News release

Province Supports Heritage Organizations

Tourism, Culture and Heritage (Dec. 2003 - Jan. 2011)

NOTE: A list of projects receiving support under the Strategic Development Initiative follow this release.


Nine heritage organizations are developing new exhibits, online records, strategic plans, promotional campaigns and training with the help of more than $170,000 from the provincial government.

The funding is from the Department of Tourism, Culture and Heritage's Strategic Development Initiative, which supports projects focused on increasing self-sufficiency in the province's growing heritage sector.

"A strong heritage sector is a key contributor to Nova Scotia's economic and social growth," said Len Goucher, Minister of Tourism, Culture and Heritage. "We have a rich and diverse network of heritage organizations and we're proud to invest in projects that help them add value to the quality of life in communities, and contribute to tourism."

The organizations receiving funding will also contribute to the projects for a combined investment of nearly $450,000.

One of the projects, called Passage, is helping 58 community museums across the province with digitization training to put Nova Scotia artifacts in their online collections. The Federation of Nova Scotian Heritage is leading this project which received an Award of Outstanding Achievement in Museum Management from the Canadian Museum Association last May.

"The Passage project continues to answer some of the information management needs of Nova Scotia's community museums," said Susan Charles, executive director of the federation. "It supplies them with key basics, such as standard information technology equipment, information management database tools, training and IT support."

The department's Strategic Development Initiative began in 2000 and encourages heritage groups to work in partnership with the private sector, not-for-profit organizations and municipal governments to build relationships for sustainable development in Nova Scotia. To date, the initiative has funded 76 projects with a total of $838,000.


2006-07 Strategic Development Initiative Projects

  • The Pictou County Genealogy and Heritage Society received $26,991 to hire a consultant who will help develop a prototype campaign aimed at increasing the society’s financial support and reaching out to new audiences.

  • The North Highlands Community Museum received $16,000 to create an outdoor exhibit featuring a restored operational forge, and an exhibit on indigenous flora and birds.

  • The Old Sydney Society received $12,880 to upgrade its museum shop at the Cape Breton Centre for Heritage and Science. The upgraded shop will support sales of Nova Scotian arts and crafts.

  • The Iona Connection, an island-wide heritage co-operative, received $7,039 to contract a facilitator who will help the board develop its strategic plan.

  • The Hants Regional Development Authority received $3,292 to host two retail workshops for museums in Hants and Kings counties. The workshops will help museums develop affordable marketing plans and expand retail operations.

  • The South Western Counties Regional Library is leading a genealogical tourism project for museums and historical societies in Digby, Shelburne and Yarmouth counties. The library received $20,000 to train staff in genealogy and customer service before promoting genealogy tourism through a website. The funding will also be used to promote the services to genealogists.

  • The Ross Farm Museum received $3,750 to hire a facilitator to assist its board of directors develop a five-year strategic plan.

  • The Federation of Nova Scotian Heritage received $73,039 for another phase of the Passage project. The phase involves digitization training for 58 community museums to enhance the quality of information about Nova Scotia artifacts in their collections. The digitized information will be available on the federal Artefacts Canada website.

  • The federation also received $18,445 in partnership with Destination Richmond County to provide nine capacity and community building workshops and three consultations to improve competencies and collaboration for the heritage sector.