The Mindful Museum: Agent of Change
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The Mindful Museum: Agent of Change in a Troubled World
Keynote Presentation Annual Conference of the British Columbia Museums Association Parksville, Vancouver Island, October 25, 2013 By Robert R. Janes
Introduction
Thank you very much for that kind introduction and for inviting me back to the BCMA for a third time. I’m hoping that doesn’t mean three strikes and I’m out.
As the saying goes, optimists see the glass as half-full, while pessimists see the glass as half-empty. Ever polite and accommodating, the Canadian response is…… “I’m sorry, is that your glass?” (Pause) I’m thinking that the response should actually be – fantastic, how wonderful to have half a glass of clean, fresh water. (Pause) I say this because the biosphere -- meaning all living beings and their relationships on our planet -- is under siege.
I’ve spent 37 years working in and around museums… and my personal mission has always been to encourage museums to creatively answer the question – “what does it mean to be a human being?” 1 This question has now become immeasurably more important because the biosphere is now under siege, and each of us must figure out what it means to be a human being now -- at a time when every living system is declining -- and the rate of decline is accelerating.2 I regret to think that this question may become the
1 central preoccupation of our lives – it certainly will be for our children. As for our grandchildren, who knows? The year 2050 will undoubtedly be markedly different from the privileged lives we have today.
Take climate change for example. We’ve now passed the milestone level of 400 parts per million of climate-warming carbon in the atmosphere for the first time in human existence – without even a national discussion or an outcry by the citizenry, much less the intelligentsia.3 The 400ppm threshold is a dire a wake-up call for all of us to support clean energy technology and reduce the emission of greenhouse gases, before it's too late for our children and our grandchildren. Yet, Canada doesn’t’ even rank in the top ten of those countries investing in renewable energy.4
My purpose today is to speculate on the future role and responsibilities of museums in light of these intensifying socio-environmental pressures, and whether museums and galleries can become mindful enough to serve as agents of change. In short, the mindful museum purposefully pays attention to events in the outside world, above and beyond internal museum concerns. My talk today will be part cautionary tale, coupled with some alarmism and a hint of the apocalyptic, all for the purpose of emphasizing the centrality of mindfulness to responsible museum work. An acute awareness of alternative futures for museums need not be distressing – it can actually be liberating. I’ll conclude my talk with a proposed ethical framework, as I also believe that there are right and wrong choices to be made, irrespective of the so-called neutrality that so many museums ardently retain.
2 Confronting Reality
The ecological historian, John Greer, describes our collective challenge this way:
(Quote) Most ordinary people in the industrial world… are sleepwalking through
one of history’s great transitions. The issues that concern them are still defined
entirely by the calculus of abundance… It has not yet entered their darkest dreams
that they need to worry about access to such basic necessities as food… [or] the
fate of local economies and communities shredded by decades of malign
neglect...5 (End Quote).
In short, our political and business leaders, and most of us, refuse to admit the truth or existence of several profound realities, including the depletion of natural resources (such as fossil fuels, minerals and water); the proliferation of negative environmental impacts
(including the burning of fossil fuels), and the inability of governments and banks to deal with the enormous government and private debt that has accumulated over the last 20 years.6
Despite our collective denial, economic growth is essentially finished because of these realities, and the real question now is how society, including museums, is going to adapt to a non-growing, equilibrium economy. As the energy expert, Richard Heinberg, succinctly noted, “Civilization is about to be downsized.”7 This is the harbinger of a new future for museums, and the implications for change and continued prosperity are profound and immensely challenging. This is not apocalyptic thinking, however, as resource depletion, climate impact, and systemic financial failures (including the
European debt crisis) are a matter of record.
3 Enter Museums
In considering the future of museums at this transitional time, I cannot emphasize enough that the sustainability of museums cannot be separated from the sustainability of the biosphere. An ecological metaphor is useful here, as ecology is about the relationships between organisms and their environments – dependent, independent and interdependent relationships. Museums are both dependent (on money most of all) and independent – as museums are some of the most free and potentially creative work environments on the planet.
In the process of overlooking the meaning of interdependence, museums have contributed to their own marginalization. It is time to forge an ecology of museums that recognizes that a broad web of societal relationships is the foundation of successful adaptation in a complex, and increasingly severe, world. The lack of interdependent relationships among most museums and their communities is an increasing liability, and being valued for ancillary education and entertainment is no longer sufficient to ensure long-term sustainability, irrespective of the museum’s size or subject matter.
Museums may or may not be able to contribute to the resolution of many of the global problems that need solving, but museums of all kinds are in a position to invent a new future for themselves and their communities. If this is too ambitious, museums could at least help create an image of a desirable future – the essential first step in its realization.
4 While there is considerable problem-solving going on in museums, the focus is on funding, attendance, collections and so forth, rather than on the larger problems confronting our world.
Becoming More Mindful
Addressing these challenges is all about being mindful, and by mindful I mean purposefully paying attention to things that most of us ordinarily ignore. One of the major strengths of mindfulness is that it is not based on any belief system or ideology.8
Mindfulness actually helps us to be more aware of events in the outside world and our reactions to them.9 It also means paying closer attention to one’s responsibilities and responding more wisely.
We are very good at the traditional functions that define our museum practice. Moving beyond the typical museum concerns of how to increase attendance, raise more money, and protect the collections, however, is admittedly a courageous experiment. This experiment is filled with opportunities and hazards, all of which will undoubtedly set new directions for the conduct of museum work.
Four scenarios to contemplate
With this in mind, I now want to focus your attention on the bigger picture - and think about some possible futures for the biosphere and our way of life. Museums are essential social institutions, even if their true potential has yet to be realized, and I want each of you to think about your museum – its role and responsibilities -- as I review some possible scenarios.
I am indebted to Bridget McKenzie and her blog, “The Learning Planet” for her assistance in thinking through some of these possible futures. 10 This work is all about
5 scenario planning - a technique to assist with the creation of new mental models that result in powerful stories about how the future might unfold.11 This is not about predicting the future, but rather about exploring the future. McKenzie has identified four scenarios, taking into account global ecological and economic issues. In summarizing each of these, I want to emphasize that the world is going to be a very different place several decades from now, irrespective of how optimistic or pessimistic one might be.
The Red Global Scenario
The first is the Red Global scenario (remember that I will be speaking from the future looking back). In this scenario, there were serious efforts to address the environmental and resource crises globally, but they were dominated by technology and the marketplace, with insufficient attention paid to regulating the damage to the biosphere, coupled with insufficient efforts to restore ecosystems.
The Red Global Scenario is actually the status quo we are living in now. It is failing and will continue to do so, as it is only the temporary abundance of inexpensive fossil fuels, and myopic and incompetent politicians and business leaders who provide a sense of normalcy.
The Black Global Scenario
The Black Global Scenario is the second - the apocalyptic one made popular in films and books – where chaos and lawlessness were the order of the day. All efforts to address the environmental and resource crises were ineffective and too late, lacking both purpose and enthusiasm. The consequences were varied, with some communities accepting the decline, some choosing crime and conflict, and still other communities becoming
6 nomadic. There is not much to discuss about the Black Scenario – it is too dismal and devoid of hope.
The Silver Global Scenario
The third is the Silver Global Scenario. There was a redoubled effort to replace fossil fuels with alternative energy sources and to engineer new sources of food and water - supported by the biggest corporations. The effects of climate change increased, however, and the oceans continued to acidify and deserts spread. The reduction in greenhouse gas emissions enabled some cities to persevere and bring back climate stability.
The Silver scenario, or “Techno-utopia”, is what governments and corporations would like us to embrace. In fact, governments and big business continue to jeopardize the future with the simple-minded belief that technology will fix everything. The hubris underlying the “technological fix” is the result of both wilful ignorance and the plutotocracy’s self-interest - why change if you are reaping all the benefits? Although the
“Techno-utopia” is theoretically possible, it will fail because it denies the irrevocable damage to the biosphere’s natural systems.
The Green Global Scenario
In the fourth scenario, the Green Global Scenario, the inherent value of the biosphere was finally recognized and efforts to restore and “rewild” the forests and oceans intensified.
Urban gardens became commonplace. All of these efforts failed to prevent the tipping point of climate change feedback, however. Humans and nature are thriving in some areas, but not globally. The Green Global Scenario cannot happen without the unequivocal collaboration of public and private institutions, including museums. An
7 unprecedented commitment to the integrity of the biosphere will be required, as well as a commitment to individual and community self-reliance not seen since the Second World
War.
Whither Museums?
I’ve discussed these possible futures in an effort to divert your attention away from the daily grind of museum practice, so that you might imagine your museum as a player in defining the future well-being of the biosphere. Because each of these scenarios is plausible, choosing one or another is a matter of personal choice and will reflect one’s life experiences and anxieties. Personally, I align with “Ecotopia” because it is a metaphor for the transcendence that society and its institutions must achieve – it is hopeful. All of the scenarios are sufficient to demonstrate the magnitude of potential change.
Keeping in mind these scenarios as the broad context in which museums work today, or might find themselves in the future, I now want to consider more specifically the roles and responsibilities of museums. In short, how can museums contribute to a constructive outcome now? There are clearly ways and means, but it will require moving beyond traditional museum practices and assumptions.
In considering the role of museums as active agents of societal change, I have four expectations of them as public institutions: (1) to be open to influence and impact from outside interests; (2) to be responsive to citizens’ interests and concerns; (3) to assume a
8 leadership role in addressing issues that may not be seen as community priorities and last,
(4) to be fully transparent in fulfilling these three expectations. This will require that museums not only experiment with new ways of working, but that they also expand their understanding of their mandate and purpose at this point in history. I now want to address both of these responsibilities, and I will begin with some thoughts on new ways of working.
New Ways of Working
The key to sustainability for museums, and for society at large, is to address the future now, while there is time and resources. Our habit as a species, however, is to confront change when disaster strikes, and by then the necessary resources and energy are beleaguered or non-existent. This is paradoxical, because it requires that we be sceptical, curious and inventive before we have to be. This means that museum boards and staff must challenge all the assumptions underlying current success, and this must begin with questions. People, organizations and civilizations start slowly, grow, prosper and decline.12 Organizational decline is avoidable, however, if this thinking and questioning are adopted before decline sets in, and while there are resources for new explorations and initiatives.
This necessary questioning is well underway in society at large, and there is a growing public concern about a variety of global issues, although museums are mostly absent in these discussions.13 I want to discuss some new ways of working that could embolden individual responsibility, and strengthen the museum in admittedly untested ways. What follows is a mix of new and unorthodox approaches that have the potential to expand
9 conventional museum practice beyond its current limitations, and contribute to a greater museum presence in the world. The truth will lie in the doing.
Cultivate personal agency in museum workers
My first suggestion for working differently is to cultivate your personal agency. By personal agency, I mean the capacity of individual museum workers, not just their leaders and managers, to take action in the world. 14 I have always been struck by a seeming paradox – that is the widespread disconnection between individuals who work in a museum, and the manner in which the museum functions as an organization. I trust that each of you is insightful and motivated by concerns beyond the museum, and possesses personal values that guide your everyday life. Yet, many people shy away from expressing their values and acting on their personal agency - for fear of losing their job or their friends.
I think that this fear is exaggerated. So rock the boat; …fly under the radar – do what you need to do to if you feel that something is important. Here are several suggestions for cultivating your personal agency:
Governance - Ask to attend a board meeting or arrange a reception with your board of directors and the staff. Meet your board members; ask them about their lives and experiences, and make sure that they know what you do in the museum.
Leadership and management - Meet personally with your museum director at least once a year, and review what you’ve accomplished, the challenges you faced, and constructively discuss how things might be improved.
10 Personally - When appropriate, share aspects of your non-work life, whether it be volunteer involvement in an environmental NGO or your work as an artist. These seemingly unrelated skills and experiences are essential as a museum broadens its awareness and engages with its community.
Broaden governance
My second suggestion concerns the need for new approaches to museum governance, as the conventional board activities of policy development and fundraising are no longer sufficient for museums that seek enduring relationships with their communities. Paul
Vandeventer, a civic activist, has identified a third skill, which he calls “civic reach”, as being essential to effective governance. 15 In his words,
(Quote) Organizational sustainability depends on intimate local knowledge that
can inform program direction, and on relationships that can connect programs to
resources and communities. No matter how good an organization becomes at
fundraising and governance, without civic reach it risks failure. (End Quote)
There is a message here for all museums. Museum boards are now heavily populated with business people of all types, and this distortion underlies their preoccupation with finances and the marketplace. 16 A board dominated by any perspective, be it business, legal or political, is an obstacle to civic reach. In short, an individual’s local knowledge and network of community relationships are equally as important as one’s prestigious title. “Museums need deep civic roots to thrive” and local relationships are the soil in which these roots grow.17
11 Be intellectual activists
My third recommendation is that museums become intellectual activists. Intellectual activism is a fancy word for activities which do not necessarily create new knowledge, but make existing knowledge more accessible, understandable and useful to others. 18 We are in urgent need of museums to identify and explore the myths, perceptions and misperceptions that now threaten our existence -- such as the belief that unlimited economic growth is essential to our well-being. 19 Museums of all kinds are untapped and untested sources of ideas and knowledge, and are ideally placed to foster individual and community participation in the quest for greater awareness and workable solutions to our global problems. This is what I mean by intellectual activism.
Link nature and culture
My fifth recommendation is for museums to link nature and culture in their missions and in their work, whether or not they are natural history museums. In one of the most thoughtful mission statements I’ve seen, the Field Museum in Chicago states (Quote)
“We focus on critical environmental and cultural issues which are engaging and relevant to the public’s daily lives and civic responsibilities.”20 (End Quote). This Museum had over 100 conversations with organizations throughout their region, and identified five common concerns that connect environmental and sociocultural issues, including climate change, health and food, and economic development.
Become reality-based
My final and pressing aspiration for museums is that they become “reality-based”.21
12 The question is this - Can museums finally subordinate themselves to concerns that are larger than their own? This is what I mean by becoming reality-based – to become more visionary, to become more involved in the broader world, to embrace a sense of urgency, and to see things as they really are in terms of the challenges to our well-being, including what role museums can play in civic cooperation and support.
Six Ethical Responsibilities for Museums
In the final portion of my talk today, I want to consider the mandate and purpose of museums at this point in history, and I submit that museums have six ethical responsibilities as social institutions in an increasingly troubled world. My use of the word ethical refers to such things as justice, right conduct and duty. And I endorse Janet
Marstine’s observation that (Quote) “the new museum ethics stresses the agency to do good with museum resources.”22 (End Quote).
Public Advocacy
The first ethical responsibility is public advocacy. As commonly understood among museum workers, advocacy means lobbying governments for more recognition and more money. As an ethical responsibility, however, public advocacy is concerned with broader societal issues where the museum can add perspective, expertise and value. It means moving beyond a preoccupation with the museum’s well-being, and using the museum’s resources to enhance individual and community well-being.
A museum need not sacrifice its traditional activities to advocate publicly, and an excellent example of this is the Museo Pambata, a children’s museum in Manila,
Philippines.23 As global warming continues to threaten the biosphere, the President of this
13 museum noted that (Quote) “children have been underutilized in the campaign against climate change and they should no longer be left behind in this advocacy.” (End Quote).
This statement was made during the opening of the Museo Pambata’s three-day
“Children & Climate Change Museum Conference” in 2012.
Problem solving
The second ethical responsibility is problem solving - a responsibility closely related to public advocacy, as one may serve the other. Again, the focus of problem solving here is on societal issues and concerns where the museum can provide advice, assistance and expertise.
An excellent example of this is the American Museum of Natural History in New York, which introduced its first Master of Arts in Teaching Program in 2012. 24 The goal is to produce 50 new science teachers over two years for the state’s high-needs schools, which have long coped with a critical shortage of math and science instructors.
Collaborating on the Funding of Solutions
Collaborating on the funding of solutions is the third ethical responsibility, and is perhaps one of the most contentious, recognizing the financial pressures on museums. In thinking about sharing a museum’s funding, however, it is important to note that there are a great many non-profit organizations, in all sectors of society, that have far less money than many museums.
14 A fine example of sharing money is The Chicago Botanic Garden’s Green
Youth Farm, a one-acre farm in suburban North Chicago that offers high school students the opportunity to learn all aspects of organic farming.25 With mounting concern over the ill-effects of industrial food, this is vital work and the Botanic Garden pays the students’ wages. Everyone benefits, although the Botanic Garden could easily have supported the industrial food business as nearly all museums do.
Insisting on the Accountability of Government and the Private Sector
The fourth ethical responsibility is to insist on the accountability of governments and the private sector and, admittedly, this is a radical. Yet, there is an enormous opportunity for all museums to address one of the most vexing issues of our time – climate change – and to hold global governments and corporations more accountable. It has been noted that the public debate around climate change in the US is no longer about science, but about values, culture and ideology.26 Climate change is now part of the so-called culture wars in the US, along with other “cultural” issues such as abortion, gun control and evolution.
I suggest that this may also be true in Canada – take note of the federal government’s single-minded emphasis and rhetoric on tar sands development. If you oppose it, you are against Canada’s well-being. What we actually need, rather than Conservative economic ideology, is a thoughtful societal debate focused on the full range of the technical and social dimensions of climate change. Museums are grounded in a sense of place, committed to stewardship, and universally respected, and can readily serve as the vital bridge between science and the public interest by initiating and hosting this dialogue –
15 and hopefully engender a greater sense of accountability on the part of government and corporations.
Fostering scientific, humanities and social science research
The fifth ethical responsibility is to foster scientific, humanities and social science research. My concern here is for those museums, that have the necessary resources and expertise, to increase our knowledge and understanding of pressing social and environmental issues -- by not only championing practical approaches, but also by engaging in local problem solving.
An excellent example of relevant research is from the Royal Saskatchewan Museum in
Regina. This Museum is using digital imaging to study the taxonomy of Saskatchewan's
200 native bee species to determine how they can best be managed to help pollinate
Saskatchewan's food crops.27 The Museum’s expertise is a key part of a collaboration to enhance Saskatchewan's agricultural crops and “continue as a leader in world food security.”
Maintaining and sharing collections as knowledge seed banks
The last ethical responsibility is the need to maintain and share collections as knowledge seed banks. This responsibility is the most obvious, recognizing that all museums, by definition, have permanent collections. Museum collections are a time capsule of material diversity and, in this respect, museums are as valuable as seed banks. If seed banks are
16 gene banks, then museums are tool, technology, history and art banks – curating the most distinctive trait of our species – the ability to make tools and things of beauty.28
Should the worst come to pass and the world plunges into the Black apocalyptic scenario described earlier and, if some museums survive, the keeping of collections for posterity will be redeemed. As author James Kunstler asks:
(Quote) “If the social and economic platform fails, how long before the
knowledge base dissolves? Two hundred years from now, will anyone know how
to build or even repair a 1962 Chrysler slant-six engine? Not to mention a Nordex
1500 kW wind turbine?” 29 (End Quote)
Conclusions
Overall, there is a vast solitude between the ethical responsibilities I have proposed here and the bulk of mainstream museum practice. Admittedly, this ethical agenda is likely to be nonsensical or ill-advised for those many museum boards and directors unwilling or unable to see beyond the status quo. But I know that many of you in this room are already thinking and doing otherwise, and that is the cause for my continued optimism.
Paradoxically, and despite their inherent conservatism, museums have existed for centuries, unlike the vast majority of businesses. Museums have always had some sort of
“adaptive intuition” (I don’t know what else to call it) -- to reinvent and transform themselves, however slowly and unconsciously. Museums have evolved through time,
17 from the elite collections of imperial dominance, to educational institutions for the public, and now to the museum as “mall” and appendage of consumer society. 30
There is an important lesson in this historical trajectory – that is the ability of museums to learn and adapt as circumstances require. The museum as mall is the latest chapter in this long trajectory and it embodies the dead end of materialism - over-merchandised and devoted to consumption, entertainment and popularity. The museum’s next iteration has yet to be defined, and will hopefully be grounded in providing sustained public benefit.
Had museums been more mindful of their unique attributes, they might well have served as distant early warning systems, as global, socio-environmental issues came into sight decades ago. Museums are uniquely positioned to do so, with their mix of humanism, science, time-depth and societal respect. But the time has passed, and many of these warning signs have now become crises.
Museums have always been essential to me because they are organizations whose purpose is their meaning - to borrow a phrase from Charles Handy, the British social philosopher. The meaning and purpose of museums are now in need of urgent redefinition, based on deep listening to the issues and challenges that confront our world.
The challenge of sustainability for every museum -- be it large or small; volunteer or paid
-- is to redefine the ultimate purpose and standards of museum work. Professionalism and the yearning for popularity must make room for a commitment to the durability and well- being of individuals, communities and the natural world.31 This is the work that really needs to be done, and this is the work of the mindful museum.
18 Finally, I recall the observation that…if your talk was good ….the audience won’t remember what you said. (PAUSE)… they will remember what they thought….about what you said. Here’s hoping that all of you are brimming with thoughts. Thank you very much.
Acknowledgements
I wish to thank Scott Marsden and David Jensen for the invitation to present this keynote address at the BCMA’s 20213 conference. The discussion of ethical responsibilities is taken from my new book, Museums and the Paradox of Change: A Case Study in Urgent
Adaptation – Third Edition (Routledge, 2013), and I acknowledge my publisher for their approval to use this material. I also want to thank Bridgette McKenzie for her work on global scenarios, a summary of which is included in this keynote. My thanks also go to
Shelley Gauthier, the BCMA’s Office Administrator, for all her excellent work behind the scenes.
Notes
19 1 N. Postman, “Museum as Dialogue,” Museum News (69/5), 1990, 55–58. 2 P. Hawken, Commencement Address, University of Portland. Portland, Oregon USA May 3, 2009.
3 J. Romm, Into The Valley Of Death Rode The 600, Into The Valley Of 400 PPM Rode The 7 Billion. May 5, 2013 at 12:34 pm. Available online: http://thinkprogress.org/author/joe/
4 E. May. Canada is missing out on global clean-tech revolution. On Monday, August 12th, 2013 in Articles by Elizabeth. Available online at HTTP: http://elizabethmaymp.ca/news/publications/articles/2013/08/12/canada-is-missing-out-on-global-clean-tech- revolution/
5 J. M. Greer, The Wealth of Nature, Gabriola Island, Canada: New Society Publishers, 2011, p.239.
6 R. Heinberg, The End of Growth, Gabriola Island, Canada: New Society Publishers, 2011, pp.1 – 4.
7 R. Heinberg, The End of Growth, p.27.
8 J. Kabat-Zinn, Full Catastrophe Living: Using the Wisdom of Your Body and Mind to Face Stress, Pain, and Illness, New York: Bantam, Doubleday, Dell Publishing Group, Inc., 1990, pp. 12–13. 9 D. Fontana, Meditation: An Introductory Guide to Relaxation for Mind and Body, Shaftesbury, Dorset, UK: Element Books Limited, 1999, p. 112. 10 Bridget McKenzie, “Seeing Museums in 2060,” The Learning Planet Blog, May 8, 2012. Available online at: http://thelearningplanet.wordpress.com/tag/museums/
11 For an overview of scenario planning, see P. Schwartz, The Art of the Long View, New York: Currency Doubleday, 1996; and A. de Geus, The Living Company: Habits for Survival in a Turbulent Business Environment, Boston: Harvard Business School Press, 1997, pp. 38–54.
12 C. Handy, The Age of Paradox, Boston: Harvard Business School Press, 1994, pp. 49-63.
13 R. R. Janes, Museums in a Troubled World: Renewal, Irrelevance or Collapse? London and New York: Routledge, 2009 p. 26.
14 J.A. Davis, “Putting museum studies to work”, Museum Management and Curatorship, (26) 5, December, 2011, pp. 459-479.
15 P. Vandeventer, “Increasing Civic Reach”, Stanford Social Innovation Review, Spring 2011. Available online at HTTP:
19 R.F. Nelson, Personal communication, October 1, 2010. 20 Mission Statement of the Field Museum. Available online at
24 American Museum of Natural History, “Master of Arts in Teaching Program”. Available online at:
25 Chicago Botanic Garden, “North Chicago Green Youth Farm”, Available online at < http://www.chicagobotanic.org/greenyouthfarm/ See also the Garden Café at: < http://www.chicagobotanic.org/cafe/index.php>
26 A.J. Hoffman, “Climate Science as Culture War”, Stanford Social Innovation Review, Fall, 2012. Available online at: < Available online at:< http://www.ssireview.org/articles/entry/climate_science_as_culture_war? utm_source=Enews&utm_medium=email&utm_content=1&utm_campaign=hoffman>
27 Government of Saskatchewan News Release, “Royal Saskatchewan Museum Poised to Lead Bee Research in Canada”, 31 July, 2012. Available online at: < http://www.gov.sk.ca/news?newsId=ab5c0e2f-91ad-4146-b57e-a40d8e510d9e>
28 Janes, Museums in a Troubled World: Renewal, Irrelevance or Collapse?, p. 179.
29 J. H. Kunstler, The Long Emergency: Surviving the End of Oil, Climate Change, and Other Converging Catastrophes of the Twenty-First Century, New York: Grove Press, 2005, p. 130.
30 A. Gopnik, “The mindful museum”, The Walrus (4, June), 2007, p. 89. This article is adapted from the 2006 Holtby Lecture at the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto, Canada.
31 W. Berry, Life is a Miracle, Berkeley, CA: Counterpoint, 2000, p. 134