Creative Relief
Creative Relief is an emergency preparedness and response program which addresses both community need through an artistic lens and resources to artists and arts organizations. Artists and arts organizations are integral to the health and welfare of neighborhoods, towns, and cities in good times, but especially in times of difficulty. Creative Relief is particularly designed to prepare the arts and culture sector to respond to and recover from a wide range of natural disasters, infectious disease outbreaks, and manmade complex disasters.
The Arts Council of Greater Baton Rouge also provides creative relief through granting.
The Get Ready Grant (GRG) program helps to expand the CERF+ Artist Readiness Program (CARP), which strengthens the vitality and sustainability of individuals who endeavor to create and innovate within the State of Louisiana. GRGs support individual artists in conducting activities that will help safeguard their students, protect their careers, and prepare for emergencies. The Arts Council administers GRG throughout the State of Louisiana on behalf of the CERF+ and the program is funded by the Mellon Foundation.
Natural Disaster
Natural disasters include all types of severe weather, which have the potential to pose a significant threat to human health and safety, property, critical infrastructure, and homeland security. Natural disasters include winter storms, floods, tornados, hurricanes, wildfires, earthquakes, or any combination thereof.
Infectious Disease
Infectious disease emergencies are circumstances caused by biological agents, including organisms such as bacteria, viruses or toxins with the potential for significant illness or death in the population. Situations in this category may include naturally occurring outbreaks (e.g., measles, mumps, meningococcal disease), emerging infectious diseases (e.g., COVID-19, H1N1, SARS, pandemic influenza), and bioterrorism.
Manmade Complex Disaster
Natural disasters include all types of severe weather, which have the potential to pose a significant threat to human health and safety, property, critical infrastructure, and homeland security. Natural disasters include winter storms, floods, tornados, hurricanes, wildfires, earthquakes, or any combination thereof.
Beginning on Monday, August 15, 2016, the Arts Council of Greater Baton Rouge altered its regular programming to identify and address community needs in response to a severe flood which affected the eleven-parish area that it serves. Since that time, the organization continued to develop its Emergency Preparedness and Response on local, state, and national levels, as well as serving on the National Coalition for Arts’ Preparedness & Emergency Response network. Creative Relief is organized through two focus 1) Artists in Need (includes arts education in public, private, and parochial schools); and 2) Artist Helping Others. The program encompasses the City of Baton Rouge and the following parishes: East Baton Rouge (the organization’s domicile), West Baton Rouge, Iberville, Pointe Coupee, West Feliciana, East Feliciana, Livingston, Ascension, St. Helena, Tangipahoa, and Washington. From 2016 to present, the Arts Council continued to keep emergency preparedness front of mind for its constituents, holding sessions on Creative Relief at its annual Arts Summits, participating in national cohorts, and connecting with local and state emergency agencies, including NCAPER, GOHSEP, and MOHSEP, and with representatives of FEMA. This program has been adopted by the Office of Culture, Recreation, and Tourism for the State of Louisiana.Sponsored By
Partners include: Louisiana Division of the Arts, BRAC, BRAF, Mayors Office of Homeland Security, Capital Area United Way, Louisiana Department of Health local law enforcement agencies, hospitals, schools, and relief agencies.
Jonathan Grimes
Executive Vice-President
225-344-8558 ext. 236
jgrimes@artsbr.org