Expanding Tucson’s Cultural Heritage Economy
City: Tucson, Arizona
Reporting to: Mayor’s Chief of Staff
The Challenge
In 2015, the United Nations’ cultural heritage organization designated Tucson a “UNESCO City of Gastronomy.” The designation brings attention to Tucson’s rich culinary culture and has helped to catalyze tourism as well as local efforts to build up and promote the local food industry. The UNESCO designation also gained Tucson entry to the organization’s Creative Cities Network, which includes four hundred cities worldwide and supports them in their efforts to leverage cultural heritage and creativity as drivers of economic development.
Gastronomy is only one of the cultural aspects for which a city can gain UNESCO recognition; others include Crafts and Folk Art, Design, Film, Literature, Media Arts, and Music. As part of Mayor Regina Romero’s broader focus on expanding the culture sector of the local economy, Tucson is considering applying for additional UNESCO designations in Literature and/or Crafts and Folk Art. In 2025, Mayor Romero and the City Council approved a cultural heritage strategy called “Somos Uno” (“We are one”). Tucson’s creative economy supports more than 52,000 jobs and contributes $4.1 billion to the city’s economy; “Somos Uno” aims to grow the sector through initiatives that highlight historical sites, support local artists and cultural traditions, and engage the community in cultural activities.
In light of this broader cultural heritage strategy, city leaders want to assess their options for deeper engagement with UNESCO. They are interested in learning what, if any, additional UNESCO designations would advance their strategic goals and how to use UNESCO designations to grow local festivals and other drivers of tourism. In this context, city leaders also want to explore ways of leveraging an existing free city streetcar to support tourism and Tucson’s creative economy.
Key questions include:
- What is the optimal way to structure the city’s relationship with UNESCO? (E.g., should the point person be located internally within the mayor’s office or another city office, or externally within a nonprofit or business association?)
- Are additional UNESCO designations useful and likely to be successful?
- How can UNESCO designations support downtown revitalization, expansion of festivals, and growth of the creative economy?
- How can Tucson leverage its designation as a City of Gastronomy to build wealth and reduce poverty?
- What is the optimal role for the mayor to contribute to the success of UNESCO designations?
What You’ll Do
The fellow will assess how best to structure, expand, and leverage its relationship with UNESCO in the context of the city’s broader efforts to grow its cultural economy. This will require engaging with the board of Tucson City of Gastronomy (the nonprofit that currently manages the UNESCO program), the city’s cultural heritage officer, the mayor, the city manager’s office, the “Visit Tucson” tourism office, local artisans, and possibly other cities in the UNESCO Creative Cities Network.
Key deliverables include:
- An analysis of different ways cities structure their relationship with UNESCO.
- An assessment of the pros and cons of seeking the additional UNESCO designations.
- An evaluation of how UNESCO designations can be leveraged to grow existing festivals and tourism.
- An evaluation of how Tucson’s free streetcar can be leveraged to support cultural tourism.
- Development of templates for downtown conferences or UNESCO-focused activities (e.g., could the city leverage its free transit system, multiple hotels, and local venues to host conferences or other experiences?).
What You’ll Bring
The fellow will be expected to possess the following skills:
- Data Analysis
- Design Thinking
- Marketing
- Qualitative Interviewing and Analysis
- Stakeholder Engagement
- Spanish Language Fluency (preferred)
