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Publication Beyond Livability (ArtPlace blog)(2011-12-01) Stern, Mark JMark Stern wrote this blog post in December 2011 as part of CultureBlocks, the Philadelphia cultural assets mapping project, funded by the NEA’s Our Town Program and ArtPlace America.Publication "Natural" Cultural Districts and Public Policy(2012-06-01) Stern, Mark J; Seifert, Susan CThis paper reports on research on the development of “natural” cultural districts—clusters of cultural resources that emerge in particular neighborhoods as a bottom-up, unplanned process. It uses data on Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Seattle to answer the following questions: What social and economic benefits are associated with cultural clusters? What are the social mechanisms that connect community benefits to cultural clusters? How do we define “natural” cultural districts? Are there particular neighborhood features that foster formation of these cultural clusters? Can we distinguish particular types of “natural” cultural districts? What kinds of policy interventions are appropriate for different types of districts? The analysis suggests that although we can demonstrate strong connections between the concentration of cultural assets and a wide variety of social benefits, economic spillover tends to be concentrated in places that are already advantaged. Thus, if we pursue strategies that promote creative placemaking purely as a market-based strategy, the outcomes are likely to increase the already growing gap between prosperous and poor residents and between advantaged and disadvantaged parts of the city.Publication How does the composition of a cultural district influence its sustainability?(2012-11-01) Stern, Mark J; Seifert, Susan CThis research memo tests out different methods for identifying and classifying cultural clusters and estimating changes in Philadelphia clusters between 1997 and 2010. It concludes that block groups with a complex cultural ecology are more likely to retain their status, while those with a single strength are more likely to suffer a loss of resources (or at least a smaller gain) and a decline in overall position in the citywide cultural sector.Publication CultureBlocks: Bringing Arts & Culture into the Urban Policy Mix(2013-10-01) Stern, Mark JThis presentation was prepared for the Grantmakers in the Arts 2013 conference on "The NEW Creative Community" held October 6th-9th in Philadelphia. The CultureBlocks panel discussion was organized by Moira Baylson, Deputy Cultural Officer of the Philadelphia Office of Arts Culture and the Creative Economy, with Mark Stern, University of Pennsylvania. Stern's talk focused on use of CultureBlocks--as a data tool, a research tool, and a policy tool--to integrate the arts and culture into urban policy-making.Publication Rethinking Social Impact: "We Can't Talk About Social Well-Being Without the Arts & Culture"(2012-05-01) Stern, Mark JMark Stern wrote this blog post as part of Animating Democracy’s “Social Impact and Evaluation Blog Salon” in 2012.Publication What do the Arts & Culture Contribute to Urban Life?(2013-10-25) Stern, Mark JFor a panel discussion on "Arts, Culture, and Vibrant Cities: Innovative Roles for Arts and Culture in Growing Inner Cities,” Stern’s talk uses Philadelphia research to highlight the sector’s drive to demonstrate economic vs. social benefits of “creative placemaking” and the consequences for disadvantaged urban neighborhoods. The event was part of “Reimagining Cities: Building Resiliency"—A Full-Day Symposium on Challenges Facing American Cities—held at the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs and Center for Politics and Governance, University of Texas at Austin, on Friday, October 25, 2013.Publication Cultural Research Network (CRN) Overview of CultureBlocks Mapping Tool and Interview With Susan Seifert (SIAP)(2013-05-01) Arroyo, KileyThis document is the transcript of the Cultural Research Network (CRN) inaugural interview featuring CultureBlocks, Philadelphia's free online mapping tool, posted by Kiley Arroyo (CRN) on May 17, 2013. The focus of Arroyo's interview with Susan Seifert was the SIAP perspective on development of the CultureBlocks tool and insights for other cultural researchers.Publication Cultural Asset Mapping Project: Progress Report(2012-12-01) Stern, Mark J; Seifert, Susan CThis report describes SIAP work undertaken from December 2011 to December 2012 as part of the Philadelphia cultural asset mapping project. SIAP research and data analyses underway, in collaboration with Reinvestment Fund, included: a cross-sectional analysis of associations between cultural assets and social and community indicators by neighborhood; a time-series of the geography of cultural assets between 1997 and 2010, using SIAP’s historical database; and a Philadelphia livability/social inclusion index that links information on cultural assets with other community indices on neighborhood vitality and social wellbeing.Publication Cultural Ecology, Neighborhood Vitality, and Social Wellbeing—A Philadelphia Project(2013-12-01) Stern, Mark J; Seifert, Susan CFrom 2011 to 2013, SIAP with Reinvestment Fund undertook new research that featured development of multidimensional indexes of social wellbeing for the city of Philadelphia. This report presents the results of that collaboration. Chapter 1 documents construction of a neighborhood-based social wellbeing index for the city. Chapter 2 uses the social wellbeing index to analyze patterns of advantage and disadvantage in Philadelphia neighborhoods. Chapter 3 draws on SIAP's historical data to examine changes in Philadelphia's cultural ecology between 1997 and 2012. The summary highlights how the policy tool helps conceptualize and measure culture as a dimension of social wellbeing as well as a contributor to equitable communities.