DISCUSSION: Society Act Review and New Models
/Please join in the discussion (see link below).
Yesterday evening, Margaret Mason, Michael Blatchford and I met with a group of emerging artists and arts organizations to talk about the Society Act and have a look at some bylaws. We called it the Society Survival Series because many of the issues are now a matter of survival. Among the comments we received were : “We need a beginner’s guide to reading legal documents! How do we manage volunteers? How about a glossary of legal terms? ” All great ideas that we hope to be able to followup with over the coming months. There were a number of newly-formed societies and a few folks who had not yet decided what to do. There was a distinct lack of clarity on whether there were alternatives to setting up a non profit society. These observations caused me to wonder whether funding and revenue streams too often dictate our choice of model and limit our ability to be creative across the non profit sector? Two arts administrators who collectively manage 50 or so groups express continuing frustration at the Society Act model for the arts. What are the alternatives? Would a new legal structure help or hinder the sector?
