UNESCO

On the 16th of September Gustav Wollentz presented as an invited speaker on an inspirational day for the World Heritage Site “Naval Port of Karlskrona”. Around 110 people participated from the region, including representatives from the County Administrative Board, museum professionals, researchers from the university, local politicians, and more. The focus on Gustav’s presentation was how Strategic Foresight can benefit a sustainable development of a World Heritage Site. Examples were provided from the work that Gustav has been carrying out with ICCROM, where he has been working to anticipate futures for heritage.

Gustav also participated in a panel discussion where the focus was on how to apply methods from Strategic Foresight when managing a World Heritage Site. We were discussing how to make this kind of work more participatory, so that the futures anticipated would reflect an increasingly diverse society rather than very limited needs and aspirations.  We were also discussing some key concepts in Foresight, such as the value in “wild cards” and the difference between “used futures” (futures that have been reused over and over again to no success) and “novel futures” (the future that we may never have anticipated before).

There is indeed an increasing interest in how Foresight and anticipation can benefit heritage management!

This report covers the sixth year of the UNESCO Chair on Heritage Futures at Linnaeus University. Among the highlights of the year were several global initiatives which our Chair could influence with its distinctive perspective on heritage futures that becomes ever better known. This included the UNESCO World Conference on Cultural Policies and Sustainable Development MONDIACULT 2022 in Mexico City at the end of September. The conference established the significance of culture as a global public good and called for the inclusion of culture as a stand-along goal in the post-2030 international development agenda.

Progress Report 2022/2023

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Cornelius Holtorf at UNESCO World Conference on Cultural Policies and Sustainable Development MONDIACULT 2022 in Mexico City. The conference was attended by more than 100 ministers of culture, but also representatives from over 150 intergovernmental organizations, UNESCO partners, civil society, and some of the other UNESCO Chairs in the field of culture.

A topic that remains significant in our work is memory across generations related to repositories of nuclear waste. In this context, Sarah May co-edited a new volume on Toxic heritage, and Anders Högberg and I published a paper on “Nuclear Waste as Critical Heritage” that in some ways constitutes a conclusion of our decade-long research on these issues. Among the research projects listed below is a range of exciting new empirical research Chair members have been involved in over the past year.

There were also several opportunities to meet and collaborate with other UNESCO Chairholders from different corners of the world. These are important occasions as they pave the way for global collaborations in new areas.

Please get in touch if you have any comments or suggestions!

Cornelius Holtorf, Professor of Archaeology, and holder of the UNESCO Chair on Heritage Futures

Anders Högberg gave a keynote presentation at ”Museenes forskerkonferanse 2073”, arranged by Norske Museumsforbundet and Oslo Museums:

Futures Literacy, Why it is important for museums and museum practices. https://www.oslomuseum.no/aktivitet/museenes-forskerkonferanse/

If you are interested in learning more, you can read this information as well about future consciousness at some Swedish County Museums:

Högberg, A., Wollentz, G., Holtorf, C. (2022)
Framtidsmedvetande på museer: Några svenska länsmuseer i fokus
Nordisk Museologi, 34(2): 5-22
https://doi.org/10.5617/nm.10068

Anders Högberg, Professor of Archaeology UNESCO Chair on Heritage Futures

Anders Högberg (UNESCO Chair on Heritage Futures) presenting a project at Malmö University (17 October ) that he and Gustav Wollentz from NCK, The Nordic Centre of Heritage Learning & Creativity, are making together. Gustav Wollentz is conducting a series of interviews with young people in the Araby district in Växjö. The work is part of a research project between Linnaeus University and Växjö Municipality.

From left Carolina Jonsson Malm (Malmö University), Anders Högberg, Emily Hanscam and Sarah May (UNESCO Chair on Heritage Futures), Anna Bruun Månsson, Kristina Lindström and Per-Markku Ristilammi (Malmö University), Helena Rydén (UNESCO Chair on Heritage Futures)

Thank you Malmö University for interesting discussions, and for hosting the team of the UNESCO Chair on Heritage Futures!

Gustav Wollentz from NCK, The Nordic Centre of Heritage Learning & Creativity, is conducting a series of interviews with young people in the Araby district in Växjö. The work is part of a research project between Linnaeus University and Växjö Municipality.

On August 18, Anders Högberg presented the project to Växjö Municipality, commenting:

“We are happy that this was received so well by politicians and officials at Växjö Municipality. We would like the result to eventually benefit cultural actors outside of Växjö as an inspiring example”.

Background

The project was planned at Linnaeus University’s Centre for Applied Heritage during the winter of 2021/2022. It will be carried out in 2022 and 2023, and the results will be presented in 2024. Funding is via the municipality of Växjö, under the project management of Anders Högberg at Linnaeus University. Gustav Wollentz, based at NCK, The Nordic Centre of Heritage Learning & Creativity, conducts the interviews. The project collaborates with a number of actors in the Araby district.

Read more (in Swedish):

https://lnu.se/mot-linneuniversitetet/aktuellt/nyheter/2023/arabyprojekt/

Gustav Wollentz, UNESCO Chair on Heritage Futures

Anders Högberg,  UNESCO Chair on Heritage Futures