Traditionally, cultural institutions have been dedicated to collecting in perpetuity. To accommodate this mission, we as conservators have prioritized extending the physical life of an object for as long as possible by reducing perceived risks at all costs. Several factors are driving us to question its sustainability and re-evaluate this approach:
- Museums continue to acquire, often without providing the additional resources needed to store and care for their growing collections. This leaves us strained to do the best we can under ever-increasing workloads.
- We are grappling with how collections reflect social and political reckonings. In doing so, we are making efforts to better connect with the cultures that artifacts originated from and the communities that our institutions serve.
- We are living and working through a climate crisis and are now acutely aware of the negative impact our actions, policies, and procedures may have on the global environment and its cultural heritage.
Four speakers will share their thoughts on how we can build a more sustainable future for collections by focusing on and honoring context, accessibility, and community in our work: Pejuta Haka Win Red Eagle, an Oglala Lakota & Wahpekute and Wahpetunwan Dakota winyan and an enrolled member of the Oglala Sioux Tribe, is a Curatorial Fellow in Anthropology at the Science Museum of Minnesota. Jane Henderson teaches at Cardiff University’s BSc in Conservation and MSc in Conservation Practice programs and is the Secretary General of IIC. Jessica Walthew is an objects conservator at Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum. Dr. Joelle Wickens is Assistant Professor of preventive conservation in the Department of Art Conservation at the University of Delaware.
