Reinforcing the civic role of the museum in the engagement age.

As we know, there has been a global shift in cultural institutions away from education, and toward engagement as the primary objective and means of measuring success. This shift has been in response to numerous pressures- new science telling us more about how to reach and make lasting connections with an ever more diverse audience, and new technologies creating unanticipated behavioral and operational challenges.

But what might we have lost in this transition? How can we reinforce the core mission of our public institutions, the underpinning of modern democracies, in an age more and more devoid of the civic mindset? How can we be sure that we do more than connect individuals personally to exhibits and collections- and instead ask that that personal connection to culture be used as a starting point, the fuel for citizens’ informed engagement in society?

This workshop will explore a number of case studies- exhibitions and public engagement installations, which have attempted to address this question. Special attention will be paid to the role of technology, both as a source of destructive disruption, and as a tool for repairing this damage. Workshop participants will be asked to bring perspectives from their institutions and geographies, in order to engage in a dialogue on future strategies for encouraging civic engagement, built on a foundation of knowledge and understanding.