Eleventh International Conference on The Inclusive Museum

Abstract

I have noticed a sector wide omission - a lot of talk about the physical/digital space bridging but there isn’t much conversation about the need of diversity and inclusion to actually implement those tech changes. The reality is museums are losing their audience, people demand different experiences from the cultural sector, and as exciting at AR is it won’t fix the problem of dwindling audience numbers and lack of contemporary relevancy. The fundamental problem with relevancy is that museums have remained a largely white space and have not genuinely invested in placing minorities in positions of power that can drive different perspectives. Technology is a fundamental tool in audience engagement, but only and ONLY if, the people behind the tweets and hashtags are more diverse. Focusing only on bridging physical and digital platforms without addressing how to create inclusive spaces will not fix institutional problems of relevancy. The nut graft of my abstract is that cultural institutions have to more proactive not just because of social pressure, but arguable, because of economic necessity: they can build a broader audience by better reflecting a diverse world and technology is a fundamental tool in creating that new wider audience. I am particularly interested in presenting potential solutions using case studies and moving away from only problematizing on inclusion and explore technology-driven approaches to more broad inclusion measures and engagement but also how to fundamentally change museums’ approaches to diversity initiatives.