Launched November 2024: The DNA Platform
About the DNA Platform
Welcome to Mass Culture’s DNA Platform, a series of dashboards that present data-driven insights critical to the arts sector. The first dashboard, released in November 2024, provides a sector snapshot analysis using financial data from over 4,500 arts organizations spanning 2013 to 2024, offering a comprehensive overview of the economic state of the arts sector over the past decade.
The DNA Platform, shaped by community consultation, is organized like a book, with each dashboard representing a different data narrative. In 2025, additional dashboards will be released, each inviting an in-depth exploration of various aspects of the Canadian arts sector by triangulating various data sources and addressing critical sector inquiries.
How to access the DNA Platform
Public Dashboard
The DNA Platform: Public Dashboard is free for all to access.
To access the platform, fill out the form below with your information.
This will assist us in ensuring it better serves the needs of the arts sector moving forward.
Enhanced Dashboards: Coming soon!
Arts Worker
If you’re an an arts worker (you work at an arts service organization, arts organization or are an artist), access to the DNA Platform: Enhanced Dashboards is free.
Arts consultant, funder, academic
If you’re an an arts consultant, arts funder, or academics, access to the DNA Platform: Enhanced Dashboards will be acquired through a fee.
Resources
DNA Platform Orientation
Asynchronous, in-depth video providing an introduction to and overview of the DNA Platform: Sector Snapshot Dashboard.
Find out more about DNA
Frequently Asked Questions
When will not-for-profits be added to this?
CADAC organizations have been added – if an organization has shared their CADAC ID with us and given us permission, we have added them.
In order to make this platform inclusive to any organizations that would like to add their information we’ve created a “simplified form” for those organizations that do not have charitable status and are not in CADAC.
How granular is the 'region' filter?
Right now, the ‘region’ filter is organized by province. However, you will be able to get more granular in the enhanced dashboards, which will be coming in early 2025. For example, if you want to search by municipality, you will be able to do that.
How was ‘discipline’ data captured?
Mass Culture used the organizations’ own descriptions of their work, provided in their T3010 return, to determine their categories.
Do you have consent to disclose individual data points? If, for example, I wanted to integrate a subset of organizations with another dataset, does your consent allow for that?
The CRA data is public.
For the CADAC data, individual consent is requested/obtained for any dataset. CADAC allows aggregate data only.
Which workers does the ‘part-time staff’ section refer to?
This language is taken from line 370 on the T3010 form where the staff count for part-time staff is reported. Only employees are entered in this field. Definitions of “part-time” vary by province/territory. Independent contractors are not counted in this field.
Is CRA data capturing organizations that are not receiving operational funding?
CRA captures data from all registered charities regardless of funding. The dataset is from a mandatory return (T3010 form) that charities must file each year.
Within the public funding bar, does it show more granularly the funding body received from? (ie municipal, provincial, federal)?
You’ll be able to do this in the dashboards that we will be rolling out in 2025
If we are an arts org and a charity, has our data been included?
Yes, your organization is included in the DNA Platform. If you have any questions specific to your organization, reach out to [email protected].
Is there a way to capture volunteer (unpaid) staffing hours?
The T3010 form does not capture this information.
Is the code for data transformation and dashboard open source, especially the filtering of arts orgs on all the T3010 data?
We are using open source tools. The code itself is not open source at this moment.
Through the DNA Platform and accompanying learning tools, DNA will empower the arts sector with a data-driven mindset, showcasing the genuine value and immense impact this sector brings to society. Thank you to our partners and funders for supporting this vital initiative.
If you believe in the power of data- and research-driven work, donate to Mass Culture today!
This initiative is made possible through the support of the following
