Museums and Politics
ICOM Russia, ICOM Germany, ICOM USA Joint Conference
In the last few years, museums in our countries have changed dramatically and many now have larger social and territorial responsibilities. The preservation and safeguarding of tangible and intangible cultural heritage is considered the most relevant function of museums and should not be neglected. However, contemporary museums have wider goals. They offer public services and social activities, as well as culture and knowledge. They serve new audiences, use new languages and new media. Innovative museums foster public awareness, promote understanding of heritage and offer educational services. They strengthen cultural identities, support social cohesion and develop intercultural mediation - activities which are fundamental in times of crisis. Museums produce public values and improve regional assets in a global world. They provide facilities and resources for local, regional and national communities. They generate not only knowledge and education, but also income and employment. Museums and monuments are among the most appealing factors for the tourism industry, a vital economic sector in all our countries. Investing in museums, their activities and their professionals, is the best way to develop and improve the quality of cultural tourism.
During the last decades, museums have become institutions that form identity of cities, countries and nations with a reasonable political impact. At the same time, the funding of museums has undergone a major alteration, facing cuts from public authorities and the need of finding more and more sponsors whose interests complement museum development. Additionally, museums are increasingly invited to assume and complement educational tasks in the public sector suffering from the training of soft skills and creative competences.
Some museums have become more and more influential within their society and the politics in the countries that pay attention to them. Is this growing influence good for museums or not? Could museums become a plaything for politics or should museums use politics to realize their main purposes?
The conference languages will be Russian, English and German.
The purpose of this joint meeting is to share knowledge and expertise within the museum community. All contributions should be of high quality, originality, clarity, significance and impact and not published elsewhere.
CALL FOR PAPERS
The papers must not exceed 20 minutes. A publication of the papers is planned.
Abstracts should contain a maximum of 400 words and include the presenter's name, place of employment, position and title of paper.
Abstracts should be sent to: Mr. Vladimir Tolstoy (icom.russia@gmail.com) and Johanna Westphal (icom@icom-deutschland.de).
Abstract Submission Deadline 28th of February 2014
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