We are very pleased to announce that on 27-28 March at NUI Galway, the Arts Council and the County and City Management Association will host our biennial conference Places Matter. The event starts with the launch of the Arts Council’s Equality, Human Rights and Diversity Policy which sets the overall context for the conference.

Ireland is changing rapidly – the population of the State has increased by 70 per cent in 60 years, and continues to grow. More than one in 10 of us were not born in Ireland. Our conference takes this as its starting point, and aims to provoke and inspire policy makers, arts organisations and artists to create and embrace diverse participation in the arts and challenge exclusion in the arts.

We will be joined by Nina Simon, Director of the Santa Cruz Museum of Art and History, to tell us how she transformed that institution through her participatory audience and programming philosophy. Abid Hussain, Director of Diversity Arts Council England, will give us insights from Britain. And from Canada, Professor William Schabas, who is also Chairman of the Irish Centre for Human Rights at NUI Galway, will bring further international perspective.

Moderated by Dr Ronit Lentin, with participation by many artists and practitioners, it really is shaping up to be a fascinating two days.

Elsewhere in this month’s newsletter, the Creative Associates, the artists and teachers who form a key element in the Scoileanna Ildánacha/Creative Schools initiative being led by the Arts Council, are hard at work in 150 schools around the country. If you have opportunities that you would like to share with schools and the Creative Associates they are working with, please contact them through our website.

With best wishes,

Orlaith McBride

Director