THE CONVERSATION
Why this session?
A new museum is a promise to the public for decades, not a building project alone. This conversation asks whose histories, questions and everyday needs should shape that promise.
In today's global context
Museums worldwide are being asked to earn trust, share authority and make collections useful beyond their walls. India can learn from those experiments while defining its own public purpose.
Ten questions to explore
- Who should define a new museum’s public purpose?
- Which communities are absent from current collections?
- How can regional stories shape national institutions?
- What belongs in an open collections policy?
- How should visitors influence interpretation?
- Which services matter beyond exhibitions?
- What can small museums teach large projects?
- How should institutions measure public trust?
- What must be planned before construction?
- Which decisions should remain open to future generations?
Key outcomes we hope to shape
- A public-purpose checklist for new museum proposals
- Questions that communities can put to commissioning teams
We welcome nominations from museum directors, community historians, collection stewards and public-policy thinkers and others with relevant experience. Speaker nominations are open.
Nominate a speaker for A01 →