Museums+Tech 2022 will be held at One Birdcage Walk on November 11.

Update (31 Aug. 2022): Submissions have now closed.

2020 saw cultural heritage organisations produce a multitude of digital responses to events such as the Covid-19 pandemic, the Black Lives Matter movement, and the ongoing climate crisis (some of which were presented at our 2020 conference).

Two years on, what is the legacy of these digital interventions? Has the disruption to visiting a physical space resulted in embedding long-term digital initiatives that have persisted following reopening, or have they been abandoned in a bid to recreate the ‘old normal’?

Our 2022 conference seeks to discuss the varying situations and strategies across institutions, sharing best practices for digital futures, telling cautionary tales, and situating digital cultural heritage within the wider political and financial landscape.

The MCG’s Museums+Tech 2022 conference seeks proposals for presentations addressing these issues. It’s time to celebrate good work, and share ideas for helping museums and other cultural institutions do better. We’re open to suggestions, but topics might include:

• What does ‘digital’ mean to the museum of 2022?
• How have user needs changed and how have museums responded?
• What were the successes and, perhaps more importantly, failures from the digital interventions of 2020 (and how do we evaluate success/failure)?
  • How can we learn from them?

• What can museums learn from other sectors, e.g. environment, or health and wellbeing?
• How can museums work effectively and sustainably with external agencies?
• How can museum professionals most effectively be equipped with digital skills (and what can be done to keep them in the sector)?
• Where is the money coming from, what is (and isn’t) being funded, (how) have funding models changed, and how does this affect our digital priorities?
• How have long-term digital strategies been affected by the events of 2020?
  • What actions have museums taken to address funding cuts and how have they impacted digital initiatives?
  • How do you balance short-term projects with solving long-term problems, and what are the implications?
• How can we ensure preservation and sustainability, and what human and technological resources are required to make these a reality?

The MCG’s annual conference attracts speakers and participants from some of the most innovative cultural organisations, agencies and university programmes in the world. We’re keen to hear from practitioners, researchers, funders, and those from related cultural heritage and technology sectors. All submitted papers will be reviewed by experts in the field.

Presentations

This year, we will be hosting a hybrid conference. The programme will include:

• Short presentations (10 minutes + Q&A) are a great way to share the main learning points from a topic or project
• Lightning talks (5 minutes + Q&A) are best for sharing useful ideas that others in the sector can try, or to present a provocation

Please note that we may group these presentations into panels with a discussion component.

Our audiences love our mixture of old and new voices, and we have a great track record in presenting a diverse range of speakers. We can also provide some bursaries for speakers who would benefit from assistance with funds for travel, childcare etc. Please also read our Guidance for Speakers before submitting your proposal. Our events have a code of conduct designed to help everyone enjoy the event.

Submission details

Proposals will need to note preferred format and include: 

• a title and brief abstract (200 words max)
• a biography (150 words max) for the presenting author
• a brief (one or two sentences) non-technical summary of what attendees will learn from the presentation
• a brief (one or two sentences) explanation of how the paper relates to the conference themes

We will also ask whether the paper or project has been presented at any previous conferences, and we encourage potential speakers to share links to their videos, slides, blogs etc to help us get a sense of their presentation style.

Proposals deadline

The deadline for proposals is 23:59 (UK time) on Friday 12 August. If you have any questions about submitting a proposal, please contact us at contact@museumscomputergroup.org.uk.