City of Vancouver Poet Laureate: Call for Expressions of Interest

Deadline: August 26, 2011

The City of Vancouver invites members of the literary community to submit nominations and expressions of interest for the position of Poet Laureate, the third in the City's history. The Poet Laureate position was established by City Council in December 2006 to honour and celebrate the contribution of literature and poetry to life in Vancouver. Also in 2006, Dr. Yosef Wosk provided funding for a generous endowment to support the Poet Laureate position.

The Poet Laureate, 'the people's poet,' is an honorary three-year position. During that term, the Laureate will act as a champion for poetry, language and the arts and create a unique artistic legacy through public readings and civic interactions. The Poet Laureate is also expected to attend a variety of civic functions, participate in public poetry events in Vancouver and complete one or more special civic projects. The general mandate is to raise the status of poetry in the everyday consciousness of Vancouverites and each Poet Laureate will be free to pursue an individual agenda in addition to their civic duties.

Nominations/applications are invited for/from published poets who currently reside in the City of Vancouver and who have either an established body of work or have been recognized for notable contributions early in their career.

For complete criteria and terms of reference, please go to: http://vancouver.ca/commsvcs/cultural/gasp/awards/poet/geninfo.htm

Deadline for expressions of interest - August 26, 2011

For more information please contact:

    Jean Kavanagh
    Manager, Marketing & Communications
    Vancouver Public Library
    604-331-3895
    jean.kavanagh@vpl.ca