Inaugural Creative Land Trust Summit
Made possible by the Kenneth Rainin Foundation
Location: San Francisco, CA, USA
Year: 2025
Summary summit report report avalailable for download below!
Brief
Left Bank Co. approached the Kenneth Rainin Foundation in San Francisco and pitch the idea of doing a first-of-its- kind global gathering of creative land trust and similar models. The foundation accepted to fund the proposal and put Michelle Tabet, our director, in charge of developing the agenda, engaging with participants globally and delivering the event which took place in May 2025 in San Francisco. The objective of the event was to establish a baseline of what is happening in the global push to put property and assets aside for the benefit of creativity and culture. It also was designed to enable peer-to-peer connections within this small yet specialised group of professionals.
Approach
The agenda and invitation process for the event is informed by the years of research into alternative property models that Left Bank Co. has done, in particular through its close collaboration with the City of Sydney on such models and their impact. Delegates from 17 different cities across the globes got together to discuss the current state of the sector, discuss specific technical topics with peers and develop a framework for an ongoing community of practice, shared resources and intervention clinics. It also included leading US-based funders as well as a full artistic program led by Counterpulse and the Kenneth Rainin Foundation.
Impact
The event has already catalysed many city-to-city conversations and has resulted in deeper collaboration. The professionals that are involved in the Creative Land Trust models globally are highly skilled and versatile and have in-depth knowledge of a range of areas including planning, property development, transaction design, operational requirements, artistic and cultural development, community engagement and empowerment. The event has demonstrated that these gatherings are incredibly worthwhile and will continue to bring together seasoned professionals with cities that are aspiring to move forward with a creative land trust or similar model.
Discover more in our summit summary report
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