Bringing Tucson’s Rich Cultural Heritage to a Global Stage

At Lord, we help communities manage and strengthen the cultural assets that shape their sense of place, foster creativity and expand economic opportunity with deeply impactful city cultural plans.

Now we’re delighted to announce the release of Tucson’s State of Culture report, the latest milestone in the ¡Somos Uno! endeavor.

¡Somos Uno! is a ground-breaking, visionary initiative launched in 2023 to develop the city’s first-ever Cultural Heritage Strategy. At its heart, ¡Somos Uno! seeks to champion the rich convergence of histories and cultures in Tucson and amplify its creative communities. ¡Somos Uno! will make Tucson’s world-class heritage programs, events and historical sites more widely known and celebrated to drive investment and grow cultural tourism. (One particularly exciting focus is its designation as a UNESCO City of Gastronomy, which the city earned in recognition of its cultural and historical food heritage sector.)

“This initiative is about more than about preservation, it’s about really positioning Tucson on the global stage, showcasing our innovation, our arts, our history, our culture,” says Tucson's visionary Mayor Regina Romero.

The State of Culture report is the result of our six-month public engagement process, an inventory of cultural assets, a high-level assessment of cultural heritage infrastructure and funding, and an economic impact analysis (conducted by Jon Stover & Associates, a frequent Lord partner).

Just a few of the findings: The core Arts & Culture industry alone generates over $4 billion in revenue for the city—over 7% of its economy. Including the creative sector, the total impact exceeds $8 billion and accounts for over 52,000 jobs and $2.8 billion in salaries and wages.

You can read the full report here, which includes the eight emerging insights that will provide the strategy’s roadmap.

The next step for ¡Somos Uno!: The development of the final strategy and implementation plan. We can’t wait to update you in the coming months.

Read more about the report’s release:

New Report Shows Tucson's Arts, Culture Brings in Billions

Tucson's Somos Uno project releases 1st report looking at the city's cultural heritage

Tucson's 'Somos Uno' initiative unveils first State of Culture report

Learn more about our cultural planning work