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Definition & context 

Cultural planning and mapping

From the beginning of the 90’s many cities in Europe of differing sizes, locations and economic functions in the European hierarchy have used cultural policy as a tool to:

• Further develop the old and establish new city centres and peripheral areas
• Market and develop the profile of the cities

During the 1990’s the focus shifted to include:

• development of social capital (including increased focus on social inclusion, new employment strategies etc,)
• the development of creative environments (including innovative industrial environments)

Such a development involves new political and planning models in local and regional authorities.  An example of such a model is cultural planning and mapping.

Cultural planning is defined as strategic and integrated planning by the application of cultural resources in the development of the city and society.  Whereas cultural policy has traditionally been sectorally limited cultural planning involves a cross sectoral, holistically orientated approach to an area’s resources (Colin Mercer, 1995)

Central to the concept of cultural planning is a broader anthropological definition of culture than usual.  Culture is defined as a way of life, that is to say an integration of art (both high brow and low brow) with other aspects of the local culture including daily routines and patterns (Bianchini & Ghilardi, 1997).

Correspondingly cultural resources in this context are not simply restricted to art and cultural inheritances but also encapsulate local traditions, language, customs and festivals, variations in, and quality of, leisure activities, entertainment and dining facilities, youth culture, ethnic minorities, business life and the repertoire of local products and abilities in the trade, production, and service sectors.

What is Cultural planning in practice?

Cultural planning is, as stated, a method that can help politicians and planners to relate in a more holistic and creative way to the special resources in their local area and region.

As a basis for cultural planning and policy formulation a cultural map should be drawn up of an area’s cultural resources using both quantitative and qualitative methods.

Such a mapping will, among other things, involve the uncovering of the following cultural resource profiles:

• Population Profile
• Ethnic Group and Immigration Profiles
• A Profile of Artists and Artistic Activities
• Art Related Business Profiles
• A Profile of Cultural Industry
• A Profile of Existing Cultural Facilities and Institutions
• A Cultural Inheritance Profile
• A Tourism and Leisure Profile
• A Quality of Life Profile

A typical cultural mapping can involve a mix of the following:

• The utilization of demographic data to identify relevant characteristics of the local population.
• Identification of the different lifestyles new culture introduces to the area.
• Identification of the local population’s cultural and social needs.
• Identification of activities that point toward new cultural programmes and activities.
• The uncovering of local history from which potential common themes and new ideas can evolve.
• The uncovering of the relationship between cultural development and other activities such as tourism and development of the labour market.
• An examination of local industrial craft and economy to get a picture of the area’s special skills profile and, with that, discover how best to invest in future business development.