This was the inaugural Nesta Creative Economy symposium, bringing together practitioners, researchers, creators and policymakers from across the creative economy to unite, think differently, and explore a future built together.

What are the biggest challenges the creative economy is facing? From Brexit to diversity, and technology to heritage, we want to invite you to imagine a future where academics, practitioners and policy makers work together to transform the creative economy.

Bristol is a fast moving city full of imagination and in the last decade it has become a well established cultural hub employing 16,670 people in the creative industries across 4,375 creative businesses (Creative Nation, 2018). We’ve chosen to assemble in this growing city which is home to a variety of diverse communities and cultural projects, and is currently going through a period of change, attempting to address challenges facing the creative economy and the wider public. Situated on the historic Harbourside, M Shed questions the traditional idea of a museum, using the stories of the past to spark discussions about the future.