This morning the Canada Council and Alberta Foundation for the Arts were in town to launch the Alberta Creative Development Initiative. This anticipated grant program will provide important new dollars for artists, arts administrators and organizations in Alberta. The program was established through a Canada Council Initiative driven by the Council's interest to increase participation from Alberta artists and organizations in their programs.

In addition to the $6 million new annual dollars that the Alberta Creative Development Initiative will see invested in Alberta over the next three years, the Canada Council has also hired a Program Officer for Western Canada. Stephen Williams assumed his new post this month and will be based out of the offices of the Alberta Foundation for the Arts in Edmonton. He will be spending his time tirelessly traveling across the province, with frequent stops in Calgary. He can be reached at Stephen.Williams@canadacouncil.ca

Calgary Arts Development will be setting a day aside prior to the first December deadline to bring people together to work on their applications and share their experience and knowledge of the Canada Council granting and assessment system. Stay tuned for more information.