NORLIA museum workshop
This workshop is organised by the CAS-project "The Nordic Little Ice Age", led by PI Dominik Collet (University of Oslo). Fellows Brita Brenna (University of Oslo) and Bergsveinn Þórsson (Bifröst University) are the workshop organisers.
In their article "Representing Climate Change in Museum Space and Places," Fiona Cameron, Bob Hodge, and Juan Francisco Salazar explore the significant role of museums and science centers in climate change communication and action. They argue that these institutions can provide immersive and sensorial experiences that engage audiences in cocreating narratives around climate change.
The authors present nine principles for museums to effectively address climate change, emphasizing the need for complex, multiscalar responses, polycentric networks, and thick communication. They also highlight the importance of integrating art, engaging diverse publics, and adapting institutional practices to remain relevant and impactful in a rapidly changing world.
As we revisit the principles posed by Cameron, Hodge, and Salazar in preparation for this seminar, we reflect on what has happened since. The article, over a decade later, still feels relevant, and while the climate crisis escalates and the world rapidly changes even more, are museums not changing?
As a starting point, we present four themes that will guide our discussions throughout the seminar. We want to discuss what museums and exhibitions do – and could do – to engage with climate change. We would like this to be an open forum, working with examples that can inspire, and to end up with a manifesto: "Every Museum is a Climate Museum!" Or maybe this is not where we end up? The format is open to what the participants deem important ways forward. What is a climate museum? And how can it be one? Through the course of our discussions, we would like to see the themes change, transform, and possibly become something else entirely.
Preliminary programme
Day 1, Monday 7 April
Natural History Museum/Klimahuset (Botanisk hage, UiO – Campus Tøyen)
09:30-10:00
Introductions
10:00-11:30
Futures workshop
11:45-12:30
Exhibition visit. Klimahuset - The Little Ice Age: How did we handle the last climate crisis?
12:30-13:30
Lunch
13:30-15:00
Theme 1: Communities, Diverse Knowledges, and Experiences
15:00-15:30
Coffee break
15:30-17:00
Theme 2: More-than-Human Relationality
18:00
Dinner
Day 2, Tuesday 8 April (Tuesday)
Center for Advanced Study (Drammensveien 78)
10:00-10:30
Getting started
10:30-12:00
Theme 3: Activating Collections in the Anthropocene
12:00-13:00
Lunch
13:00-14:30
Theme 4: Climate Knowledge as Exhibit
14:30-15:00
Coffee break
15:00-16:00
Wrap up (poster session)
Day 3, Wednesday 9 April
Center for Advanced Study (Drammensveien 78)
09:00-12:00
Manifesto making
12:00-13:00
Lunch
Abstract
Theme descriptions
Theme 1: Communities, Diverse Knowledges, and Experiences
Integrating and empowering local histories and experiences is paramount for climate action. The intersection of art and science can enhance the communication of climate change within these communities and establish a much needed dialogue and partnerships. Museums can navigate between different knowledge systems, valuing the local and global, scientific expertise and lived experiences on equal footing. How can community engagement enhance resilience and ensure climate action is grounded in local communities?
Theme 2: More-than-Human Relationality
How can museums foster a deeper understanding of biodiversity and its importance in climate resilience? Challenging anthropocentric perspectives entails highlighting more-than-human agency. It potentially fosters relationality and noticing of diverse ecologies. What are the best practices for representing these relationships in exhibits and collection catalogues? How can museums foster ecological thinking, highlighting biodiversity while attending to cultural diversity at the same time?
Theme 3: Activating Collections in the Anthropocene
How can museums utilize their collections to tell compelling stories of the Anthropocene? Changing collection practices and care can reveal the interconnectedness of nature and culture and challenge ideas of nature as merely a resource. By exploring past events and actions, museums can highlight the roots of environmental degradation and the evolution of human-environment relations. How can museums foster a deeper understanding of the complexities of human-environment relations? As well as recognising their own agency, colonial legacies and injustices in the narratives they present?
Theme 4: Climate Knowledge as Exhibit
What is climate knowledge and how can museums effectively present it in exhibits? Climate knowledge is a complex constellation of stakeholders and perspectives that have the potential to encourage or even impede climate action. Can we learn from the past or are these unprecendented changes that require radical transformation? How can museums navigate these complexities to foster deeper connections and inspire meaningful action?