Jace Eagle Bear
Recipient: Original Peoples Investment Program
EQUITY, DIVERSITY, INCLUSION, AND ACCESSIBILITY
The arts build bridges, challenge stereotypes and increase understanding, empathy and resilience. They provide ways to celebrate our city’s rich diversity, participate in civic life and create a sense of belonging. Our goal is to support and nurture diverse art and artist-led city building to foster not only a resilient and sustainable arts ecosystem but also to achieve a truly equitable, inclusive and accessible city where everyone belongs.
Visit the Commitment to Equity page on our website.
Truth and Reconciliation continues to be at the core of our work and in 2025 we continued to build on our learnings from previous years. Led by our director of reconciliation & good relations, Sable Sweetgrass, with guidance from our Indigenous Advisory, and trusted advisor Blackfoot Elder Saa’kokoto, we were able to increase engagement and build new relationships with Indigenous communities.
Our internal engagement framework Good Relations takes a Treaty 7 Indigenous world view as a guide to how we engage with one another and with community. We launched the framework at a ceremony with our staff at Dodginghorse Ranch, which included a commitment to centring our work in good relations. The full-day staff gathering included teachings from Blackfoot Elder Adrian Wolfleg and a tipi raising exercise led by Garret Smith. It was a beautiful way to honour the principles contained in the framework.
2025 was the third year of our 2023-2026 Strategic Framework, Ákáakomatapoap, which takes a Treaty 7 Indigenous world view in recognition and acknowledgment of the original peoples and the land on which we live and work.
Sable Sweetgrass and other Indigenous members of our community investment and public art teams continued visiting Treaty 7 and Métis nations to share information about all our granting and public art programs, and especially those focused specifically on Indigenous artists. They also attended many community events, pow wows and Sundances. We promote continuous learning and engaged Lowa Beebe to deliver a full-day cultural training session for our staff in addition to the full-day staff retreat at Dodginghorse Ranch.
Sable is a member of the Native Info exchange, is working with Tourism Calgary and the Downie Wenjack Foundation on a future Indigenous music festival, and works closely with our Indigenous Advisory. The Advisory has representation from nations in Treaty 7 territory and meets once a month to review our Indigenous granting programs as well as advising on other issues.
In 2025 we launched our fourth Aisinna’kiiks Dinner and Dialogue series, including dinners in four Calgary high schools: North Trail, Lester B. Pearson, Joane Cardinal Schubert and St. Francis plus a final gathering at MRU by the time it wraps up in 2026. The series experienced a small disruption due to the Alberta teachers’ strike in the fall of 2025 but resumes in the first half of 2026. These dinners involve Elders, artists, teachers, students and community leaders with 80 people gathering to share food, stories and Indigenous teachings. At the fourth dinner, artistic responses to the dinners are presented by 10 commissioned artists who attend and participate in the series.
All our granting programs are open to Indigenous artists, but we also have two programs specifically designed by and for Indigenous artists: the Original Peoples Investment Program and Indigenous Cultural Connections. Through these programs we invested $856,220 into more than 50 projects by Indigenous artists, artist collectives or arts organizations in 2025.
With many future public art projects centred on Treaty 7 and Métis nations, the public art team has continued engagement with the Blackfoot Confederacy, Îyârhe Nakoda, Tsuut’ina and Métis Nations. Indigenous public art project specialists are leading each of those projects.
Equity, diversity, inclusion and accessibility (EDIA) have been our values for the past several years. Outcomes include increasing our learning and actions regarding racial equity, gender and sexual diversity, and disability justice.
In 2025 we continued to receive guidance from our Wisdom Circle and engaged with Community Working Group pods to ensure we are living up to our commitment to equity. We also have a staff equity working group that continually explores new ways of working toward greater equity, inclusion, diversity and accessibility. This work examines policies and practices in our granting programs, assessment panels, job opportunities, board appointments, events, and sponsorships. We intentionally seek diversity on our board and staff at all levels as well as on grant assessment panels.
The ArtShare Grant program is specifically for equity-deserving artists and is intended to provide a pathway for artists to work relationally with program staff on their applications. The program has undergone evaluation through 2025 and will be redesigned in 2026 with the support of the ArtShare working pod.
We continued to amplify stories of equity-deserving artists and arts groups through the Storytelling Project in 2025.
We sponsored local artist performances at the Rotary International Convention to ensure the tens of thousands of delegates got a truly Calgary experience, with performances that were representative of a diverse range of artists from our community. One of the special performances offered to delegates was New Blood, a critically acclaimed production that blends Blackfoot music with contemporary music by Peter Gabriel to create an amazing piece of theatre celebrating Blackfoot history and traditions. The story is centred around Siksika Nation’s Chief Vincent Yellow Old Woman’s experience at residential school. It is a powerful piece told through narration, music and dance. It was originally created by Deanne Bertsch and co-directed by Eulalia Running Rabbit about a decade ago as a response to the calls to action of the TRC and The City’s White Goose Flying report and Mayor Nenshi’s bidding that we all take part in reconciliation.
We continued to improve accessibility at our events, such as the Celebration for the Arts hosted by Mayor Gondek and our annual Living a Creative Life Congress, through measures such as offering ASL interpretation, live captioning, hearing assistance devices, accessible pricing and free tickets for artists.
The Changemaker grants often involve art for social change as it relates to EDIA. In 2025 we launched a new Artist as Changemaker program with the Institute for Community Prosperity at Mount Royal University, supporting eight artists in residence with eight community organizations. This program will continue until April 2026.
2025-2026 Artist as Changemaker residency program includes the following artists and community organizations. The program was launched in 2025 and will continue through the first half of 2026. The following artists are working with community organizations on specific “how might we” questions.
Adrianne Williams – Through painting, installation and video, Adrianne explores cultural identity and urban life, creating spaces for reflection and connection Adrianne is working with the United African Diaspora on this question: How might we activate and empower Black Calgarians to build systems of support addressing gaps in opportunity, education and representation?
Edward Campbell – A dancer and designer bridging Panama, Alberta and beyond, Edward channels hip-hop and house dance into mentorship, connection and identity-building for youth. Edward is working with the Centre for Newcomers on the question: How might we support immigrant youth-at-risk in building belonging, self-expression and positive identity through creative practice?
Natasha Jensen – Natasha’s interdisciplinary work travels from Calgary to Europe, blending art and environmental advocacy to awaken care for our planet. Natasha is working with CPAWS on the question: How might we use storytelling to inspire the public to take action on climate issues?
Samuel Obadero – Through photography and film, Sam tells stories of resilience and care, mentoring Black creatives and centring untold narratives. Sam is working with Hands Lifting Hearts on the question: How might we illuminate the journeys of mothers facing postpartum challenges to inspire empathy, policy and healing?
Sara-Maya Kaba – Multidisciplinary and movement-based artist Sara-Maya blends poetry, dance and visual art to create spaces for self-expression, healing and connection. Sara-Maya is working with Canada Immigrant Women’s Association (CIWA) on the question: How might we build confidence, community and joy for immigrant youth through playful arts practices?
Shandie Ta – A movement-based artist, Shandie transforms public spaces through ballroom, performance and social innovation. Shandie is working with Calgary Queer Arts Society on the question: How might we use creative practice to create the conditions for Queer racialized youth to author, share and be held by their own narratives?
Sue-Shane Tsomondo – Writer, curator and administrator, Sue-Shane creates platforms amplifying marginalized voices and drawing people back into shared public spaces. Sue-Shane is working with d.talks on the question: How might we design in-person literary spaces that foster connection and community?
Tiffany Lai – Tiffany combines drama education and social work to help families navigate life through performance, literacy and empathy. Tiffany is working with YW Calgary on the question: How might we use drama and storytelling to build family resilience and mutual understanding in life’s challenges?
Number of activities engaging multicultural communities
Number of activities engaging people with disabilities
Number of activities engaging Indigenous communities
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Recipient: Original Peoples Investment Program
Recipient: Indigenous Cultural Connections