Interesting times at the moment in the world or regional arts. The shake-up in Create NSW is changing the regional arts landscape, while the current hardship facing councils is also having an impact on the provision of arts and culture in the regions; councils are the biggest providers of regional cultural infrastructure and programs. For this reason I’m choosing to write this month about why I believe it’s so important to work together, and why working collectively can have far more power than an individualistic approach.

The arts has always been full of people who like to work autonomously and find their own way of working. I’m not dismissing this. Nor am I suggesting that each of us does not have personal responsibility for the choices we make in trying to change or influence our world for the better. But when we work together we create a voice that is stronger. We share the load and demonstrate a shared vision that speaks more loudly than individual voices. We can find a greater efficiency through dividing tasks, spreading costs or finding broader reach.

Working towards goals that benefit people collectively has challenges, and can mean compromises. However I firmly believe that finding the ways in which we can deliver good that benefits the majority is a pretty good framework for making decisions. There may be times when a collective approach may involve decisions that do not work for everybody, and yet I repeatedly see examples of how working together actually enables individuals to better realise their potential.

At Regional Arts NSW we really value the way we are able to work for the collective good of the NSW RADO network. We also gain a lot from working with our ROAR network that is made up of significant regionally-based organisations. In working together with these groups we not only achieve outcomes for the members of those networks, we are supporting the activity in the cultural and creative industries for everyone in regional NSW.