Waterloo - The Creative City Network of Canada/Reseau des Villes creatives du Canada announced yesterday that Betty Anne Recchia, Manager of Cultural Development at the City of Waterloo was elected President of the Board of Directors of the Creative City Network of Canada, at the meeting of the Board of Directors on December 19, 2007.

Ms. Recchia succeeds Beth Gignac, who resigned her position as President of the Board on December 3, 2007 to pursue the nomination for the Alberta Liberals in Calgary-West. Today’s news is linked to Ms. Gignac’s success in securing the nomination. “I have served the network with great passion and enthusiasm for several years. I am making this decision to seek public office with the full support of the Constituency Association and many members of the Alberta Liberal Party. This is a very exciting and motivating new opportunity that will require my absolute attention.”

In accepting her leadership role for the Board Ms. Recchia commented that “ the municipal professionals in our community of practice are a diverse group of people who have arrived in their roles as cultural practitioners and planners through a passion for the critical importance of culture in our lives as individuals and within our Canadian communities. In a world of dramatic economic changes, Canada is in a position to be a global leader for demonstrating the value of cultural planning for community sustainability. The CCNC provides our profession with a shared voice to foster the collaboration and leadership needed to achieve this goal together. ”

A national network established in 2002, the Creative City Network of Canada is an organization of municipalities across Canada and the professional staff who are professionals in the field of arts, culture and heritage policy, planning, development and support. Current membership totals 115 Canadian communities, with hundreds of municipal staff accessing resources and services. Member communities are entitled to include all staff in the network’s services.

Municipalities are playing an increasing role in the development of arts, culture and heritage in Canada. The Creative City Network of Canada exists to connect the people who share this working environment so they can be more effective in cultural development in our communities. By sharing experience, expertise, information and best practices, members support each other through dialogue, both in person and online. The network serves the members in a professional development capacity through key programs and services, delivered by staff in the Vancouver office and supported by twelve Directors representing every Region of Canada:

Programs & Activities:

Listserv’s – national and regional for info sharing in the community of practice

Newsletters including our monthly e-bulletin featuring news items from communities in Canada and around the world

Publications & Resources - current research and best practices on cultural planning, and other aspects of cultural development

Regional Meetings – for Professional Development and Networking
Annual conference – hosted in a different region of Canada each year

Creative City Network Board of Directors

Vice-President: Claude Des Landes, Conseil des arts de Montréal, Quebec
Past-President: Jane Fernyhough , Richmond, British Columbia
Treasurer: Debbie Hill , Ottawa, Ontario
Secretary: Lorna Gunn , Kelowna, British Columbia

Directors:

Rebecca Cann , St. Catharines, Ontario
Doug Cleverley , Owen Sound, Ontario
Sheila Dodd , Whitehorse, Yukon
Lois Harper , Grande Prairie, Alberta
Michel Jutras , Trois-Rivières, Quebec
Denis Nokony, Burnaby, British Columbia
Angela Watson, Fredericton, New Brunswick

For more information on the Creative City Network of Canada visit: www.creativecity.ca