Open call to participate in the round table "Professional development and well-being of the museum community: the role of specialized organizations", dedicated to the 75th Anniversary of the International Council of Museums (ICOM)

The rapidly changing conditions of modern life require from museums and museum specialists constant development, the ability to flexibly respond to crisis phenomena, to act in a situation of uncertainty and risks.

Over a year and a half of restrictions imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic, museum professionals have adapted to online collaborations, forums, and conferences. Museums around the world have found new ways to interact with different audiences, using digital technologies and introducing new strategies for caring for the safety of visitors.

We would like to draw your attention to the fact that in modern conditions, communication between the museum professionals themselves is no less important for the exchange of experience and mutual support in difficult times.

As part of the round table, we propose to discuss how the national committees of ICOM, as well as other specialized organizations and museum associations, build interaction with the professional community in times of crises and rapidly changing reality: what actions are taken to strengthen knowledge and skills, how organizations respond to incoming requests, and how to provide social and emotional support to the community.

The round table will be held on 7 December 2021 in an online format on the Zoom platform.

Working language: Russian. On request - Russian sign language.

To participate with the report, we invite representatives of ICOM National Committees, museum experts and specialists from related fields of culture to submit abstracts on three topics:
● strengthening knowledge and exchange of experience among museum specialists;
● promotion of professional self-realization and the disclosure of the creative potential of specialists;
● social and emotional support of the community in difficult times.

Priority in the selection of applications will be given to innovative and systemic design solutions, as well as practices based on identified requests and studied community needs.

The volume of abstracts is up to 3000 characters. Preliminary timing is 7-10 minutes per presentation. When attaching abstracts, please indicate your full name in the document.

To submit abstracts, you need to fill out the form at the link before 25 November 2021.

A decision on eligible applications will be communicated by email to applicants by November 30, 2021.