Building a Creative Economy Framework for New York State
Voices for Creative New York (VCNY), working with its Creative Economy Policy (CEP) Working Group, is developing a Creative Economy Framework: a shared foundation the state can use to plan, invest in, and support its creative sector, shaped by the people who work in it.
What we heard
Between January and May 2026, VCNY’s Listening Cycle reached community arts centers, anchor venues, regional alliances, statewide service organizations, individual artists, philanthropy, and the Indigenous-arts and disability-arts communities across New York. These conversations surfaced a wide range of perspectives on what the creative economy is, how it’s organized regionally, and what would help it grow. That input is the foundation of the Framework now being developed.
How the Framework is being built
The process moves through six stages, each building on the one before it. It begins with a Listening Cycle, completed in spring 2026, that gathered input from across the field and synthesized it into shared themes. That input shaped a Draft Framework, now under construction, offering a working definition of the creative economy that reflects its full range, from economic contribution to civic and community value.
After reviewing the Draft Framework in a series of working meetings, Regional Meetings follow through the end of the year, giving each part of the state a chance to shape the Framework around local context and priorities. Structured Online Feedback then further refines the draft, building toward consensus. The process concludes with a statewide Forum in 2027, a large public gathering that validates the Framework and informs both a statewide Creative Economy Plan and region-specific tools.
Where things stand
The Listening Cycle and Draft Framework are complete. A convening in October is the next milestone, a focused working session that will shape the Framework ahead of broader public participation. The regional meetings later this year and the 2027 Forum are where the process opens up to wider involvement.