The Alberta Ministry of Arts, Culture and Status of Women, commonly called Alberta Culture, is the

Government of Alberta The Government of Alberta () is the body responsible for the administration of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Alberta. In modern Canadian use, the term ''Government of Alberta'' refers specifically to the executive� ...

department responsible for the province's

cultural industries The term culture industry () was coined by the critical theory, critical theorists Theodor Adorno (1903–1969) and Max Horkheimer (1895–1973), and was presented as critical vocabulary in the chapter "The Culture Industry: Enlightenment as Mas ...

arts The arts or creative arts are a vast range of human practices involving creativity, creative expression, storytelling, and cultural participation. The arts encompass diverse and plural modes of thought, deeds, and existence in an extensive ...

, and

heritage Heritage may refer to: History and society * A heritage asset A heritage asset is an item which has value because of its contribution to a nation's society, knowledge and/or culture. Such items are usually physical assets, but some countries also ...

, as well as the promotion of

women's rights Women's rights are the rights and Entitlement (fair division), entitlements claimed for women and girls worldwide. They formed the basis for the women's rights movement in the 19th century and the feminist movements during the 20th and 21st c ...

. This ministry of the

Executive Council of Alberta The Executive Council of Alberta (the Cabinet) is a body of ministers of the Crown in right of Alberta, who along with the lieutenant governor, exercises the powers of the Government of Alberta. Ministers are selected by the premier and typic ...

is the legal continuation of a ministry that has had many names since its creation in 1992, most recently as ''Alberta Culture, Multiculturalism, and Status of Women''. This is the not the first culture ministry; a previous one existed from 1971 to 1992. In 2021, the word "

multiculturalism Multiculturalism is the coexistence of multiple cultures. The word is used in sociology, in political philosophy, and colloquially. In sociology and everyday usage, it is usually a synonym for ''Pluralism (political theory), ethnic'' or cultura ...

" was dropped from the Ministry's name, but its organization remained unchanged. In 2022, the "Status of Women" was removed from the ministry's name but that portfolio stayed with the ministry with an associate minister specifically responsible, meanwhile multiculturalism was moved into a new ministry with trade and immigration. The current Minister of Arts, Culture, and Status of Women is

Tanya Fir Tanya Fir (born 1975) is a Canadian politician who was elected in the 2019 Alberta general election to represent the electoral district of Calgary-Peigan in the 30th Alberta Legislature. She is a member of the United Conservative Party. Back ...

, who was sworn into the role on June 9, 2023, following that year's re-election of the Danielle Smith government. Fir previously held the position of Parliamentary Secretary for Status of Women.

Intra-ministerial organization

The Minister of Culture is appointed by the

Lieutenant Governor of Alberta The lieutenant governor of Alberta () is the representative in Alberta of the monarch. The lieutenant governor is appointed in the same manner as the other provincial viceroys in Canada and is similarly tasked with carrying out most of the mona ...

on the advice of the

Premier of Alberta The premier of Alberta is the head of government and first minister of the Canadian province of Alberta. The current premier is Danielle Smith, leader of the governing United Conservative Party, who was sworn in on October 11, 2022. The premi ...

and is responsible to the

Legislative Assembly of Alberta The Legislative Assembly of Alberta is the deliberative assembly of the province of Alberta, Canada. It sits in the Alberta Legislature Building in Edmonton. Since 2012 the Legislative Assembly has had 87 members, elected first past the post f ...

. The Ministry is then divided into the Department of Culture, the Alberta Foundation for the Arts, and the Alberta Advisory Council on the Francophonie.

Administrative history

The culture and status of women portfolios of the Alberta government have previously been overseen by separate ministers. They have also been sections within the portfolio of the same minister. These portfolios have also each been joined to other government departments at various points.

Previous Department of Culture (1971–1992)

The first minister of culture was appointed in 1971, but the Cultural Affairs Department within that ministry was founded in 1975 by Order in Council 518/1975, under the authority of the ''Public Service Administrative Transfers Act''. The minister responsible for this was known as the Minister Responsible for Culture (1975–1980), Minister of Culture (1980–1987), and Minister of Culture and Multiculturalism (1987–1992). Agencies which reported to the minister included the * Alberta Cultural Heritage Foundation (1978–1987) * Alberta Multiculturalism Commission (1987–1992) * Alberta Art Foundation (1972–1991) * Alberta Foundation for the Performing Arts (1978–1991) * Alberta Foundation for the Literary Arts (1984–1991) *

Alberta Foundation for the Arts Alberta Foundation for the Arts (AFA) is a crown corporation charged with development and promotion of the arts in Alberta, Canada Alberta is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is on ...

(1991–1992) * Alberta Library Board (1948–1992), and * Alberta Advisory Council on the Status of Women (1986–1987). During this time the minister was responsible for implementing the following legislation: ''Alberta Academy Act'', ''Alberta Art Foundation Act'', ''Emblems of Alberta Act'', '' Alberta Foundation for the Arts Act'', ''Alberta Heritage Day Act'', ''Alberta Historical Resources Act'', '' Alberta Order of Excellence Act'', ''Alberta Women's Bureau Act'', ''Amusements Act'' (Part 3), ''Cultural Development Act'', ''Cultural Foundations Act'', ''Department of Culture Act'', ''Department of Culture and Multiculturalism Act'', ''Foreign Cultural Property Immunity Act'', '' Glenbow-Alberta Institute Act'', '' Government House Act'', ''Libraries Act'', and ''Registered Music Teachers' Association Act''.

Merged with Tourism, Parks, and Recreation (1992–2015)

The Ministry of Community Development, commonly called Alberta Community Development, was a ministry of the

from 1992 to 2019. It was created in 1992 pursuant to the '' Public Service Administrative Transfers Act'',

Order in Council An Order in Council is a type of legislation in many countries, especially the Commonwealth realms. In the United Kingdom, this legislation is formally made in the name of the monarch by and with the advice and consent of the Privy Council ('' ...

750/1992. It was created in 1992 from the previous Department of Culture (1915–1992) and the Department of Tourism, Parks, and Recreation (1992). It subsequently operated as Alberta Community Development (1992–2006), Alberta Tourism, Parks, Recreation and Culture (2006–2008), Alberta Culture and Community Spirit (2008 to 2011), Alberta Culture and Community Services (2011 to 2014). In 2015, the parks functions were lost to Alberta Environment and ministry was renamed Alberta Culture and Tourism (2015 to 2019).

Addition of Status of Women (2019–)

The ministry was rename Alberta Culture, Multiculturalism and Status of Women was in 2019. It was renamed Alberta Culture and Status of Women on July 8, 2021 and simply to Alberta Culture on October 24, 2022. and to Alberta Culture in 2022. , the department is called the Ministry of Arts, Culture and Status of Women.

Responsibilities

, Alberta Culture is responsible for two public agencies:

and (Alberta Advisory Council on the Francophonie). , the Ministry is responsible for the following pieces of legislation: * '' Alberta Centennial Medal Act'' * '' Alberta Foundation for the Arts Act'' * '' Arts Professions Recognition Act'' * '' Emblems of Alberta Act'' * ''Film and Television Tax Credit Act'' * '' Family Day Act'' * ''

Film and Video Classification Act A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are generally, since ...

'' * '' First Nations Sacred Ceremonial Objects Repatriation Act'' * '' Foreign Cultural Property Immunity Act'' * '' Freedom to Care Act'' * '' Genocide Remembrance, Condemnation and Prevention Month Act'' * '' Glenbow‑Alberta Institute Act'' * '' Historical Resources Act'' * ''

Holocaust Memorial Day and Genocide Remembrance Act The Holocaust Memorial Day and Genocide Remembrance Act is a law passed in the Alberta Legislature with unanimous consent of all parties in November 2000. This law provides recognition for Yom HaShoah Yom HaZikaron laShoah ve-laG'vurah (), k ...

'' * ''Libraries Act'' * '' Polish‑Canadian Heritage Day Act'' * '' Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Recognition Act'' * '' Reservists’ Recognition Act'' * '' Special Days Act'' * '' Ukrainian‑Canadian Heritage Day Act'' * '' Ukrainian Famine and Genocide (Holodomor) Memorial Day Act'' * '' Women’s Institute Act''

References

{{Authority control Culture and tourism

Alberta Alberta is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is one of the three Canadian Prairies, prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to its west, Saskatchewan to its east, t ...

Women's ministries of Canada 1992 establishments in Alberta Multiculturalism in Canada Franco-Albertan culture Women in Alberta politics Ministries established in 1992