Cultural Diversity Officer

Description:

This position has been created in the context of recent policy initiatives* in the area of equality, human rights and arts and cultural diversity on the part of Donegal County Council and The Arts Council, and has been enabled through the support of The Arts Council’s Local Authority Specialist Staffing Scheme.

The position will also be key to advancing two of the strategic priorities of the ongoing Framework Agreement between Donegal County Council and The Arts Council, i.e. those of ‘Enabling more and a greater diversity of citizens to engage with the arts in the county’ and ‘Supporting artists and arts organizations in the creation and dissemination of new artistic work.’

Thus the aim of the position is, on one hand, (i) to advise and assist Donegal County Council Culture Division, and arts and cultural organizations in the county generally, to appropriately reflect the increasingly multicultural make-up of the Donegal community in the services they provide, the programmes they deliver and the opportunities for engagement that they offer; and on the other, (ii) to assist and encourage culturally diverse artists and communities in Donegal to maintain, develop and promote their own arts and cultural practice, so enriching the overall cultural identity of the county.

The position will be based in Letterkenny. The Arts & Cultural Diversity Officer will be part of the Arts Service team within Culture Division.

• Intercultural Art in Action Research Project: A Donegal Framework (Donegal Intercultural Platform, Donegal County Council, 2019).
• Equality, Human Rights and Diversity Policy (The Arts Council, 2019).
• Working in Intercultural Contexts. Guide for Local Authorities and Cultural Providers (Mayo, South Dublin and Donegal County Councils, Kath Gorman, 2020).
• Black and Minority Ethnic Inclusion. A Strategy for County Donegal. (Donegal County Council, Inishowen Development Partnership, Donegal Intercultural Platform, 2022).

The Donegal County Council Arts Service is part of the wider Culture Division which also includes the Regional Cultural Centre, the Library Service, the County Museum, the Archives Service and the Heritage Office. In addition, both An Grianán Theatre and The Abbey Arts Centre, Ballyshannon, are owned by Donegal County Council and are managed by independent management companies under Cultural Use Agreements with the Council.

The Arts Service operates on a county-wide basis, assisting artists, arts organizations, and communities to create and to engage with the arts. To do so, the Service manages the provision of a wide range of supports including direct revenue funding to a number of independent, professional arts organizations in the county, a bursaries scheme for individual artists, supports towards the creation of new artistic works, and contribution to Culture Division’s year-round, festivals and events programme, which includes Letterkenny Trad Week, Bealtaine Festival for Older People, Cruinniú na nÓg, National Heritage Week, Culture Night, Wainfest (Festival of Arts & Books for Young People) and Donegal Bay and Blue Stacks Festival.

The Arts Service is also a key partner in the delivery of the North West Audience Development Project, a joint initiative of Donegal County Council and Derry City & Strabane District Council, focusing on the promotion and facilitation of cultural engagement among Older People and Families.