New Task Force Tackles Arts, Health, and Civic Infrastructure for a Healthier Future

In 2024, the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) established a new working group to improve the health and well-being of individuals and communities. The Interagency Working Group on Arts, Health, and Civic Infrastructure (IWG-AHCI) is chaired by Maria Rosario Jackson, chair of the NEA, and Xavier Becerra, secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). This group aims to facilitate exchanges of insights and information about arts and cultural resources and strategies across federal agencies.

The IWG-AHCI is a continuation of previous cross-agency efforts to integrate arts and cultural perspectives with public policy interventions. Initiatives such as the Federal Interagency Task Force on the Arts and Human Development, the Sound Health initiative, NEA partnerships with the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC), and recommendations in the Equitable Long Term Recovery and Resilience (ELTRR) Plan led by HHS have paved the way for this new working group.

On a quarterly basis, representatives from federal agencies will convene as part of the IWG-AHCI. Their objectives include exploring potential partnerships and research areas, identifying opportunities to incorporate arts and cultural strategies into programs affecting public health and community spaces, highlighting best practices across the government, and facilitating engagement between community-based organizations and state and local governments with federal programs supporting arts, health,