HOUSE JOINT MEMORIAL 75

47th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - second session, 2006

INTRODUCED BY

Jim R. Trujillo

A JOINT MEMORIAL

RECOGNIZING SANTA FE AS THE FIRST CITY IN NORTH AMERICA, AND ONE OF ONLY SIX CITIES IN THE WORLD, TO BE DESIGNATED BY THE UNITED NATIONS EDUCATIONAL, SCIENTIFIC AND CULTURAL ORGANIZATION AS A "CREATIVE CITY" AND TO BE APPOINTED A MEMBER OF THE ORGANIZATION'S CREATIVE CITIES NETWORK.

     WHEREAS, the city of Santa Fe has a centuries-old tradition of creativity, from the pueblo peoples of the Rio Grande, to the Spanish settlers of the late sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries, to the artists, craftspeople, writers, filmmakers, musicians, scientists and other creative people in modern-day Santa Fe; and

     WHEREAS, Santa Fe's economic development plan emphasizes the role of creative industries in the city's future; and

     WHEREAS, the united nations educational, scientific and cultural organization, UNESCO, has established a creative cities network, which is under the united nations global alliance for cultural diversity; and

     WHEREAS, UNESCO can play a role in bringing together the many cultural industry initiatives and stakeholders that are working to develop the creative industries network in Santa Fe; and

     WHEREAS, UNESCO seeks to make the creative cities network a forum for exchange between creative cities; and

     WHEREAS, Santa Fe design week was established to focus on individuals and businesses in Santa Fe working in the area of design, in its broadest terms; and

     WHEREAS, the Santa Fe international folk art market was established to bring the finest folk artists from New Mexico and the world together in an unprecedented way; and

     WHEREAS, UNESCO has recognized the role that the creative industries of design and folk art play in the economic and cultural life of Santa Fe; and

     WHEREAS, UNESCO has appointed Santa Fe as a member of the creative cities network in folk art and design; and

     WHEREAS, UNESCO has, so far, appointed only five other cities to the creative cities network, those cities being Berlin, Germany; Aswan, Egypt; Buenos Aires, Argentina; Popayan, Colombia; and Edinburgh, Scotland; and

     WHEREAS, Santa Fe is the first and only city in North America to be given this distinction;

     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO that it recognize the honor given to the city of Santa Fe as a UNESCO "creative city"; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be transmitted to the mayor of Santa Fe and the members of the Santa Fe city council.

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