The Network

The 30 some odd museums in the area wasted no time getting projects underway. A bookmark and a nine-year calendar had already been printed for the conference. The latter was produced in part to entice tourists to explore beyond the highway, finding the past, enjoying the present. In August the group organized the first heritage bus tour that took participants to 13 museums in the Peace Region.

To establish a visual identity for the group a logo was designed for use on all printed material. Work on creating a brochure was begun in late 1990 and published the following year. Full colour and complete with photos and captions, this promotional piece was distributed at the Peace museum sites and through visitor information centres all over Alberta. This was the first very successful advertising material produced by the Spirit of the Peace to promote their institutions and programs. Not resting on their laurels, the group designed a joint project to erect seven large highway signs at entrances to the Peace area. Through individual grant applications to the Alberta Museums Association Special Grants Program, core funding was obtained and the signs were placed at strategic, heavy traffic, highway turnout locations. Ever on the lookout to save money, the Spirit of the Peace had the signs painted at a penal institution, which left some funds for other promotional efforts. Shortly thereafter, an advertising agreement was signed with CKUA Radio Network, Edmonton.

Over the past eight years good public relations have been stressed and liaison with all local media has been well established. In early 1996 Peace Country Farm Life, a bi-weekly paper with over 70, 000 readers, reached an agreement with the Spirit of the Peace to run a regular feature on the group, highlighting one of the museums in each issue.

In addition, a major research project was undertaken in 1995, which resulted in a comprehensive report produced by consultant, Roberta Hursey. Two years later the Spirit of the Peace Museums completed a 16-minute promotional video. In 2000 a professionally produced traveling exhibit was created, which is being displayed in museums throughout Alberta.

The Network - Projects