Culture Minister Shares And Learns With U.S. Irish Cultural Ambassadors

Arts and Culture Minister Caral Ni Chuilin has held discussions with Irish American Cultural Ambassadors and arts practitioners in New York.

Norman Houston from the Northern Ireland Bureau and Loretta Brennan Glucksman, CBE, from the American Ireland fund hosted the event, which also included artists and activists involved in the Irish American arts scene in New York .

Speaking about the meeting the Minister said: "I was interested to hear how business and philanthropic interests combine to make New York a successful cultural capital. I was also keen to discuss how we can raise awareness and grow links between the arts in the USA and Ireland.

"I shared with my hosts my focus, in the north of Ireland, of ensuring that over half of our Arts Council grants continue go to areas of social need and working to maximize the powers of the arts to build community confidence and contribute to economic recovery, particularly in relation to cultural tourism from the USA.

"My Department has been central to building a strong arts infrastructure across the North and we now have fantastic venues in Belfast and Derry, as well as an arts facility within 20 miles of everyone in the region. We have much to offer locally and internationally.

"The challenge, in these tight economic times, is to ensure the value of culture and the arts - to the tourism industry and to wider society - is recognised, valued and used positively for the benefit of all our people."

The Minister also highlighted the potential of cultural tourism.

She said: "Our exchange also highlighted how the promotion of our local traditions in the USA can create a new generation of people with a love and enthusiasm for our diverse languages and cultural heritage. We spoke of how this inspires Americans to come to visit our shores and see the origin of these traditions."