The City is working to address its complex legacy around race and equity through cultural policy. It is coupling cultural funding and pandemic recovery funding with strategic commitments to diversity, equity and inclusion through programmes like the Live Music Preservation Fund and Cultural Arts Funding Programme.
Safeguarding Cultural Spaces
The City of Austin has a continued emphasis on safeguarding cultural space amid new development, creating new government-adjacent models and entities to attempt to preserve and create new cultural infrastructure
Art for All is a public art initiative in Austin led by Raasin in the Sun and the City of Austin, offering paid creative opportunities to unhoused individuals. By.
Launched in 2020, Rally Austin (formerly AEDC) protects Austin’s cultural identity by creating affordable cultural spaces through public real estate tools. Its Cultural Trust supports venues in key districts,.
The City of Austin’s Economic and Cultural District Framework Policy was developed in 2024 to formalise and support the sustainability of cultural districts across the city. Focused on preserving.
Key Facts
Austin is the only UNESCO Creative City of Media Arts in the USA
Live music is biggest factor for liveability and growth and generates billions of dollars to the city
Tech companies have been expanding in the city, contributing to job creation
SXSW is an internationally renowned annual collection of film, interactive media and music festivals
Austin city strategy focuses on balancing urban growth with preserving heritage, cultural and green space
