TheMuseumsLab

Who we are

TheMuseumsLab is a platform for joint learning, exchange and continuing education on the future of museums in both Africa and Europe. The programme started in 2021 has the aim to establish close and lasting networks between future shapers of museum concepts on both sides.

The project was developed by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), the Museum für Naturkunde Berlin and the Master‘s Programme in Museum Management and Communication at the University of Applied Sciences (HTW) Berlin, in close cooperation with the African consultancy group The Advisors. Several African and European museums as well as cultural institutions are partners with the programme. The project is financed by the German Federal Foreign Office and supported by the German Minister of State for Culture and the Media as well as the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development.

What TheMuseumsLab is about

Museums are part of societies; they bear witness to relationships between societies, countries and continents. As living institutions, they have a responsibility to learn from their history and actively shape change for individuals, locally and globally. Together with 50 African and European fellows, over 100 lecturers, speakers and mentors from African and European arts, cultures and sciences, the MuseumsLab aims to change not only museums but also foster societal change by addressing urgent issues such as global equality, social justice, and climate change. TheMuseumsLab is a programme developed to support professional exchanges between curators, researchers, and executives, working in museums, galleries and heritage sites across African and European countries, enabling staff to share knowledge, skills and best practice and support their individual professional development. TheMuseumsLab is dedicated to providing a safe and welcoming experience for its participants. We value and promote diversity, inclusivity, fairness and openness and reject any form of discrimination, harassment, and racism.

Key facts

Objective

Joint learning, exchange and further training on the future of African and European museums. Establishing and upgrading networks.

Language

The programme will be conducted in English in 2023 (sufficient knowledge of English is therefore a prerequisite for taking part). In subsequent years, it may be offered in French and potentially in other languages.

Form

A compact, digital workshop and further training programme in Berlin and Nairobi with a two-week residency at a at a Partner Museum and a one-week Project phase in Nairobi.

Focuses

Current issues and concepts of museum management, social impact and responsibility, localisation of content, as well as practical aspects of museums as institutions in the 21st century, divided into three modules:

Module 1:

Entangled Histories and the Future of Museums

Module 2:

Museums of the Future: Embracing Diversity and Sustainability in Berlin

Module 3 & Co-Working phase:

Museums of the Future: Embracing Diversity and Sustainability in Nairobi