Can We Make a Difference?: Museums, Society and Development in North and South

by Paul Voogt

Overview

Ten upcoming young museum professionals from around the world gathered in the Royal Tropical Institute in Amsterdam to discuss the crisis of the ethnographic museum. What is the relevance of these former colonial museums in today’s society? Can they make a difference? The ten papers presented show that they still do. In every part of the world, individuals and institutions are trying to find innovative ways to make heritage of the past relevant for the present. From culture banks in Africa to museum cooperatives in Asia and collection libraries in Europe, the different case studies show that the ethnographic museum has a bright future, in North and South, as long as we do not cling to the term ethnographic or the term museum.

The conference Museums, Society & Development and this publication were produced by the Royal Tropical Institute (Amsterdam, the Netherlands) as part of the EU-funded Culture and Development program that was carried out by CulturCooperation e.V. (Hamburg, Germany) between 2005 and 2008.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9789068327472
Publisher:	KIT (Koninklijk Instituut voor de Tropen)
Publication date:	03/28/2009
Series:	Bulletins of the Royal Tropical Institute Series
Pages:	140
Product dimensions:	6.30(w) x 9.30(h) x 0.50(d)

About the Author

Paul Voogt is Head of the Public Programs Department of the KIT Tropenmuseum.

Table of Contents

Introduction—Paul Voogt with Lydia Kitungulu; THEME ONE: MUSEUMS AS INSTITUTIONS ABOUT AOTHERS AND OURSELVES 1) The Future of Ethnographic Collecting—Larissa Förster; 2) Dilemmas of the Ethnographic Museum—Daan can Dartel; 3) Don’t We All Have Problems?—Paula Assunção dos Santos; 4) When the ‘Other’ Became the Neighbour—Adrianna Muñoz; THEME TWO: CITIZENSHIP, EDUCATION AND COMMUNITY NEEDS 5) Museums and Belonging: Visitors, Citizens, Audeinces and Others—Deniz Ünsal; 6) Lessons from the Past for Today’s Problems—Victoria Phiri; 7) Putting on the Peaceful Hat of Folklore—Aghan Odero Agan; THEME THREE: COMMUNITY PARTICIPATION AND OWNERSHIP OF MUSEUOLOGICAL PROCESSES 8) Public Access to Museums in Mali and Ghana—Sophie Mew; 9) The Botswana National Museum and Tsodilo World Heritage Site Museum—Phillip Segadika; 10) Community-Based Museum: Traditional Curation in Women’s Weaving Culture—Novia Sagita; Notes; About the Authors.