Museums Launch Public Engagement on What Canadians Value and Need in Museums

EDMONTON, AB, Oct. 28, 2020 /CNW/ - Canadian museums are sparking a national conversation about the value of museums and about how they can sustain, adapt and grow their positive impact in our communities in a changing world.

The Museums for Me engagement campaign explores what Canadians value about museums, and how museums must evolve to better meet Canadians' needs and interests.

"We initiated conversations about this project in 2019, understanding that as a sector we would benefit from a process of critical self-reflection to ensure we continue to be in tune with our communities, remain relevant, and add value going forward," said Meaghan Patterson, Executive Director / CEO of the Alberta Museums Association and lead for the consortium behind the project. "The COVID-19 pandemic has brought this need into even sharper focus as Canadians are simultaneously looking for creative outlets and experiences while forced to engage with their museums differently. We want to use this opportunity for a meaningful conversation about what the museum of the future should look like."

Canadians can participate by completing an online survey, engaging on social media, and participating in online dialogue sessions to be hosted in November and December 2020.

Direct input will be supplemented by public opinion research and an extensive literature review by Dr. Victoria Dickenson, an independent consultant, who lends the project her four decades of research and leadership in the museums sector.

"We know from other surveys and research that Canadians believe museums are important social institutions but beyond that, we know very little about exactly what the public values in their museums and more specifically, how they think they should respond to rapid changes happening in society and technology," said Dr. Dickenson. "We want to use this engagement process to ask deeper questions to ensure that our museums understand and can respond to what is most important to Canadians going forward."

Museums for Me is undertaken with support from the Government of Canada by a consortium of provincial and territorial museums associations:

• Alberta Museums Association
• Association Heritage New Brunswick
• Association of Manitoba Museums
• BC Museums Association
• Canadian Museums Association
• Community Museums Association
• Museum Association of Newfoundland and Labrador
• Museums Association of Saskatchewan
• Ontario Museum Association
• Société des Musées du Québec
• Yukon Historical and Museum Association

To learn more and to participate, visit www.museumsforme.ca.

SOURCE Alberta Museums Association

Chloe Hutchison, Hill+Knowlton Strategies, [email protected], 613-851-8097