Arts and Culture | Australian Greens

Principles

The Australian Greens believe that:

Artistic and cultural expression and engagement are fundamental aspects of what it is to be alive, and are crucial to social wellbeing.
Access to diverse and innovative artistic and cultural experiences should be available to all Australians.
Australian arts, cultural assets and heritage should be protected, celebrated and promoted both within Australia and internationally.
Australian artists play an essential role in our nation's cultural life and identity and should be fostered and supported.
The arts make a valuable contribution to the nation’s economy and support to the arts represents an important economic, as well as social, investment.
Arts practice should be recognised and treated as a legitimate occupation by governments.
Freedom of artistic expression is integral to a diverse and vibrant national culture and should be upheld through funding arrangements that are free from political interference.
First Nations peoples in Australia are recognised as the oldest living cultures in the world. First Nations cultures go beyond visual and performing arts and includes language, knowledge, rituals, stories, songlines, and sacred sites. They must be recognised and preserved through self determination by the First Nations groups to whom they belong, in areas of engagement, protection, policy development and legislation.
Australia’s diverse multicultural artists and their work represent cultures and heritages which are unique to Australia and must be supported, respected and appropriately protected through legislation, policy and funding priorities.
National libraries and collecting institutions are essential to our understanding of ourselves and our place in the world, and must be maintained and developed as important custodians of our cultural heritage.
Specialist artistic education and training programs provide a unique learning environment for aspiring artists and should be well funded and resourced.
Public exposure is not a proper form of remuneration for artists.

Aims

The Australian Greens want:

Australian arts and culture to maintain its unique character through support and promotion of local content and the development of local projects for all forms of art and culture.
An integrated approach to arts and culture policies and programs that encourages cross-portfolio awareness of their broad social and economic benefits, including benefits for physical and mental health and social cohesion.
A national cultural policy that supports and encourages the development of local arts policies and programs and promotes access to arts and cultural experiences.
A greater recognition of the role of local government in the development and coordination of local arts and cultural policies and programs.
Better coordination between Federal, State and Local Government in the planning and implementation of arts programs.
Increased access to arts and cultural experiences in rural and regional areas and in areas of social and economic disadvantage.
The support and promotion of arts and culture to reflect the cultural, social and linguistic diversity of the Australian population.
To strengthen Australia's content regulation to require stronger investment and promotion of Australian content across all broadcast media - including subscription, digital streaming and live-streaming platforms - and to mandate commissioned content to have a minimum local talent and jobs requirement.
To develop the domestic screen industry with more funding, market development and shared services for film, television, video games and interactive media.
To remove commercial viability requirements and maximum public funding budget caps from domestic film industry grants programs.
Artists’ intellectual property rights, including First Nations cultural rights, to be protected.
Improved, timely delivery of remuneration to artists which genuinely recognises the value of their labour.
The Australia Council, as the principal independent body for policy development and administration of arts grants programs, to invest in a greater diversity of arts grants programs, to invest in a greater diversity of artists, communities, and art forms; and to prioritise the development of innovative and creative cultural contexts.
Mechanisms to ensure the sustainability of emerging and mid-level artists and arts organisations through financial, governance, and business planning support.
More programs supporting emerging artists, such as the introduction of a fixed income support scheme and better access to small business start-up grants and schemes.
Australia to sign and ratify the UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage 2003.
To ensure that any trade agreement or other international instrument does not adversely affect Australian artists and cultural expression.
The inclusion of cultural infrastructure to be required in the development of greenfield sites. This may be through spaces for art production and presentation or public art projects with community engagement.
Improved access and participation opportunities in arts and culture activities for people with disabilities.
To ensure that the national retail royalty scheme applies to the re-sale of all existing artworks and that Australian artists can access re-sale royalty schemes in other countries.
Increases in government funding for the arts in order to reduce reliance on philanthropy and private sponsorship.
The National Curriculum to provide all Australian children with a rich and varied arts education.23. The introduction of a legislated minimum payment for artists in line with union targets.
All artists contributing to a creative work, including session musicians, to be recognised and entitled to royalties or another profit sharing mechanism.
Legislating the Indigenous Cultural Intellectual Property (ICIP) protocol must occur in Australian Law in order to fully protect the rights of First Nations artists.

(Arts and Culture Policy as amended by National Conference June 2023)