lynne Teather, Museum Studies, the i-school, University of Toronto. 
We are also billing other key leaders and experts to give us the benefit of their experiences and leadership in developing and implementing cultural diversity programmes. 
Participants will get an opportunity to discuss candidly key issues relating to implementing cultural diversity in their own organisations within a safe environment. 
Key objectives of the seminar are: 
(i) To share best practice through the presentation and discussion of case studies in  the delivery of race equality and cultural diversity in the public sector in Toronto, Canada and London, UK;
(ii)  To explore capacities  among current approaches to collections, archives, engagement and audience development to facilitate the embedding of minorities
cultural rights into the national story; and identify areas where improvements are needed;
(iii) Explore the extent of representation of minorities in the cultural sector and how the existing recruitment and selection and retention processes and training and development  programmes could be improved to  diversify the workforce and governance further to reflect Toronto’s growing minority population; 
(iv) To establish a standing working group on cultural diversity to take forward the ideas and recommendations from the proceedings of the day, as a key outcome of the seminar. 

Who is the seminar for?
Anyone involved in the planning and delivery of cultural or heritage services in Toronto and representatives championing minorities’ cultures and heritage will benefit from the seminar. Academics, practitioners, advocates, community members, politicians. 
The session would be particularly useful for leaders in museums and cultural organisations and community representatives who are responsible for change making. We also welcome practitioners and specialists in the areas of collections, archives, community engagement and development and human resource work. We are appealing to all cultural/heritage agencies, museums, libraries and archives and those who work in and around them.
Fees 
$60.00 (includes breaks and lunch)
$40.00 for students or unwaged cultural/heritage or community workers. 
(spaces will be limited)
Apply to: 
 If you are interested attending this unique and ground breaking seminar please respond via email to: Jackie.armstrong@utoronto.ca  Payment by cheque to 
Directions:
The Columbus Centre is a short bus ride west from the Lawrence W Subway or walk. Parking is available at the back.

Facilitators:
On Wednesday Sept. 28th,  Clara Arokiasamy will present and facilitate an engaging seminar on “embedding cultural diversity” in the culture & heritage sector which will include reference to the London (UK) Mayor’s Commission and Heritage Diversity Task Force.  This will be a great opportunity to discuss the development of community heritage, particularly amongst indigenous and Diaspora communities.  Don’t miss the opportunity to be involved in these critical discussions and to help set up a regional task force.
Facilitators:
CLARA AROKIASAMY, OBE
Clara is an international independent consultant and adviser whose knowledge of international issues has helped to facilitate exchange and create partnerships between professionals in the UK/Europe and developing nations.   Her contributions to the processes involved in European policy making related to globalization have had positive impacts on the management of public sector businesses and culture & heritage.

 Clara is a member of the Culture Committee of UNESCO UK ; a Board member of the ICOM’s  [International Council for Museums]Standing Committee for  International Committees; a member of the Training Committee for ICOMOS International (International Council of Monuments and Sites); and a member of the Special World Heritage Site Committee for ICOMOS UK. She was recently appointed to the Board of The African Studies Association, a national subject association for Africanists within the academic community.  ASAUK works in close cooperation with the Royal African Society (RAS).

Between 2006 and 2009, Clara chaired the London Mayor’s Heritage and Diversity Task Force. Under her leadership, the Task Force, responsible for embedding equalities and cultural diversity in the Museum, Libraries and Archives sectors in London, published its recommendations in November 2009.

She is the Founder and Director of KALAI, an independent international consultancy with a focus on advocacy, change-making, and organisational development across public sector services and developing international skills and knowledge sharing and exchange partnerships. 

Throughout her senior management career in the public sector, Clara has been responsible for the development and delivery of a range of public services - in the leisure, tourism,  arts and heritage sectors, health service, local government, the not for profit sector and NDPBs.
Clara was the Deputy Director of Operations at the Heritage Lottery Fund for seven years until June 2007.  She was a trustee of SHAPE, national organisation for accessing disabled people to employment and services in the arts from 1997 to2002. Between 1997 and 2001, Clara was a National Council Member of POUNC and its successor,  Postwatch: the National Consumer Council for Postal Services,  from 2002 to 2006 ,where she was a member of the remuneration, research and finance committees. Until end of January 2007 

Clara was a member of the Bar Standards Board (the regulator of barristers called to the Bar in England and Wales). 

Clara is also a freelance journalist and comments on culture and heritage and social and human rights issues regularly through speaking engagements and articles. She also advises government, third sector/NGOs and community stakeholders here and abroad. 
Clara was awarded the OBE for services to Heritage and is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts. 
_______________________________________________

Lynne Teather (D. Phil. Museum Studies, Leicester)
Lynne is Associate Professor, Museum Studies Program, University of Toronto. She began her museum work in the 1970s (Niagara-on-the-Lake Historical Society and Museum) and graduated as the first recipient of the Doctorate in Museum Studies from the University of Leicester, England, in 1984, and has  been  teaching in the Museum Studies Program at the University of Toronto since 1980, now as a tenured professor.

Lynne balances work as a professional resource and consultant in a variety of capacities, locally, nationally and internationally, with research interests in the history and philosophy of museums, and on contemporary issues in museum development. At the centre of her work are ideas of cross-cultural museology and emerging concepts of museums as socio-person-centered organizations, engaged in the possibility of justice and compassion in our world, but grounded in realistic sustainable and culturally sensitive project development. She is a research associate with the Multicultural History Society of Ontario and the Cultural Heritage Institute at Centennial College where she pursues work related to cultural diversity in culture and heritage settings, following models of eco-and socio-museology. 

Lynne’s academic work is tempered by a range of professional activities from small museums, the National Museum of Canada, professional museum associations (such as the Canadian Museums Association, Ontario Museums Association and ICOM-ICTOP), particularly in advising on curriculum for professional development and human resource management), and served as guest lecturer, workshop leader and conference presenter. She holds the Ontario Museums Association Award of Merit for her professional contributions to museums in the province both in her teaching and advisory work. She has also authored several feasibility studies related to cultural and heritage development, in Canada, the US and recently advised on museum projects in Nigeria and has taught museum workshops in Egypt for the UNESCO Egypt/Nubia Program (1999) and at the Baltic Museology School (2007). She is a research associate at the Multicultural History Society of Ontario. Professor Teather is currently Chair of the International Committee on Training of Museum Personnel of ICOM preparing for their annual conference to meet in Toronto Oct. 23-27 (www.ictop.org click on conference).

We are committed to bringing to a wide public audience the positive aspects of living in a multi-ethnic province.  The Columbus Centre- 901 Lawrence Avenue West North York, ON M6A 1C3  
 “Where caring becomes a culture all its own." On October 10, 1980 Columbus Centre was inaugurated and a community centre where people could enjoy the richness of an Italian culture within a Canadian setting was created. Today, Columbus Centre is a popular meeting place frequented by thousands of visitors every year. Recognized as the Italian Canadian contribution to multiculturalism in the Metropolitan Toronto Area, Columbus Centre has become an established focal point in the community- a veritable piazza that brings together art, culture, fitness, and great food all under one roof. Museum Studies, i-school, University of Toronto

The Culture and Heritage Institute, Centennial College
Our Mission The Culture & Heritage Institute mirrors Centennial College's Book of Commitments, which is a document that puts the following beliefs into action- be recognized in creating good global citizens, be a community leader, help students grow into leaders, forge roads to success, and tell a great story!
 We will meet the diverse needs of our communities CHI's mission is to serve as an educational centre for teaching and learning the management of Ontario‘s and Canada‘s cultural heritage resources and expanding understanding of the world‘s cultures and heritage by exploring, and meeting the needs of students, tourism and cultural industry partners and our diverse community through high-quality programming and relevant services. Registration- can be done by email to Jackie.armstrong@utoronto.ca  Call Lynne Teather for any urgent questions at 905-770-6910
Registration
Name:
Email:
Work Affiliation:
Address:
Please mail a cheque made out to the University of Toronto
to the Multicultural History Society of Ontario
c/o Columbus Centre, 901 Lawrence Avenue West, Suite 307 Toronto, Ontario M6A 1C3

Or bring it to the event to present at the time of registration.
For registration please send your info to: Jackie.armstrong@utoronto.ca
Call Lynne Teather for any urgent questions at 905-770-6910

Thank you.
1 Cultural diversity - some statistics 
The 2006 Census showed that  “across Canada there has been an almost four-fold increase of people who identify themselves as visible minorities – up from 1.1 million in 1981 to just over 5 million in 2006” They form 16% of Canada’s population . And 43% of Toronto’s CMA population belongs to a visible minority group. (Source: Policy and Research Section, City Planning Division, Toronto).
Even though Toronto’s culture and heritage organizations have achieved some success in working with diversity over the last 40 years, we have still some distance to go. In this seminar we will re-examine how well the differing cultures are reflected in organizational service as well as within workforce and governance and how we might embed cultural diversity practices within our approaches, professional practice and systems in sustainable and transformative ways.