Museums Change Lives is the Museums Association’s (MA) vision for the impact of museums. Published this month, it highlights museums’ social impacts – the ways museums can help enrich the lives of individuals, strengthen communities and create a society that is fair and just.
Museums Change Lives is a bold call to arms. It urges museums to look outwards, building partnerships with other organisations and encouraging active participation. One of its key principles is that everyone has a right to participation in the life and work of museums.
It argues that the best museums exemplify social justice by actively contributing to social change and aiming to meet everyone’s needs, whatever their background. The response to austerity must not be a retreat into traditional roles.
The MA’s new vision comes out of the Museums 2020 initiative, looking at the future of museums and their impact. However, Museums Change Lives has a tighter focus on social impact.
It takes account of the hundreds of responses to Museums 2020, and acknowledges the Museums 2020 research into public and stakeholder attitudes about the purposes of museums. It does not slavishly follow the research; rather, it aims to lead thinking.
As MA president David Anderson says: “The Museums Association has always been a champion of going beyond the traditional boundaries and moving forward with courage, radicalism, controversy sometimes – and a little bit of risk.”
He continues: “Museums Change Lives will be a vision we can all stand behind as a sector, a vision that will inspire individual members of staff, our stakeholders, governments and funders, to believe in the future of museums.”
In Museums Change Lives, the MA argues passionately that museums should have a stronger focus on bringing benefits to people, places and the planet. Every museum is different, but all can be ambitious about maximising their social impact. Will yours?
www.museumsassociation.org/museumschange-lives
Museums Change Lives is a bold call to arms. It urges museums to look outwards, building partnerships with other organisations and encouraging active participation. One of its key principles is that everyone has a right to participation in the life and work of museums.
It argues that the best museums exemplify social justice by actively contributing to social change and aiming to meet everyone’s needs, whatever their background. The response to austerity must not be a retreat into traditional roles.
The MA’s new vision comes out of the Museums 2020 initiative, looking at the future of museums and their impact. However, Museums Change Lives has a tighter focus on social impact.
It takes account of the hundreds of responses to Museums 2020, and acknowledges the Museums 2020 research into public and stakeholder attitudes about the purposes of museums. It does not slavishly follow the research; rather, it aims to lead thinking.
As MA president David Anderson says: “The Museums Association has always been a champion of going beyond the traditional boundaries and moving forward with courage, radicalism, controversy sometimes – and a little bit of risk.”
He continues: “Museums Change Lives will be a vision we can all stand behind as a sector, a vision that will inspire individual members of staff, our stakeholders, governments and funders, to believe in the future of museums.”
In Museums Change Lives, the MA argues passionately that museums should have a stronger focus on bringing benefits to people, places and the planet. Every museum is different, but all can be ambitious about maximising their social impact. Will yours?
www.museumsassociation.org/museumschange-lives
