In 2007, Americans for the Arts partnered with AMS to undertake a national scan of arts issues. The process was designed to draw a wide range of perspectives on the future of the arts in America, and to engage the Americans for the Arts membership and constituents in a meaningful conversation about the organization's strategy.

Results from our exploration are available in an Executive Summary report (in PDF format).

After reviewing resource material and several months of field input and data collection, we came to understand that the challenges and opportunities faced by the arts sector are organized around five key themes:

• Money. Funding shifts over the past several years, including a more hands-on approach with a focus on outcomes and return on investment combined with the loss of many traditional funders (whose interests are shifting away from the arts due in part to corporate consolidation) results in increased need to identify new revenue non-profit arts business model will also be subject to reconsideration and reconstruction. As all business sectors are facing increased scrutiny and accountability, there are also changing expectations for boards of non-profit organizations.
• Change. The continuing diversification of America places demands on arts organizations to learn about, engage with and explore different traditions, cultural expressions and delivery systems. Generational change is impacting transitions in staff, board and philanthropic leadership. Unique to this time, as artistic "founders" begin to transition from the arts field, a significant transfer of stewardship and leadership will place new demands on their successors and boards. As our communities grow and evolve, the impact of regionalization, competition between places and a global society gain importance in day-to-day decision-making for the arts sector.
• Value. How the arts are valued by participants and supporters is changing more dramatically than in previous years, and vocabulary plays an increasingly important function in describing impact and effectiveness. We heard many say that creativity is not limited to traditional artistic disciplines and that whether formal or informal, the consumer may not make the distinctions that many producers or presenters do. The essential role of arts education and the role the arts sector plays in providing and supporting arts education is a key issue as well. The value of the arts sector in promoting mutual understanding in a global context is another important focus.
• Delivery. The emergence of universal, on-demand access leads many arts leaders and others to question the continued utility of the traditional venue (theater, museum, gallery, etc.) as the primary delivery mechanism for the arts. The highly passive relationship with audiences and visitors (e.g. 'sit and listen' or 'stand and look' activities) may not be as relevant for today's emerging forms or audience expectations. Given the tremendous capital investment in cultural facilities and the ongoing costs to operate these buildings, exploring solutions to accommodate changing forms, audience desires and production requirements is an essential task; especially as traditional boundaries are blurring as artists intentionally and continually move between commercial, non-profit, and informal settings. These changes are amplified by technological shifts in communication, which impact how the arts sector delivers its programs, services and messages.
• Content. Finally, but by no means least important, the emergence of the "Pro-Am" revolution (amateurs pursuing arts activities to professional standards) has forced the sector to question the definition of an art maker and the role of the expert in a self-curated world. As content providers continue to become varied and increasingly informal, and as access to the marketplace becomes easier and less expensive, approaches to reaching arts consumers must also shift. The new connected, empowered and creative "I'll decide, not you" generation demands control of what and how they engage, and this has significant implications as to how the arts sector progresses.