EMA publishes details of its current activities in an occasional Newsletter. Its Press Releases will continue to focus on individual announcements and events
A European Museum Expertise Foundation
A dynamic and forward-looking organisation to stimulate innovative thinking in European museums
Dear Members and Friends of the European Museum Academy,
We are happy to welcome you to the latest edition of our Newsletter. We hope that recent months has been treating you well.
The EMA Awards have had many nominations this year and judging is continuing. The Heritage in Motion Award application period is open until 15 June. The Children in Museums Award shortlist has recently been announced. For our current issue we have been speaking to our new board member Dr. Margaret McColl about her career, experiences, projects and role in EMA.
In this issue, you’ll also find information about the two major research projects META-MUSEUM and HERITALISE updated versions under the European Union Horizon Europe Programme. We also celebrate our EMA’s Magazine – MAG: Museum and Social Change and PASCAL International Observatory study on lifelong learning and cultural development.
These are extraordinarily exciting times as we will have the new international handbook on museum and heritage education in our hands soon. More about that too.
We hope you have a great Spring!
Enjoy reading and warm regards,
Karl B. Murr
Chairman of the Board”
EMA Annual Meeting and Awards Ceremony
The meeting will be in Budapest on 25-27 September and we are expecting the registration form to be available the first week of June. It will incorporate advice on hotels and also a draft programme.
CALL FOR HERITAGE IN MOTION AWARD 2025
New developments in multimedia technology and the importance of audiovisual expressions capture a vital role in making cultural heritage accessible.
The Heritage in Motion Award was founded in 2012 by the joint initiative of the European Museum Academy and Europa Nostra. The Award has a lasting tradition of celebrating the best examples of innovative multimedia and digital projects on cultural heritage in Europe. The first edition was held in 2014, and since 2023 the project is managed jointly by the European Museum Academy (EMA) and the International Foundation Forum of Slavic Cultures (FSK), led by Massimo Negri – scientific director EMA and Andreja Rihter – director FSK.
This year’s judges: Robin Lutz (coordinator), Mateja Kuka Brkić, Amilcar Vargas.
Applications for Heritage in Motion 2025 can be submitted through the FilmFreeway platform, from March 31th to June 15th, 2025: https://filmfreeway.com/HeritageinMotion
The 2025 Award Ceremony will take place on Friday, September 26th, 2025, at the Money Museum in Budapest (Hungary), providing a unique networking and recognition platform for innovators in the field of heritage.
Participants are welcome to attend the ceremony in Budapest on Friday 26 September 2025 at their own expense
PASCAL Observatory Brief: Advancing Aesthetic Education for Human Flourishing
PASCAL International Observatory has published a brief on Aesthetic Education, as part of its commitment to lifelong learning and cultural development. This interdisciplinary study explores how aesthetic education contributes to peacebuilding, critical thinking, and human flourishing within learning cities and museum environments
Children in Museums Award 2025 shortlist
The shortlist for the Children in Museums Award 2025 has now been made public. The winner will be announced during the annual conference of Hands On! which will be held in Liverpool, UK on 26-28 November.
The finalists are:
- Museum of Ethnography, Budapest, Hungary
- Children’s Museum, Singapore
- OliOli Children’s Museum, Dubai, United Arab Emirates
- Showtown Blackpool, Blackpool, United Kingdom
- La Nube STEAM Discovery Center, El Paso, United States
The Routledge Handbook of Museum and Heritage Education
In recent years, Museum Education has become a field of scholarship in its own right, in addition to its established place as a key strand of Museum Studies. Specific master’s degrees in Museum Education are now offered in Australia, Canada, Europe, Japan and the USA. At the same time, attitudes towards museum education and museum educators have evolved, with both now central to the development of policies, practices and research for successful engagement. Museum educators have been working their way into positions of authority and influence.
The Routledge Handbook of Museum and Heritage Education defines ‘museum and heritage’ as all cultural sites that interpret collections and spaces for public understanding and enjoyment, including art galleries, historic houses and archaeological sites.
The handbook presents and studies the theme in 38 chapters written by researchers from all around the world. The European Museum Academy has been on the editorial board together with colleagues from University of Glasgow and the Smithsonian Foundation. The book is expected to be published in June 2025.
INTERVIEW WITH
DR. MARGARET McCOLL
EMA’s Magazine – MAG: Museum and Social Change
The European Museum Academy (EMA) proudly presents MAG: Museum and Social Change, an annual magazine dedicated to exploring the evolving role of museums as agents of social transformation. Read more for thought-provoking articles, in-depth case studies, and expert insights.
EDUMaH Master Programme: Education in Museums & Heritage (Erasmus Mundus International Master)
This is a uniquely innovative and multidisciplinary programme that equips the next generation of museum and heritage professionals with the ability to engage with the various contexts (cultural, social, political) that they will encounter and which are needed for the 21st century. The programme includes placements, language learning and a minimum of three mobility periods in Europe.
For further information
EDUCATION
IULM Master course: Museology and New Media and Museum Communication (On Line)
Our Master’s course has a unique approach to museology in its most innovative form, especially at a European level. It is carried out in collaboration with the European Museum Academy Foundation (NL) which contributes with its experts and educational resources. Articulated e-learning is the key point: the online modules also offer students abroad the opportunity to take part in this course under careful tutoring. The programme is designed for those interested in acquiring skills in contemporary museology and the interconnections between museum and heritage, as well as in new media and museum communication.
For further information
EMA continues interviewing experts in their field. For our current issue we have been speaking to Dr. Margaret McColl about her career, experiences, projects and role in EMA.
PROJECTS
HERITALISE Project Progress: Showcasing Innovation in Digital Heritage
The main goal of Heritalise is to relate to the various values and meanings of the CH object – artistic, historical, scientific, aesthetic, social, and economic – by knowledge graphs.
PROJECTS
The META MUSEUM Project
The European Museum Academy is partner in a new research project under the European Union programme Horizon Europe.
META- MUSEUM stands for “Moving Emotions towards confidence in the Transformative Appropriation for a Meaningful Understanding of cultural heritage: a neuroScientific approach to European Museums”.
EMA – European Museum Academy Foundation
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