Questioning Ourselves – The Promised Land Project (Part II)

Earlier this year I reported on The Promised Land project of which I am part. [1] At the end of September, the steering group met to reflect on the project to date and also to discuss and prepare the training that we will host in Germany at the beginning of next year. I am so … Continue reading Questioning Ourselves – The Promised Land Project (Part II) →

Facts and Multivocality: An Oxymoron?

As regular readers of this blog will know, it is my very firm belief that in heritage interpretation we must strive to tell a balanced story. This concept is also known as ‘multivocality’: presenting multiple perspectives on something. When I discussed multivocality in interpretation with my peers in the past, I have sometimes been accused … Continue reading Facts and Multivocality: An Oxymoron? →

#MeTwo: The “Ferguson” moment for German Museums?

#MeTwo was launched on 24th July in Germany, two days after Mesut Özil had announced his retirement from the German National Football Team due to racism. I am wondering if this could be the Ferguson moment for German museums. Why Ferguson? Because Ferguson kicked something loose. On one hand, it shone a light on continued … Continue reading #MeTwo: The “Ferguson” moment for German Museums? →

Is positioning incompatible with agonistic interpretation?

Whenever I have presented on my vision for agonistic interpretation, that is, interpretation that strives to include all relevant views on a heritage aspect, there was at least one person in the room who challenged me: was I really proposing to include all views? Even those that are “objectionable”? What I have never once been … Continue reading Is positioning incompatible with agonistic interpretation? →

The Promised Land, Or: (Re-)Considering Museums Practice for Refugees and Migrants

I am fortunate to be part of a cross-sectoral knowledge exchange project at the moment which looks at practices for working with new arrivals and minority populations [1]. We are five partners in total: two theatre companies (one from Britain, one from Italy), a business consultancy based in France, a university in Turkey and the … Continue reading The Promised Land, Or: (Re-)Considering Museums Practice for Refugees and Migrants →

Heritage as Orientation

Some years ago I read the US American National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 (amended 2000). In it, it states that ‘the historical and cultural foundations of the Nation should be preserved as a living part of our community life and development in order to give a sense of orientation to the American people’ (my … Continue reading Heritage as Orientation →

Approaching Interpretive Planning Agonistically

At work, we are getting ready for a major redevelopment of our local history museum. It is a good opportunity to think more about what an agonistic approach to interpretive planning might entail. Most of it is not revolutionary; in one way or another much of this has been or is being discussed if not … Continue reading Approaching Interpretive Planning Agonistically →

Tackling Our (Racist?) Biases

I have recently read Fatima El-Tayeb’s book Undeutsch ('Un-German') [1]. As the book’s subtitle explains, the book looks at the construction of the Other in a post-migrant society [2]. The society in question is Germany, so I was particularly interested in this perspective on the country I have recently returned to. I was … Continue reading Tackling Our (Racist?) Biases →

A Letter to IE Colleagues at the Scotland Conference

I would normally consider it my duty and responsibility to attend the Interpret Europe (IE) conference in Scotland taking place from 3 to 6 October [1]. Since I will not be there, I want to explain my decision in this post [2]. I disagree with the decision to hold IE’s first annual conference after … Continue reading A Letter to IE Colleagues at the Scotland Conference →