Creative Change Coalition: Building Community Power

The Creative Change Coalition, stewarded by Springboard for the Arts, had a few specific goals in mind for the 3-day gathering it hosted in Saint Paul, MN in October 2025: offer space to build community; share resources; celebrate 2 years of Coalition growth; and take a moment together to recognize the impact of place-based, people-centered organizations of various sizes, capacities, and expertise.

The first day of the gathering kicked off with a keynote from Eric Liu, CEO of Citizen University and “Civic Evangelist”, who spoke about Civic Power and what it means to invest in community change. Following Eric’s keynote, we reflected on the everyday work of building creative change in a panel moderated by Aviva Kapust of Mural Arts Philadelphia, featuring Bethany Lacktorin of Little Theatre Auditorium (New London, MN), Marc David Pinate of Borderlands Theater (Tucson, AZ), Ismail Samad of Loiter (East Cleveland, OH), and Symphony Swan-Zawadi, BFA, M.ED of THE CR8TV HOUSE (Milwaukee, WI).

Day Two began with a panel on developing and sustaining creative ecosystems that featured Omari Rush of CultureSource (Detroit, MI) as moderator with Joseph Allen of Manoomin Arts Initiative (White Earth Nation, Mahnomen, MN), Gustavo Herrera of Arts for LA (Los Angeles, CA), and Louise Martorano of Community Arts Stabilization Trust Colorado (Denver, CO).

From breakout workshops on community-centric fundraising, national advocacy networks, and cross-sector collaboration; to sharing resources and learnings over lunch on Springboard’s front lawn; to an evening trip to Can Can Wonderland after the day’s sessions, the rest of the time together was a joyful celebration of community power and the essential role of local culture in making change.  Attendees spent time together during the gathering’s  final morning in breakout discussions exploring topics and possibilities to shape the direction of the Coalition in 2026.

We left feeling energized by the conversations, the generosity of spirit, and the practical frameworks shared by so many artists and organizers doing transformational work across the country. It was a gift to be part of a space so rooted in care, equity, and imagination.

The gathering closed with an afternoon at Springboard’s annual community appreciation event, Fall Fest. Artist-led projects from Ready Go and local makers filled the space, including sign making, metal pouring, line dancing, postcard writing, and much more. 

While the needs vary for each organization and the communities they serve, this 3-day gathering offered a moment to commit to our collective strength. We know that locally-rooted, people-centered work is essential to building more human-centered and just systems and that local culture, local people and local power are the building blocks of healthier communities. The Creative Change Coalition is committed to helping this emerging network continue to build the visibility and value of this work.

The Creative Change Coalition is a national coalition of place-based organizations that center people, creativity, and equity working together to create a stronger ecosystem for communities and artists. The Coalition supports local organizations by providing peer engagement opportunities, technical assistance and practical resources. Together we make this field more visible, drive resources to local organizations, and discover shared research, advocacy and policy change opportunities. Springboard for the Arts has stewarded the Creative Change Coalition since its launch in the fall of 2023.To learn more about the Creative Change Coalition, visit www.creativechangecoalition.org.