Imagining a new model for collections stewardship

Since 2012 Trevor, Elee, and I have operated as Active Collections, an informal think tank addressing the big, entrenched collections problems that many museum professionals worry about but can’t figure out how to solve.

Could a leaner collection help your organization have greater impact?
Does your collection need to be realigned with your mission?
How can museums model a healthy approach to personal materialism?
Which stuff do we actually need, and which stuff is weighing us down?

We’ve developed a website, a manifesto, a webinar, a field-wide survey, and a two-day roundtable with big thinkers. Our anthology Active Collections was published by Routledge in 2017 and won the National Council on Public History’s book award. Since then I have trained small museums in Massachusetts and Vermont in a 12-step process for developing Active Collections, and conducted an Active Collections–informed planning project for Oysterponds Historical Society.

Is your museum ready to bring an Active Collections approach to your collection planning efforts? I lead workshops and offer consulting services to help you make your things sing. Let’s talk about how Active Collections can transform your organization.