What we do and how we do it

Banff Centre brings people together to create, learn, and be inspired.

Banff Centre is a post-secondary institution. It provides educational and training programs across artistic disciplines, leadership development, mountain culture, and the environment. 

Banff Centre is a place of convening and thought leadership. Banff Centre is proudly located on the side of Sacred Buffalo Guardian Mountain - a place to envision and to create. It hosts conferences and summits that bring people together both physically and virtually to be inspired by the environment and each other in seeking ways to improve the world. 

As a publicly accessible campus for events, summits, festivals, performances, and exhibitions, Banff Centre has multiple venues to experience creativity and art in many forms through both free and ticketed offerings, connecting people around the world in place and in shared experiences.  It is home to internationally acclaimed festivals such as the Banff International String Quartet Festival and Competition, and the Banff Centre Mountain Film and Book Festival and World Tour.

Banff Centre is an entrepreneurial leader among post-secondary institutions.

It is a publicly accessible, board-governed institution. Over several decades, Banff Centre has developed a funding model for its charitable activities that balances grants from the Alberta and federal governments, major gifts from the private sector, donations from a long list of generous supporters, together with earned net revenue through various entrepreneurial activities, including its reputation as a vibrant conference and hospitality destination. This structure allows Banff Centre to support artists and leaders in both the quantity and quality of educational and residency programs.  

Increasingly, participants and audiences will be able to experience Banff Centre’s offerings virtually through our courses and events being held online.

Banff Centre’s team and program participants are grateful for the public and private funding that is generously provided by government and donors. With this funding, Banff Centre delivers public good to the province of Alberta - and to Canada and the wider world -  by advancing creative leaders, supporting the cultural economy, and being a welcoming space for public events and gatherings.

By diversifying the ways Banff Centre generates revenue, embracing innovation and emerging global, digital opportunities, it can grow its financial capacity to be more resilient in the future.