Open Forum

Dear colleagues:

Beyond the American Alliance of Museum's existing resources on "climate change" published to date and, in the absence of other AAM references I have noticed, I recommend AAM members concerned with these matters attend to the recent challenge for museum institutions and their workers voiced along the lines of Robert R Janes' 2009 influential book Museums in a Troubled World: Renewal, Irrelevance, or Collapse? as well as Janes and Sandell's 2019 Museum Activism.

A summary of an interview with Robert R. Janes, "Pushing museums to take action on the climate crisis," broadcast November 30, 2021 on the Talking Radical podcast (Neigh 2021) is available in the undersigned's 3 January 2022 post "Radical Challenge to Museums on Climate Change" on the Critical Museology Miscellanea blog (Thistle 2022). 

My post also includes what I believe to be an essential caveat related to the absolute need for brutal realism on the part of museum leaders in order to sanely match new climate change objectives to the human resources actually available if & when they decide to follow Janes' very strong and convincingly argued recommendations voiced in Neigh (2021).

 

Given the rapidly mounting evidence of already task-saturated and burnt-out 'occupational devotee' / 'willing slave' museum workers (Thistle 2021), museum leaders MUST finally begin effective management of museum worker overload, stress, burnout, and resulting job leaving.

 

Thanks for thinking about these climate & museum Quality of Working Lives matters-both of which undoubtedly now are in immediate crisis status!

 

References Cited:

 

Janes, Robert R. 2009. Museums in a Troubled World: Renewal, Irrelevance, or Collapse? New York: Routledge.

 

Janes, Robert R. & Sandell, Richard eds. 2019. Museum Activism. London & New York: Routledge.

 

Neigh, Scott. "Radio - Pushing museums to take action on the climate crisis." Talking Radical audio file (28.09 minutes) posted on November 30, 2021 at https://talkingradical.ca/2021/11/30/radio-pushing-museums-to-take-action-on-the-climate-crisis/ (accessed 24 December 2021).

 

Thistle, Paul C. 2022. "Radical Challenge to Museums on Climate Change." Critical Museology Miscellanea blog posted 3 January 2022 at https://miscellaneousmuseology.wordpress.com/2022/01/03/radical-challenge-to-museums-on-climate-change/ (accessed 5 January 2022).

 

Thistle, Paul C. 2021. "Requisite Burnout Risk Management in the Museum Field." Solving Task Saturation for Museum Workers blog posted 20 December 2021 at https://solvetasksaturation.wordpress.com/2021/12/20/requisite-burnout-risk-management-in-the-museum-field/ (accessed 5 January 2022).

Respectfully yours

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Paul C.Thistle
Director/Curator (retired)
Stratford, Ontario
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Dear Paul, thanks for sharing these reflections and resources related to critical theory/museology, climate change and workplace saturation.
Good to have! BH

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Brian Hogarth
Director, Museum Programs
New York NY
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Original Message:
Sent: 01-05-2022 06:03 PM
From: Paul Thistle
Subject: Pushing Museums to Take Action on the Climate Crisis

Dear colleagues:

Beyond the American Alliance of Museum's existing resources on "climate change" published to date and, in the absence of other AAM references I have noticed, I recommend AAM members concerned with these matters attend to the recent challenge for museum institutions and their workers voiced along the lines of Robert R Janes' 2009 influential book Museums in a Troubled World: Renewal, Irrelevance, or Collapse? as well as Janes and Sandell's 2019 Museum Activism.

A summary of an interview with Robert R. Janes, "Pushing museums to take action on the climate crisis," broadcast November 30, 2021 on the Talking Radical podcast (Neigh 2021) is available in the undersigned's 3 January 2022 post "Radical Challenge to Museums on Climate Change" on the Critical Museology Miscellanea blog (Thistle 2022).

My post also includes what I believe to be an essential caveat related to the absolute need for brutal realism on the part of museum leaders in order to sanely match new climate change objectives to the human resources actually available if & when they decide to follow Janes' very strong and convincingly argued recommendations voiced in Neigh (2021).

 

Given the rapidly mounting evidence of already task-saturated and burnt-out 'occupational devotee' / 'willing slave' museum workers (Thistle 2021), museum leaders MUST finally begin effective management of museum worker overload, stress, burnout, and resulting job leaving.

 

Thanks for thinking about these climate & museum Quality of Working Lives matters-both of which undoubtedly now are in immediate crisis status!

 

References Cited:

 

Janes, Robert R. 2009. Museums in a Troubled World: Renewal, Irrelevance, or Collapse? New York: Routledge.

 

Janes, Robert R. & Sandell, Richard eds. 2019. Museum Activism. London & New York: Routledge.

 

Neigh, Scott. "Radio - Pushing museums to take action on the climate crisis." Talking Radical audio file (28.09 minutes) posted on November 30, 2021 at https://talkingradical.ca/2021/11/30/radio-pushing-museums-to-take-action-on-the-climate-crisis/ (accessed 24 December 2021).

 

Thistle, Paul C. 2022. "Radical Challenge to Museums on Climate Change." Critical Museology Miscellanea blog posted 3 January 2022 at https://miscellaneousmuseology.wordpress.com/2022/01/03/radical-challenge-to-museums-on-climate-change/ (accessed 5 January 2022).

 

Thistle, Paul C. 2021. "Requisite Burnout Risk Management in the Museum Field." Solving Task Saturation for Museum Workers blog posted 20 December 2021 at https://solvetasksaturation.wordpress.com/2021/12/20/requisite-burnout-risk-management-in-the-museum-field/ (accessed 5 January 2022).

Respectfully yours

------------------------------
Paul C.Thistle
Director/Curator (retired)
Stratford, Ontario
------------------------------