The federal government can't, and shouldn't, become stewards of all museums in Canada, but neither can we deny that our national heritage is housed in museums across Canada. Unless we act to properly preserve and exhibit it, we won't have it in the future.
To address these concerns, we've developed a series of principles for a new policy, which can be found in our brief. They include: community impact, sustainability, engagement of Canadians, appreciation, and participation and inclusion.
We have outlined a series of recommendations that are sound and practical and pragmatic. Our recommendations require a new federal investment of $75 million per year for non-federal museums. As we heard from Canadian Heritage, there are several good programs in place now, which should be part of that new policy, and they should be maintained, but we need to address some key gaps.
Primarily, we need to address the inadequacy of the museums assistance program. It is insufficiently funded; it is too restrictive; it is too limiting and unpredictable, making it impossible for museums to plan on the basis of funding for only one- or two-year terms.
To address this, we recommend there be new multi-year, multi-dimensional program funding. This program would provide support to address specific business plans submitted by museums and would provide predictable levels of support over three to five years. Museums are not fly-by-night operations; you cannot transform and improve museums with unpredictable one-year projects.
This program would allow museums to plan and implement, to measure success, and to report on projects deemed to meet federal priorities, as well as to serve the mandate of those museums in their communities.
Federal criteria for eligibility should be broader than those in present programs, so as to assist more museums. We recommend that a museum be able to access investment in the range of $25,000 to $400,000.
The kinds of programs supported by MAP are still important. Museums should be able to apply for project funding for specific actions, such as travelling exhibitions, professional development, international projects, aboriginal museums, and so on and so forth.
Endowments need to be established for long-term stability, and the federal government could assist with matching incentives, with fundraising capacity, or even with innovative ideas, such as funding chairs for research or for collections.
If you, as our elected members of Parliament, do not take action, we are in peril of losing much of our heritage. In the past year alone, a handful of museums have closed, and many more are in slow and silent decline. We are in danger of losing the knowledge and the inspiration that help build communities, that help build regions, and, ultimately, that help build us as a nation. Canada's museums contribute to our sense of place and identity in a very significant way, and they are important elements of our society and need to be properly supported and properly respected.
We thank you today. We thank you for listening to us, and we sincerely hope that this committee will act and provide recommendations to ensure that a new policy will be realized by the end of this year to preserve and to present our heritage in the interests of all Canadians.
Thank you. We're available for your questions