Letter from Erika

But What do you Mean by Partnership?

Last week we announced the Call for Proposals for our 2020 annual conference that will be held in Albany March 29 -31. Pre-conference events on March 28 will include hands-on workshops, special architectural and behind the scenes tours and a day-long museums and folklore forum. The conference theme, “The Power of Partnership” was inspired by a group that called itself Partners for Albany Stories whose work which began a decade ago has fueled a blossoming cultural heritage initiative. As Albany is our host site, I wanted to spotlight the power that this group created by coming together to create real change in the city.

The theme was also inspired by Hannah Fox, our 2020 Keynote speaker. Hannah’s works in cross-sector collaborative projects put people at the heart of how places, products and services are co-designed. She is the Director of Projects and Programmes for Derby Museums (UK) and has embedded co-production and human-centered design methodologies into the re-development of Derby Silk Mill, the site of the world's first factory, as the UK’s new Museum of Making.

I am writing this letter from The Museum Institute at Great Camp Sagamore and our lead presenter Tonya Matthews mentioned the often cited proverb that I will paraphrase as “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.” Three of the key qualities that she believes define successful, inclusive leaders are that they are curious, cognizant, and collaborative. 

I got a call from a colleague the week we released the Call for Proposals. They asked me what we meant by “partnership.” I replied that I was looking forward to reading the proposals that will be submitted and learning how we all are growing and changing the field by working together.