ICOM SEE Annual Conference - ICOM SEE

ICOM SEE Annual Conference CALL FOR PAPERS

Dates: 16 – 17 October 2023

Venue: National Museum of the Romanian Peasant, Soseaua Kiseleff nr. 3, sect. 1 011341 Bucharest, Romania

DEADLINE for APPLICATION: 30 June 2023

MAIN THEME: Museums, Sustainability and Wellbeing

Subtitle: Celebrating 20 Years of Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage (17 October 2003—17 October 2023)*

ICOM South East Europe (ICOM SEE) is pleased to announce its annual conference, which will be held in Bucharest, Romania on 16 and 17 October 2023. The conference theme is aligned with the International Museum Day 2023 theme “Museums, Sustainability and Wellbeing”. The aim of the conference is to explore the relationship between museums, sustainability and wellbeing, and to discuss how museums can contribute to a more sustainable and content society, thus including the topics of food heritage, tangible and intangible heritage.

Museums have a unique role to play in promoting sustainability and wellbeing. As cultural institutions, museums have the ability to raise awareness about the importance of sustainable development and to encourage visitors to adopt more sustainable lifestyles – taking it step by step. Museums can also contribute to the wellbeing of individuals and communities by providing opportunities for learning, social interaction, and personal growth.

The conference will provide a platform for sharing best practices, research findings, and innovative ideas related to museums, sustainability, and wellbeing. We welcome proposals for papers, presentations, and workshops from museum professionals, academics, and researchers.

KEY THEMES FOR THE CONFERENCE AND SESSIONS

Museums, Sustainability and Wellbeing: Museums and Sustainable development goals

As highlighted in the ICOM Resolution in 2019, all museums have a role to play in shaping and creating sustainable futures, and they can do this through educational programmes, exhibitions, community outreach and research. We invite you to share your showcases of such implementations that introduce how are museums key contributors to the wellbeing and to the sustainable development of communities.

Food is what connects us: Exploring Food Heritage in Museums

Food is an essential element of human culture, identity, and heritage, connecting people across time and space. Museums have an important role to play in exploring and celebrating our shared food heritage, through the lens of promoting sustainable food practices and wellbeing. We invite proposals for presentations, and case studies that explore innovative approaches to integrating food heritage in museum collections, exhibitions, and programmes. We are particularly interested in contributions that address the following themes:

Food heritage interpretation: How can museums use food as a lens to explore different aspects of cultural heritage, such as history, art, science, and social issues?
Sustainability and wellbeing: How can museums promote sustainable food practices and support community wellbeing through food-related programmes?
Good practices and case studies: What are some examples of successful food heritage projects in museums, and what lessons can be learned from them?

Make Intangible Tangible for all: Oral history, vanishing practices

In museums, intangible heritage is often presented through audio and visual media, such as videos, audio recordings, and interactive exhibits. However, these methods may not always effectively convey the depth and richness of intangible heritage.

To address this challenge, museums may explore innovative ways of presenting intangible heritage that engage multiple senses and create immersive experiences for visitors.

In addition, museums can collaborate with communities and cultural practitioners to ensure that intangible heritage is presented in a respectful and accurate way. This may involve working with community members to co-create exhibits and programming, as well as involving cultural practitioners in the design and implementation of exhibits.

Overall, the subtopic “Make Intangible Tangible for all” highlights the importance of presenting intangible heritage in a way that is engaging, accessible, and respectful, and calls for innovative approaches to this challenge in the context of museum exhibitions and programming.

SUBMISSION GUIDELINES

Abstracts should be no more than 250 words.

Proposals should include:

a title,
an abstract,
and a brief biography of the author/speaker.

Proposals should be submitted to icomsee00@gmail.com by 30 June 2023 the latest.

* 17th October 2003 UNESCO adopted Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage, which mean a great step in safeguarding and understanding the world heritage. ICOM is important partner in this initiative and many projects and programs are dedicated to the promotion of the understanding of all aspects of ICH, with building capacities and developing the idea of ICH (General Conference 2004, IMD, supporting the International Journal of ICH, ..).

ICOM SEE presented an proposal for official International day of ICH at the 2nd China-Central and Eastern European countries Expert-Level Forum on Safeguarding of the ICH in Hangzhou, China, 2018. Forum accepted this initiative with a great support. We developed this topic also in the conference ICOM SEE organized 2019 in Zagreb with the title ICH as a challenge for management and collection policy. In 2021 we send the proposal to ICOM secretariat the adoption of this international day.

CONFERENCE PROGRAMME [draft]

Monday, 16 October 2023

10.00—10.30 Welcome

10.30 Greetings by Alenka Černelič Krošelj (ICOM SEE President), Virgil Ştefan Niţulescu (Manager at National Museum of the Romanian Peasant)

10.45 Keynote speech – Dr Kaja Širok, ICOM Executive board member

11.15 Q&A

11.30—12.00 Coffee break

12.—13.30 1st Panel: Museums, Sustainability and Wellbeing (Museums and Sustainable development goals), moderator: Urška Purg

13.30—15.00 Lunch break

15.00—16.30 2nd Panel: Food is what connects us

17.00 – 18.30 Museum visit

19.00 Evening reception

Tuesday, 17 October 2023 – Celebrating 20 Years of Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage (17 October 2003—17 October 2023)

9.00 – 10.30 ICOM SEE Board meeting

10.30 Looking ahead: Alenka Černelič Krošelj, ICOM SEE

10.50 Keynote speech: Matija Dronjić

11.20 Q&A

11.30—12.00 Coffee Break

12.00—13.30 3rd Panel: Make Intangible Tangible for all

13.30—13.45 Discussion and conclusion

14.00—15.00 Lunch

Optional: Museum visits