International Conference:
"Museums and Sustainability. Needs and Opportunities"
I Edizion | November 15th, 2024
The conference is co-organised with ICOM-ICAMT, in collaboration with the Order of Architects, Planners, Landscape Architects and Conservators of Turin (PPC) and the Fondazione per l’architettura / Torino.
With the support of Fondazione Compagnia di San Paolo, Goppion, Md’A Design Agency, and OTT ART.
Museums, Culture and Sustainability: Challenges, Opportunities and New Responsibilities
The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, with its 17 Goals, known as the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), promotes peace and prosperity while addressing poverty, inequality and climate change. Culture and museums must necessarily take a leading role in this process of change towards a better and more sustainable world. But how can this be achieved? What are the real opportunities and responsibilities of cultural institutions and museums in particular? Since 2015, environmental sustainability has become an increasingly pressing issue due to global warming, the scarcity and misuse of natural resources, soil degradation and water pollution.
In this context, the relationship between culture and sustainability has become strategic, as highlighted by the Council of the European Union, UNESCO, ICOM (International Council of Museums) and numerous other organisations, which emphasise the fundamental contribution of culture to the creation of sustainable societies and a sustainable future.
Museums house not only collections, but also an infinite wealth of knowledge, values and stories that document scientific discoveries, mistakes, theoretical developments and even the resolution of conflicts. Making art and anthropological and scientific artefacts accessible to the public and to local communities enables knowledge to be transmitted and aesthetic and practical experiences to be shared. It is now scientifically established that such activities contribute to improving quality of life and reducing interpersonal conflict, while promoting social well-being.
Museums can also have a direct and indirect impact across a wide range of areas, from reducing the carbon footprint of their own processes to developing new reference protocols for administrative and conservation practices, and to managing resources for educational and training purposes.
The international conference Museums and Sustainability: Needs and Opportunities, organised with the involvement of ICOM-ICAMT (International Committee for Architecture and Museum Techniques), aims to raise awareness of these objectives and explore how they can be achieved. Its primary purpose is to examine the current state of affairs and the opportunities offered by the transition towards sustainability — a process that has been underway for more than a decade, yet remains difficult to implement in a truly holistic manner.
The objectives of sustainability can, in fact, appear abstract and complex to integrate into day-to-day management. Even the most virtuous institutions often find themselves adopting pioneering projects without a comprehensive assessment of the opportunities available to them and without adequately engaging their internal resources and wider networks.
The conference will also include a brief presentation of a practical self-assessment and strategic guidance methodology for museums, developed by the Display & Design Association as part of a framework designed to support museum leadership and staff in recognising and understanding their own potential.
Under the patronage of the City of Turin.
Informations
Quando
November 15th, 2024
from 9.00 a.m. to 6.00 a.m.
Where
Gallerie d'Italia,
P.za S. Carlo, 156
10121 Turin
Who is it for
Admission is free and open to all, subject to prior registration via the dedicated registration link.
Architects are entitled to 3 CPD credits (CFP) for the morning session and 4 CPD credits (CFP) for the afternoon session, subject to 100% attendance and mandatory signing of the attendance sheet on site.
The Museums, Institutions and Exhibitions We Will Explore
Gallerie d'Italia
Turin
Natural History Museum of Stoccarda
Pirelli Hangar Bicocca
MAN Nuoro
Reggia di Caserta
Norsk Teknisk Museum Oslo
Museo Poldi Pezzoli
SDGs promoted by the event
Goal 4 – Quality Education
Through the free dissemination of high-quality cultural and educational content.
Goal 5 – Gender Equality
By ensuring a significant presence of women among speakers, moderators and curators.
Goal 10 – Reduced Inequalities
By ensuring free access to the conference for professionals, students and members of the public who are not part of institutional or academic networks.
Goal 11 – Sustainable Cities and Communities
By highlighting the role of museums in urban regeneration and the promotion of social cohesion.
Goal 17 – Partnerships for the Goals
By fostering networks among public institutions, foundations, professionals and cultural organisations at both national and international levels.
Gender Equality and Female Representation
More than 60% of the institutional representatives attending and invited to the conference are women. This figure reflects the initiative’s commitment to promoting the reduction of the gender gap in the cultural and museum sectors.
The strong representation of qualified women across academia, management and the creative fields is a distinctive feature of the project, reflecting a vision that recognises gender balance as a strategic driver of innovation, quality and sustainability.
Co-organisation: ICOM-ICAMT
ICAMT is one of the principal International Committees of ICOM, with a network of nearly 700 members worldwide, including architects, designers, engineers and museum professionals. The Committee provides support and expertise on issues related to museum planning and design, the architecture of exhibition buildings, and the design of permanent and temporary exhibitions, with particular attention also given to the management of historic buildings that have been adapted for museum use.
ICAMT promotes dialogue and cooperation among its members, providing an international forum for discussion and exchange between professionals working in the museum and cultural sectors. Its activities include international conferences, specialist workshops, publications and training initiatives dedicated to best practices in the design and management of museum spaces.
The Committee serves as a reference point for innovation in the field of museum architecture, contributing to the dissemination of knowledge and ideas through extensive editorial and communication activities carried out via its website, newsletters, social media, and the annual and triennial meetings promoted by ICOM.
Gallerie d'Italia
Gallerie d’Italia, the museum network of Intesa Sanpaolo, is part of Progetto Cultura, the Bank’s long-term programme of initiatives through which it expresses its commitment to promoting art and culture in Italy. Across its four museums in Milan, Naples, Turin and Vicenza, a selection of more than 35,000 works from the Group’s art collection is presented, spanning the period from archaeology to contemporary art.
Alongside its permanent collections, Gallerie d’Italia presents temporary exhibitions based on original scholarly projects, also made possible through loans and exchanges with prestigious national and international museum institutions. The museums also host educational workshops for schools and vulnerable audiences, training programmes, talks and a wide range of cultural events.
Through dynamic forms of partnership, Intesa Sanpaolo supports major cultural institutions and initiatives across Italy, including exhibitions, festivals and events dedicated to art, photography and music, as well as archives, publishing and reading. Through these activities, the Bank affirms the central importance of its relationship with local communities and its active contribution to their development.
