Chamber Report Highlights the Economic Power of Canada’s Arts and Culture Sector
Chamber Report Highlights the Economic Power of Canada’s Arts and Culture Sector
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A recent Chamber report is reinforcing what many communities already know: Canada’s arts and culture sector is not only central to our social fabric, but a significant and growing economic driver. According to Artworks: The Economic and Social Dividends from Canada’s Arts and Culture Sector, released by the Canadian Chamber of Commerce’s Business Data Lab, arts and culture contributed $65 billion in direct GDP to the Canadian economy — demonstrating growth that outpaces many other traditional economic sectors.
The research shows that the sector has grown nearly 8% over the past three years, almost double Canada’s overall economic growth rate. Arts and culture also support 13 jobs for every million dollars in output, a higher employment impact per dollar than many traditional industries. Internationally, Canada’s cultural exports reached a record $25 billion, with strong growth in visual and applied arts, audiovisual and interactive media, and written and published works. British Columbia, along with Ontario and Quebec, sees some of the strongest economic impacts, supporting hundreds of thousands of jobs and tens of billions in economic activity.
Beyond economic output, the report highlights the broader value of arts and culture in strengthening communities. Higher investment in the sector is linked to increased social cohesion, stronger sense of belonging, improved newcomer integration, skills development, and positive spillover effects in areas such as housing and local business vitality. At the same time, the report raises concerns about sustainability, noting that funding pressures—both public and private—are increasing, even as the sector delivers an estimated $29 in economic activity for every dollar of federal investment.
For communities like Langley, these findings underscore that arts and culture are not a “nice to have,” but an essential contributor to economic resilience, workforce attraction, and quality of life. Strategic investment in the creative economy represents both an economic opportunity and a community-building imperative—one that supports growth, competitiveness, and long-term prosperity.
