December 8, 2020
New toolkit created to support promotion of GLAM benefits
Today the Canadian Museums Association (CMA) unveiled a new toolkit to help members of the GLAM community (galleries, libraries, archives and museums) increase awareness about the tremendous contributions of the sector which were revealed in a recent study. The toolkit was produced on behalf of the Ottawa Declaration Working Group, a consortium of stakeholders co-led by the CMA and Library and Archives Canada (LAC).
Canada gains nearly $8.6 billion a year in economic benefits in addition to a myriad of social advantages from the existence of GLAMs, according to the study released in May 2020. The study was conducted by Oxford Economics and commissioned by the Working Group. A few highlights:
- Canada gains nearly $8.6 billion a year in economic benefits from GLAMs.
- For every $1 invested in GLAMs, Canadian society gets nearly $4 in benefits.
- GLAMs contribute to improved literacy, social inclusion and overall health.
- GLAM users report overall health as 14% better than non-users.
- GLAMs had more than 6 times the number of annual visitors than NHL games did during the 2018-19 season.
- 96% believe GLAMs contribute to our quality of life.
Thanks to support from LAC and the Working Group, the CMA was able to produce a toolkit to help a wide range of professionals and institutions across the GLAM sector increase awareness of these findings.
“Our sector has, historically, not made a very strong case in explaining the value of GLAMs in our society. This has no doubt been one reason it remains under-funded,” says Dr. Vanda Vitali, Executive Director of the CMA. “Now, more than ever, is a critical time to emphasize the sector’s economic and societal impacts, and to demonstrate why a greater investment in GLAMs is a smart investment. We hope this toolkit, and other efforts like it, will help the community get this important message out.”
The toolkit contains key messages, ready-to-use social media posts and infographics, a fact sheet, a full presentation package including slides and speaking points, and additional references. It contains broader GLAM information, as well as information specific to each of the sub-sectors. The toolkit also includes a top-12 list of practical tips on how the tools in the kit can be used in various ways, for example, in speeches, on social media channels, and in meetings with staff, funders, politicians, boards of directors and donors.
The CMA thanks LAC for its support for this project and the reference group, made up of members of the GLAM community, for their feedback and input toward the development of the toolkit.
We encourage everyone visit www.museums.ca/site/glam to read the study and for members of the GLAM community to make use of the toolkit to collectively spread the word about the importance of — and contributions by — GLAMS in Canadian society.
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For more information: communications@museums.ca