Supporting Intangible Heritage Communities
The new museum definition includes the concepts of accessibility, inclusivity, diversity and sustainability. In addition to these concepts, the emphasis on the participation of (cultural heritage) communities fits in seamlessly with the objectives of the Dutch Centre for Intangible Cultural Heritage and is therefore a positive development. The Knowledge Center supports communities to safeguard intangible cultural heritage.
The new definition reads: “A museum is a not-for-profit, permanent institution in the service of society that researches, collects, conserves, interprets and exhibits tangible and intangible heritage. Open to the public, accessible and inclusive, museums foster diversity and sustainability. They operate and communicate ethically, professionally and with the participation of communities, offering varied experiences for education, enjoyment, reflection and knowledge sharing.”
Working with intangible cultural heritage
In our view, this new definition gives rise to museums to investigate how they can work with cultural heritage practitioners. The Dutch Centre for Intangible Cultural Heritage has conducted research into this in recent years. Tools and inspiring examples have emerged from the international Intangible Cultural Heritage and Museums Project on how you can work with intangible heritage as a museum professional. These can be found here .
The Ambachtslab ('Crafts Lab') is also an example of how a museum can play a facilitating role in passing on and innovating crafts. More inspiration and examples can be found in our Knowledge Base.
ICOM Museum Definition in the Netherlands
The new museum definition is the result of a consultation procedure, which ran from 2019 to 2022. In the Netherlands, the ICOM museum definition is used, among other things, as a basis for the Museum Register. Since the October 2004 ICOM conference in Seoul, South Korea, the definition includes intangible cultural heritage. More information about the new museum definition can be found on the website of ICOM Netherlands.