CDRSEE at conference Why museums and to whom

15 December 2009

The CDRSEE was invited to participate in the conference entitled: Why museums and to whom – Museum as forum and actor. What is the role of museums in contemporary society and what future roles can they play, which took place on 14-15 December at theMuseum of Yugoslav History in Belgrade, Serbia.

The Conference, which was a co-operation between the Museum of National Antiquities in Stockholm, the NGO C31 Centre for Developing Children’s rights Culture, The Museum of Yugoslav History in Belgrade and the Embassy of Sweden in Belgrade, aimed at understanding in what ways museums can deal with questions concerning the diverse interpretations and uses of heritage and history rather than presenting singular truths, how they can facilitate the involvement of diverse audiences in the making of collective memories suited for the needs of a globalizing world and how museums can deal constructively with difficult matters of contemporary society. 

The event presented ideas and examples from Sweden, Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia Herzegovina, England and the Netherlands following four major themes: “Why museum/new museum”, “Heritage and the public”, “The making and uses of history” and ‘’Contemporary collecting and the potentials of difficult matters”.

Mr. Nenad Sebek, the CDRSEE’s Executive Director gave a presentation entitled “How Turkish is your Coffee?” within the third session “the Making and Uses of History”, introducing the goals, methodology and achievement of the Center’s Joint History Project to a distinguished audience.