Bringing people together: Almost without exception, the projects studied have made a significant contribution to bringing people together. At a simple level, more than nine out of ten respondents made new friends as a result of their involvement. This is such an ordinary outcome of participating in the arts that it can easily be underestimated:

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Over the last 50 years, people have shifted away from meeting and volunteering regularly in associations and informal gatherings such as support groups and Bible study groups, choosing instead to engage through “checkbook participation,” where we outsource and pay local and national organizations who hire professional staff to do the good works and... See more

American communities founded on intense associational activity now have a civic participation vacuum. Associations once mobilized their constituents for specific improvements. Now only local governments -- often elected by tiny numbers of voters, or self-appointed small business groups -- serve as public custodians. While there have always been... See more