With cities gone quiet, and cultural activity shuttered across the United States, the current pandemic has left many arts and cultural organizations facing an existential challenge. What will it take to help these groups re-mobilize, and what does the future hold for America's cultural economy? 

To hear directly from top arts and media leaders and public cultural agencies, join Buro Happold for a virtual panel at 12:30pm EST on Tuesday, May 19th. This public event, “Adaptive Cities in a Post-Covid Era: The Culture and Media Sectors,” is free to access with registration at this link.

The blue-ribbon panel of officials and arts and media groups — moderated by economic development and cultural policy specialist Shayan Lotfi of Buro Happold’s Cities practice — will describe how the wide-ranging sector is affected by Covid-19, with examples from policy makers, media companies, and arts institutions. The panel will explore vulnerabilities facing the cultural workforce, as well as opportunities for innovation and adaptation amidst the new normal.

WHAT: Adaptive Cities in a Post-Covid Era — The Culture and Media Sectors
Buro Happold Virtual Forum 
WHO: 
Anne del Castillo, Commissioner, New York City Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment
Todd Asher, Media & Technology Team, Bloomberg Associates
Jonathan McCrory, Artistic Director, National Black Theater 
           John Vanco, Senior Vice President, IFC Films
Mark Rossier, Managing Director, Elevator Repair Service Theater
Shayan Lotfi, Head of Economics, Buro Happold Cities (moderator)
WHEN: Tuesday, May 19, 2020, 12:30pm
REGISTER HERE.

“As stakeholders and decision-makers in the cultural sector respond to the current pandemic and begin looking to the future, Buro Happold is hearing from strategic thinkers who are addressing New York’s diverse challenges head-on,” says Buro Happold’s Shayan Lotfi. “We’re learning how the sector hasbeen impacted, as well as the inventive solutions that are emerging to ensure the sustainability, vibrancy, and equity of our cities’ cultural eco-system." 

As leading advisors consulting globally on pandemic response, climate vulnerability, sustainability and more, Buro Happold has led design work for institutions such as St. Ann’s Warehouse in Brooklyn and the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles. The multidisciplinary firm recently authored a pioneering study of New York City’s small-venue theater industry, “All New York’s a Stage,” which documents the 2017 total $1.3 billion in economic output, which contributed 8,400 full-time equivalent jobs and $512 million in wages.

Additional detail follows.

TALK: Adaptive Cities in a Post-Covid Era: The Culture and Media Sectors
Buro Happold Virtual Forum

The Covid-19 pandemic has created unprecedented challenges for cities across the world. As the operation of urban economies undergoes a paradigmatic change, there is an urgent need to support communities with a forward-thinking and adaptive approach to recovery in order to help our industries and urban systems re-mobilize. 
 
This virtual panel discussion will focus on the implications of the current pandemic for culture and media sectors, from policy-level decisions to those faced by individual institutions. A diverse array of experts and leading strategic thinkers explore the specific ways in which their constituencies have been affected, and examine how policy makers and institutions are working to support these groups in the near and long-term. Topics of discussion include:
 
• Cultural workforce vulnerabilities
• Cultural institution adaptation and emerging, operating and production models of innovation
• The ‘physicality’ of culture and the role of the built environment
• The path forward and the new normal for cultural institutions 
 
Participants
• Anne del Castillo, Commissioner, NYC Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment
• Todd Asher, Bloomberg Associates, Media & Technology
• Jonathan McCrory, Artistic Director, National Black Theater 
• John Vanco, Senior Vice President, IFC Films
• Mark Rossier, Managing Director/Producer, Elevator Repair Service Theater, former Director of Grants, New York Foundation for the Arts
• Shayan Lotfi, Head of Economics, Buro Happold Cities (moderator)
 
Registration here:
https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_nuirBOzeQ5maMiFMI56b9Q
 
Tuesday, May 19, 2020
12:30pm – 1:30pm EST