“The Project” Pilot

The Project pilot is an opportunity designed for and by leaders of arts and culture organizations committed to the deep work of equity and systems change.

It’s time to move away from the problematic paradigms we’ve inherited: traditional hierarchies, cultures of burnout, unsustainable practices for people and planet, organizations that aren’t truly accountable to the people they serve, and perpetuating paradigms inherently linked to whiteness and patriarchy even as we say we want to do things differently.

But how do we actually do this?

NAS has spent the past 3 years working with a team of co-creators from across the arts and culture world to explore exactly that: what do we collectively need to move away from and towards, and how we might create an offering that helps leaders and organizations do this work with authenticity and accountability? This is how The Project pilot was born, and like all nascent entities, it’s still growing and evolving.

What we know so far is that it will be an opportunity for leaders looking to join us in this journey of moving away from what is and towards what might be. Together, we will build a supportive community of practice that brings together an intentionally diverse gathering of identities, abilities, and lived experiences. We will dive deep into the ways we and our organizations engage with race, capitalism, the environment, and more. In doing so, we will work to make conscious choices that bring us into right relationship with ourselves, our teams, the people we serve, and the earth.

To do this work, we will leverage tools and knowledge rooted in both research and lived experience. And we–NAS–will provide financial support to participating organizations because we value the time and energy that is necessary for such deep work. Because all too often programs like this center one leader within an organization and we know authentic change is the work of many, we plan to include the multitude of leaders within organizations (teams, boards, etc.) to join in the learning, effort, and accountability.

The Pilot Journey

Recruitment of Our Pilot Cohort

Pilot Launches with a Welcome Party including orientation materials, introductions to the cohort, tools, and an opportunity for self/organizational assessment

Peer Exchange Groups – PEGs – Begin (Meetings Bi-Weekly Online) 

Session 1 (Online)

Session 2 (On Land: Windham, New York)*

Session 3 (Online)

Session 4 (Online)

Session 5 (Online)

Session 7 – A Closing Celebration & Exploration of What’s Next (On Land: In Person at a TBD Location)* 

Financial Equity & Accessibility

We deeply value the time and energy it takes to show up to this work, so rather than charging for participation and inhibiting access, we’re partnering with funders such that we can offer support instead. Each participating organization will receive $10,000 to help offset their investments of team time, energy, and travel. We know that this dollar amount won’t fully cover the substantial investment participants are making, but we’re hoping it will lighten the load and make this journey more accessible for those called to it.

Want to Join Us for the Project Pilot?

This is not a traditional application process – it’s a mutual selection process meant as an opportunity for organizations to self-reflect and earnestly explore amongst themselves and with NAS whether this pilot is the right fit at the right time. Our goal and north star in curating the pilot cohort is to create a powerful community of practice that intentionally centers diverse identities, perspectives, and lived experiences.

While we wish we had unlimited space for all to join, because this is a pilot, it feels important to intentionally limit the size for this first cohort. As such, we will be in touch with all organizations that express interest by or before mid-March 2024. It is our hope to be able to include many more people and organizations in this opportunity in the years ahead.

Reflection forms for the 2024-2025 cohort of The Project are currently closed.

Why Co-Creation?

At NAS, we’ve made a fundamental shift over the last few years in the way we design and implement programming. We believe deeply in the need to move away from hierarchical leadership and decision making. We know that lived experience matters, and trust that leaders in arts and culture understand what they need far better than anyone else does. As such, we no longer see it as our role to create programming for arts and culture leaders. We are focusing our efforts instead on building programming in partnership with those we serve: tapping the wisdom of the collective and facilitating the generation of ideas that our team can help bring to life.

The Project is the first offering by NAS that has been designed fully through co-creation, and we’ve learned a lot along the way. For an in-depth look at the process and lessons learned, visit What the Heck is Rainbow Sprinkles? An NAS Journey to Shifting & Sharing Power. And for a more recent look at how the program has continued to evolve, visit The Project: Undoing, Redoing, and Shifting Unjust Systems.

Meet The Project’s Leadership Team & Co-Creators Here

What Are We Working Towards?

We know that the way things are isn’t working, but we can’t make change without first identifying what we need to leave behind and where we want to go. In working with our co-creators, the following emerged:

It is our intention for The Project pilot to help us move away from…

Cultures of burnout and trying to do everything all the time; Categories of “White” and “everyone else”; Ableism; Cults of charismatic leaders and leadership models lacking trust and accountability; Rigid hierarchies; “One size fits all” leadership support focusing only on the executive director; Every organization having its own back office; Traditional unaccountable/non-transparent boards of directors that center their own priorities over organizational and communal ones; Interests of the wealthy as a driver; Curatorial lenses as ego; Essential teams being considered “just staff”; Growth for growth’s sake; 20th century succession models; Logic/business models that serve only the few; And business as usual.

And instead move towards…

Holistic approaches to running organizations; Co-leadership and other distributed leadership models; Embracing all the many ways to be in connection and collaboration with community; Boards of directors that are made up of and/or accountable to supporters, artists, and staff; Leadership training that focuses on the community/ecology, not just the executive director; New succession models; Networked solutions; Models of mutual aid and coalition building; Missions rooted in a deep understanding of community needs, and mindful of changes over time; Willingness and ability to pivot; Advocacy and activism around policy (financial, tax, immigration, intellectual property, etc.); Sustainable timelines and operations for both people and planet; And artistic choices that make the world a better place.

The Project is possible through the generous support of