COMMUNITY radio is all about connectedness, enabling community members to engage with others in their community and the community as a whole.
That connectedness is important to community wellbeing, a sense of belonging and vibrancy.
Advertisement
The arts, similarly, have a parallel undertaking in regional communities.
Both work to build community pride and identity, inspire community participation, create a culture of inclusion, contribute to resilient local economies and create very liveable towns and cities.
So it's not surprising that community radio operations such as 2MCE and regional arts bodies such as Arts Out West develop strong working relationships with a view to achieving these important community objectives.
Arts Out West works as an advocate for the arts in the western region of NSW and 2MCE supports that advocacy with programming dedicated to promoting the arts in our listening area.
On 2MCE, you will hear the voices of our local artists on programs like Community Drive, which airs each weekday afternoon from 4pm.
This program features regular interviews with curators from both the Orange and Bathurst regional galleries, visiting artists, artists in residence, representatives from local theatre companies, the Mitchell Conservatorium, local musicians and small-scale artist initiatives.
A perfect example of the station's collaborative role in fostering the arts was the recent award-winning program Blokes Don't Talk, which focused on mental health issues among men and was created in partnership with the Bathurst Theatre Company and funding from Arts Out West.
Another example of the station's promotion of the arts is the daily What's on in the Arts segment presented by Maryanne Jaques from Arts Out West, promoting a range of cultural and arts events around the region.
The program segment can be heard weekdays during the 2MCE Breakfast shift and in the afternoon during Community Drive.
This program plays an important role in ensuring that the work of our local artists is given the profile it deserves.
Community radio and community arts are perfect partners in the quest to make our city a vibrant community.
