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An e-bulletin of the national Business Committee for the Arts (BCA), a division of Americans for the Arts to demonstrate the value of business-arts partnerships throughout the United States.  For more information about BCA and its programs, www.AmericansForTheArts.org/bca
FACTS & FIGURES  
 
Employee Volunteerism
The Chronicle of Philanthropy's annual survey of corporate giving reports that companies are actively promoting employee volunteerism.  22% of businesses surveyed had made changes to their volunteer programs in the past year including increasing time off and money matched for volunteering.  In addition, skills-based volunteering continues to grow in popularity.  For information, www.philanthropyjournal.org
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Corporate Community Investment
The US Chamber of Commerce and Indiana University's Center for Philanthropy released a report on the state of corporate community investment.  The study reports that, "The most talented workers have choices about where they are going to live and work. For this reason, there was a rather universally held view that a city's competitiveness is significantly affected by the quality of its parks and public spaces, its use of available waterfront, and its arts, culture, restaurants, and 'third places' such as pubs and coffee shops."  For information, www.uschamber.com.   

Arts Groups Suffer in Recession
As a result of a decrease in donations from companies, individuals and the government, many arts organizations are laying off workers, adopting hiring freezes and cutting expenses.  Despite strong attendance, experts believe arts groups will continue to suffer as they compete against social service organizations for donations.  For information, www.philanthropy.com and www.crainsnewyork.com.  
 
Managing Corporate Citizenship
In a study by the Boston College Center for Corporate Citizenship, 65% of companies surveyed have a designated team to handle corporate citizenship.  On average these teams have been around for 10 years.  The majority of these teams operate inside corporate or public affairs or in communications departments.  For information, www.BCCorporateCitizenship.org.  

Companies Tie Giving to Bottom Line
At a conference hosted by The Economist, Charles Moore, Executive Director, The Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy and Andrew Plepler, President, Bank of America Charitable Foundation discussed how corporate philanthropy is becoming more closely linked to the bottom line and business objectives.  For information, www.philanthropy.com.   

BCA EVENTS
 
Nominations Now Open for THE BCA TEN - 2009
If you know a company that has made exceptional investments in the arts, nominate it for THE BCA TEN: Best Companies Supporting the Arts in America.  For more information and to nominate a company, www.bcainc.org/thebcaten.nominations.html.

 
TAKE NOTE
 
Grolsch Beer at Art Basel Miami
Grolsch, a sponsor of Art Basel Miami Beach, commissioned Miami-based artist Edouard Duval Carrie to create a limited number of artist designed Grolsch bottles that were available at Grolsch-supported previews of the show.  This is the third year that Grolsch has supported the show and the second year that it has commissioned the bottles.  For information, www.millercoors.com.   

Lehman Brothers Gets Approval to Sell Art Collection 
The bankrupt financial services firm Lehman Brothers received permission from the US Bankruptcy Court in Manhattan to pay $20,000 to art dealers to release the company's art collection from storage and display it to potential buyers.  The collection is worth approximately $8 million.  For information, www.guardian.co.uk.
 
DON'T MISS

The New York Times Art & Leisure Weekend

The New York Times will present its 8th Annual Arts & Leisure Weekend from January 8-11 in New York City.  The international event features interviews between New York Times reporters and guests from the arts.  In addition, the Times is providing special offers at cultural institutions around the world.  This year's presenting sponsor is Olay.  HBO is the lead sponsor and the corporate sponsors are NYU's School of Continuing and Professional Studies, Rodney Strong Vineyards and Fragoli.  For information, www.artsandleisureweekend.com.
 
SPEAKING FROM EXPERIENCE
"We believe the arts are fundamental to an educated, engaged and diverse community. As a result, we are committed to supporting the vitality of art and helping to make art accessible in every Tennessee community we serve."
-Bryan Jordan, CEO, First Horizon National Corp.