2030 UN SD Goals

EcoMuseums and the DROPS Platform are also committed in the goal no. 13 "Climate action"

What happened - by Raul Dal Santo (Italy)

In 2019, ecomuseums discussed and worked on the awareness of the role of museums in achieving the UN 2030 development goals and in particular the theme of climate action.

I'll try to explain what happened about this topic from point of view of Italian ecomuseums.

1. the EULAC Museums project leaders invited global ecomuseologists to participate in the drafting of a resolution to be submitted to ICOM at the Kyoto general conference. We shared it on DROPS and proposed some changes, but especially highlighted many reflections on the document.

Some of the submitted proposals have been implemented, such as the role of museums in achieving the 2030 Sustainable Development goals, adopted by United Nations Member States in 2015 (SDGs) and in particular the climate action.

The document in a very concise version was sent to ICOM and approved by the Kyoto general conference in 2019 September (resolution no. 15 of - see the final text).

The Italian ecomuseums network was pleased that the resolution was passed in Kyoto, but it know that this is a step along the way in having ICOM support the work of community museums (including those that don’t currently meet the ICOM criteria for being a ‘museum’). Exactly what form this support will take, and what impacts such support may have, remains a bit vague. This work also highlighted new connections with Eulac museums project and gave ecomuseums several suggestions about issues such as climate action.

Since the approved document is very concise, italian Ecomuseums think that a deepening is necessary to make it operational.

The document was approved and advertised via Facebook; I noticed a comment by an African who claims that the text refers to a European / American context. This makes me think that it is even more appropriate to deepen the text with reflections, good practices and tools that can work in different places around the world.

2. Meanwhile... in Italy the ecomuseums network treasured the work started at international level first with Eulac museums project and then with the reflections with the coalition of museums for climate justice a world network about this important issue.

- The network of Italian ecomuseums adopted an amendment to the strategic manifesto (read more) emphasizing the role of Italian ecomuseums in SDGs and in particular on the climate justice. These are few lines of principle that require a deeper reflection, good practices and tools already used or usable in the Italian context.

- The Lombardy Ecomuseum Network (the Italian region with Milan as its capital) proposed to the Lombardy Region (regional government body) new recognition criteria for Lombard ecomuseums where the role of Lombard ecomuseums in the achievement of SDGs is highlighted. It was approved by the Lombardy Region (see the final text).

It is a complex document that Hugues de Varine commented in his blog and that could be useful for ecomuseums in other parts of the world. There is only a hint about climate justice and SDGs. For this reason the Lombardy ecomuseums network shared an in-depth document with definitions, reflections, good practices and tools already used or usable in the Lombard context (see the text “Vademecum Ecomusei 2.0” (Italian) or english autotranslated version).

In Lombardy, accredited ecomuseums must now monitor their activity and adapt it to the new standards approved by the regional council. Long-term planning, shared with stakeholders, and a multi-year activity program are required. This program must define the strategic objectives of social, environmental and economic sustainable local development with attention to global challenges such as the 2030 United Nations development goals, including climate action. The program must also include methods for verifying and monitoring the state of implementation and the impacts on sustainable development induced by the ecomuseum. The Lombardy Region therefore asks to further shift attention, from the activities to be carried out, to the impacts that these may have on local development. Some ecomuseums such as the Parabiago landscape ecomuseum approved the multi-year program based on the new standards. (click here to read it)

- Lombardy Region with the new framework law about culture proposed to the cultural Institutions the adoption of "Integrated cultural plans (PIC)" which have the goal of sustainable local environmental, social and economic development, based from culture.

Lombardy Region approach seems far from Planetary Boundaries framework or the integrated economics of Kate Raworth’s “Doughnut Economics” and other new visions, but the PIC can be a good tool to be implemented.

For the area of the basin of the valley of the Olona river (near Milan) Politecnico of Milan University and local heritage organizations designed a participated integrated plan of culture which was promoted by the Ecomuseum of Parabiago and by the Mills Park (read more).

For the designing of the Integrated Plan of culture of this area We tried to bring to the local context the strategies indicated by the Manifesto of Italian ecomuseums and the recent document ICOM and OECD entitled "Culture and Local Development: Maximizing the Impact on Museums and Local Development. A GUIDE FOR LOCAL ADMINISTRATIONS, COMMUNITIES AND MUSEUMS " (read more).

The document was translated into several languages and offers many ideas. There are also some questionable things such as a doubtful approach to tourism.

The document mentions the role of museums in climate change, highlighting both internal and external impacts of the museum itself. However, it does not elaborate on this subject nor highlight good practices.

It seems rooted in traditional notions of community well-being being connected to traditional growth-based economic models; they are structurally linked to consumption, and consumption is linked to carbon and carbon is linked to the climate crisis.

3. We also liked the "Book of Community and Sustainable Museums" published by EULAS Museums to share the experience and knowledge of the project Advisors concerning the key concepts and features of community and sustainable museums. (read more)

4. Into the DROPS platform we published the Douglas Worts post on the “inside-outside” model to generate climate-related impacts (Read more) and we had some feedbacks.

5. Italian Ecomuseums are using a specific "toolkit" for the good and sustainable use of the living heritage with a systemic vision. Some of these tools (i.e. parish maps and Short Supply Chains Of Local Agricultural Product) were implemented for a long time in several Italian ecomuseums. Other tools, like circular economy, cooperation agreements, river, lake and see contacts are newer, but deserve attention because they can produce significant impacts in the climate action.

This is a good time to provide museums with suggestions and in-depth documents on these issues to build new capacity for museums to have meaningful impacts:

- maximizing sustainable cultural impacts,

- promoting a systemic vision

- inspiring permanent changes to face the current crisis, treat its causes, limit emissions and certainly also increase the resilience of communities to climate change.

We are looking for help all around the world to do this.