A new report out by The Conference Board of Canada states that the culture sector directly contributes about $46B CDN or just under 4 percent to Canada’s overall GDP in 2007. The economic impact on the economy is much broader - $85B CDN in 2007, or just over 7 percent of total real GDP. Taking a look at employment, almost 4 percent of total national employment in 2003 can be traced back to arts and culture industries.
Indeed, those are big numbers, eh? How meaningful is the creative economy in your country or hometown? How big (or small) of an employment driver is it?
August 26th, 2008 at 10:41 am
In the D.C. metro area, I feel like the creative economy is slim to none (at least in my line of work - writing). It’s all big business, politics, and technology. If you’re lucky enough to land yourself at a museum or cultural institution of some sort, you better thank your lucky stars — those gigs are few and far between.
That being said, I don’t feel that the creative culture is lacking. It exists and is well-nourished here… artists of every sort abound. It’s just the long-term job opportunities that are meager.