Is it possible to measure the social impact of creative industries?

Samtal um skapandi greinar (Creative Arts Dialogue) is a series of informal meetings organized by the Creative Arts Research Center in collaboration with CCP. With the series, RSSG aims to create a forum for discussion among creative arts enthusiasts by connecting stakeholders from the private sector, academia, institutions and government, and thus fostering the discussion on culture and the creative arts.

Martyna Karolina Daniel, Project Manager of Equity and Community Engagement at the Reykjavik City Library, participated in the discussion. Watch here.

Is it possible to examine how creative activities shape social change and whether they are measurable? How can we analyze and assess the impact of creative arts on society and individuals? Can measuring the social impact of creative arts shed new light on their value in the contemporary world? Can methods for assessing social impact open up new perspectives on the role of creative arts?

RSSG, in collaboration with CCP, Iceland Academy of the Arts, the University of Akureyri and Equality Day, hosted a discussion on measuring the social impact of creative industries on Thursday, February 5.

Þorbjörg Daphne Hall, Professor of Musicology at the University of Iceland, gave a talk on the methods used in the research project Building Bridges Through Collaboration to measure social impact. The project is about studying community-based music projects, methods and their impact on participants.

Lara Hoffmann, postdoctoral fellow at the University of Iceland and expert at the Research Center of the University of Iceland, presented the methods used in the collaborative project between the Center for Creative Arts Research and the University of Iceland to measure the social impact of creative industries. The project is a pilot project assessing the impact of creative industries on individuals and communities and is based on qualitative interviews and a quantitative survey.

Þorbjörg then chaired a panel that included:

Martyna Karolina Daniel, Project Manager of Equity and Community Engagement at the Reykjavik City Library

Lara Hoffmann, Postdoctoral fellow at the University of Iceland and specialist at the Research Center of the University of Iceland

Hlynur Jónasson, Project Manager for Kúnstpása