2025 Call for Ambassadors

Ambassadors are required to work independently and collaboratively with community partners as well as BC Culture Days staff. Strong communication and time management skills are important. While the program is predominantly self-directed, BC Culture Days offers the following support:

• Free marketing and media relations services, including social media posts and print posters

• Access to a large arts and culture network and contacts for event facilitation

• Assistance with mentorship matching

• Assistance in building relationships with community partners and securing in-kind support in the way of venue space and materials

• Consultation for event planning

• Accessibility support throughout the program as well as  for Culture Days events (e.g. ASL Interpretation, wheelchair access, etc.)

• Monthly check-ins via Zoom, acting as an opportunity for the ambassador cohort to connect with each other and BC Culture Days staff 

• Professional development workshops in Trauma-informed Art Practices, Event Planning and Accessibility, and Indigenous Relations and Allyship

• Media training in preparation for spokesperson role

• Access to a list of mental health resources and related research through partnership with the BC Alliance for Arts + Culture 

• Engagement of mental health professionals to provide active listening support to participants at the ambassadors’ CARE Series events

We invite you to apply if you meet all the following eligibility requirements: 

• Reside in B.C. (minimum 12 consecutive months) AND are a Canadian Citizen or Permanent Resident of Canada 

• Self-identify as an emerging artist 

• Are in the early stages of your artistic career 

• Devote a minimum of 24 hours per week to your art practice

• Have demonstrated experience in actively engaging your community through the arts 

• Are available to participate in a mentorship from the months of May-August 2025

• Are available to act as a spokesperson in your community during the months of August-October 2025, with the understanding that your image, bio, and artistic process will be shared on the BC Culture Days website and social media channels (i.e artist spotlights, project documentation, event promotion etc.)

• Have strong communications and time management skills 

• Are not applying on behalf of an organization, collective, or business

• Have not been previously engaged as a BC Culture Days ambassador

We strongly encourage applicants with: 

An interest in Culture Days and its mandate to:

FOSTER appreciation and support of the artistic and cultural life that is lived, created and expressed across the country in urban, suburban, and rural areas alike;

PROMOTE direct interaction between creators and the public, as a key to increasing understanding and appreciation of art and culture; and

AFFIRM that every citizen is the guardian of the cultural life of his, her, or their community.

Click here for a visual version of the timeline.

• Feb. 18, 2025 (12:00pm PT) - Ambassador Program Info Session. If you missed the info session, you can review the presentation slides here and the transcript here.

• March 3, 2025 (11:59PM PT) - Deadline for applications

• March 10-24, 2025 - Interviews with shortlisted candidates 

• April 2025 - Selected ambassadors are notified and matched with mentors

• Early May - Ambassador Orientation Session via Zoom

• May 2025 - Mentorship event planning, professional development workshops, and outreach begins

• June 30, 2025 - Deadline for registration of ambassador events

• July 2025 - Mentorship ends

• August 2025 - Media training 

• August-October 2025 - Media Interviews

• September 19-October 12, 2025 - Presentation of Culture Days events

• October 31, 2025 - Final report deadline

• October 31, 2026 - One year impact statement deadline

Please complete our online application by March 3, 2025 at 11:59PM PT. If you wish to complete a PDF version of the application form or prefer to submit your application as a video or voice recording, please email us at [email protected] to communicate your specific needs. 

In the application, you will be asked to: 

• Provide an artist biography and CV.

• Describe why the theme of CARE (Community Arts Reimagining Equity & Wellness) is important to you as an individual and artist. 

• Provide a detailed explanation of your event idea and creative activity, including a proposed venue.

• Provide a point-form outline of the planning steps that you would need to take in order to see your proposed event project through. 

• Describe why you want to pursue an artistic mentorship at this time and why it will be beneficial to your artistic development. 

• List up to three potential mentors. Mentors must be artists residing in Canada with at least 15-20 years of professional experience.

Networking and mobilizing

• Networking with the local community to share knowledge and spread awareness of Culture Days, reaching out to community members such as individual artists, arts organizations, cultural organizations, heritage organizations, and businesses encouraging them to offer activities during Culture Days. 

• Networking with fellow ambassadors, BC Culture Days staff, and arts and culture representatives through monthly virtual check-ins and periodic workshops.

Organizing 

• Registering, coordinating, and presenting a Culture Days activity for the public. Ambassadors are responsible for managing their own project budget and time schedule. 

• Collaborating with at least one organization in the local community that will assist with the facilitation of the ambassador’s public event (eg. mental health organization, educational institution, equity-based charity, arts centre, municipality, arts council, community collective, cultural society, friendship centre, neighbourhood association, and so on). 

Representing 

• Receiving media training to prepare for the role of BC Culture Days spokesperson.

• Acting as a spokesperson and media contact for BC Culture Days from August to October. The ambassador may be asked to participate in either in-person or virtual TV, radio, and newspaper interviews on behalf of BC Culture Days. 

Mentorship 

• Participating in a paid 3-month (approx. 8 hrs/month) online or in-person mentorship with an established artist (with at least 15-20 years of professional experience). 

• Engaging in a professional relationship with the artistic mentor, focusing on building diverse skills in relation to artistic practice, professional development, community engagement, and more. Read this blog to learn about previous mentorship pairings. 

Reporting 

• Providing regular updates and communicating with BC Culture Days staff about their work, event planning, and mentorship. 

• Completing a final report by October 31, 2025. 

• Submitting an impact statement one year after completion of the Ambassador Program and mentorship.

Collective creations: e.g. collaborative mural, dance, song, photography, video or literary project, where the public contributes to a larger artwork. Collective creations can be related to food, cultural heritage, cultural practices, social practice, environmental practice, and more.  

• Citizen Soundscape by Alex Chen

• Community Mural: Celebrating Culture and Diversity Through Art by Annabelle Bail 

Community artmaking sessions where participants are encouraged to engage in a communal and creative activity, leaving with something that they can take home or share with others. 

• Cultures of Care: Scrapbooking Shared Stories by Jesse Medrano-Ramos

• Postcards of Courage by Lindsey Tyne Johnson 

• Puppet Making Art Jam: Beyond Binary by Ann K Chou 

Cultural storytelling, sharing, and teachings: e.g. weaving, beadwork, tapestry, traditional dance, percussion, music, and so on. 

• Indigenous Youth Two-Spirit Hand Drum Song Workshop by Summer Tyance

• Weaving our Story Towards Reconciliation by Priscilla Omulo 

• Medicine Pouch Making by Jean Baptiste 

Site-specific art experiences that encourage the public to engage in a creative activity designed for a particular location, forming a dialogue with its environment or surroundings: e.g. artist and heritage walks, urban sketching tours, land art, and so on.   

• Into Nature by Emilie Kvist

• A Poetic Landscape by Alyssa Harms-Wiebe

• Sculpture Culture Sketch Tour by Shauna Kay

Immersive performances: e.g. spoken word sessions, open mics, improv, music jams, and more.

Visit our Ambassador Alumni Page and our YouTube Channel or view our Culture365 Blog for more past project examples. 

“I would absolutely encourage artists to apply for the Ambassador Program as I believe it’s an amazing opportunity for growth as a creative, not only with the training you receive and the platform you’re given (with a lot of freedom) to come up with a community project that speaks to your values, but also the incredible relationships you get to build along the way with fellow artists who offer different perspectives and visions. This program has pushed me outside of my comfort zone in many ways, and, through it all, has offered me endless support which made this process enjoyable, inspiring, and brought a lot of excitement for me as to what’s possible in the future.” — Annabelle Bail (2024 Ambassador in Nanaimo)

“It is so great that there is a program like this that supports emerging artists with their creative ideas, which is an opportunity that doesn’t regularly come up. Without programs like the Ambassador Program, how are we (emerging artists) supposed to grow and become more established? After this program, I already feel more confident in my ability to pitch collaborations and advocate for my work and worth as an artist.” — Harmeet Kaur Virdee (2024 Ambassador in Surrey) 

“The program is a great opportunity to connect with the wider community and other artists. The monetary support of the Ambassador Program is helpful to free up space to work on the ambassador project and other role responsibilities as well as develop new artistic skills. The mentorship component is invaluable for growth, and the ability to recommend an ideal mentor to BC Culture Days really allowed me to make a pointed choice about where I’d like to expand my artistic practice.” — Alex Chen (2022 Ambassador in Victoria)

You can read more testimonials from our ambassador alum here.