Create Strategy 2026 – 2031
People Practice Progress: Building Sustainable Futures
As we pause to reflect on the rich story of Create from its origins as C.A.F.E. (Creative Activity For Everyone) in the ‘community arts’ movement in Ireland in the 1980s, through our previous 2020 – 25 strategy, Connect Create Change, to now, we can see that we are currently living in an era of accelerated change — socially, economically, politically and ecologically
This level of change, quite naturally, brings with it higher levels of uncertainty, challenge and opportunity that demand a lot from us, both personally and in our contributions to wider society. We find ourselves more regularly at a crossroads wondering if the well trodden route will lead to a place we still believe in or if the road less travelled helps us get there by different means. Today, how do we think, feel and see our way forward?
In acknowledging this challenge of foresight, this strategy is both grounded in not knowing and rooted in values that help us navigate our current complexities. The purpose of the strategy is to meet the world as it is identifying key priorities that respond flexibly to the pressing issues facing artists and communities across the island of Ireland. It positions Create not as saviours, or the source of all the answers, but as an enabler of the conditions for collaborative arts to thrive. A catalyst of meaningful opportunities for artists and communities to explore what it means to be together, imagine together, and create together in the times, places and contexts that they exist; and of the powerful contributions to shaping wider societal change that collaborative arts practice can make.
As former President, Michael D. Higgins said: ‘…Art is intrinsically inter-generational, allowing for connections and conversations to be forged and renewed in different times and changing circumstances. The arts encourage us to go where the pain of doing things right takes you.’
Create aims to respond to the times in which we live in a way that aligns with the values we have identified for our work. One important aspect of this strategy is the aim to recognise and support the all-island reality of the work we support. The report on the first C.A.F.E. national seminar in 1984 made clear the ambition of cross-border work, and now we are renewing this vision. The goals detailed in the strategy are intended to guide us in building our work across the island of Ireland. While the challenges facing us all at this point in time are significant, we have identified ‘hopeful’ as one of our core values in this strategy. Create will continue to play an active role in imagining and building what comes next. We are committed to listening, testing and sharing, in a process of collective learning with everyone involved and with our shared field of practice.
Read the Strategy
People Practice Progress: Building Sustainable Futures was launched on the 23th June 2026. On this page you will find links to read a PDF version of People Practice Progress: Building Sustainable Futures, as well as audio and screen-reader friendly versions.
