Grant McNulty will be presenting a paper titled ‘New Digital Technologies and Museums in South Africa: Challenges and Opportunities’ at the 76th South African Museums Association National Conference. The conference takes place from 30 October 2012 – 1 November 2012 at Paarl in the Western Cape.
Grant’s paper explores how museums might navigate a changing, digital world, discussing museums as agents of social inclusion and offering practical examples from projects we have worked on, most notably the Ulwazi Programme, a digital heritage initiative that has been set up by the Libraries and Heritage Department of the eThekwini Municipal Library in Durban to facilitate the recording and sharing of local histories and culture. The presentation is available HERE.
The conference theme focuses on Museums in a Changing World. This theme recognises that museums and other heritage institutions are faced with interpreting, and existing, in a field that is becoming increasingly fluid. While each institution may have a unique set of goals, interests and audiences, the necessity to thrive in the face of change binds all museums, large and small. In order to accommodate a wide range of presentations, the following sub-themes have been identified:
- Communities in Flux
- Heritage Sector
- Accreditation, Standards & Training
- New Technologies
- Green Revolution
- Education for the Future
For more information, visit the SAMA website.