This last year has been one of reflection and change for the museum. As we enter a new year, we are keen to have a conversation around why the Museum has adopted the Social Museum model and how it is actively working to engage with the community in meaningful and sustainable ways. The first Member Monday of the new year will be a sit down conversation with museum staff and representatives of some of the initiatives the Museum has been working with. This event will focus on two key programs the Canmore Museum is involved in, OF/By/FOR ALL and Ki Futures. We are very excited to share some of the steps the museum has been quietly making towards becoming an inclusive and sustainable organization working with and for the Canmore community.
ABOUT THE PRESENTERS
Doug Worts. Over the past three decades, Douglas has published and spoken widely, in Canada and internationally, on topics of museum audience, creativity, education and the relationship of culture to sustainability. For almost 20 years, Doug’s special research and publishing focus has been on understanding and promoting the notion of a ‘culture of sustainability’. This interest crystallized when he was invited to join LEAD International (Leadership for Environment and Development) – a cross-disciplinary, global network, funded by the Rockefeller Foundation and created to explore and promote the goal of sustainability. He is a founding member of the Canadian Working Group on Museums and Sustainable Communities and a recipient of a Senior Research Fellowship from the Canadian Museums Association. For five years, during the 1990s, Douglas taught a graduate course in museum education – part of the Master of Museum Studies Program at the University of Toronto. A founding member of the Visitor Studies Association (VSA), Doug also has been a consultant to many museums and museum organizations, including the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, the Getty Museum in California and the American Association of Museums. From 2002 to 2005, he was co-chair of the Alberta Museum Association’s Museum Excellence Program (MEP), helping to foster innovation and effectiveness across Alberta museums. Douglas’ goal is to bring his unique perspective on culture’s relationship to sustainability into practical applications that foster meaningful societal change. Most recently, Doug has been working closely with Ki Culture to develop an intenational community of museums focussed on creating shared tools to foster social and environmental sustainability at a local level.
Sarah Knowles serves as the Canmore Museum’s Visitor + Membership Services Officer. With a background in community-based anthropology and a passion for social history, Sarah is a trained anthropologist, cross cultural communicator, and youth program creator and facilitator. From a young age, Sarah has cared deeply about people and knows the importance and power of community. Through her Master’s degree in Anthropology from Western University, and her BA Honours in Anthropology and International Development from Trent University, she has learned how to listen and learn from diverse sets of people and how to help facilitate strong community- centered programing. Sarah is fully trained in qualitative research, skills she has honed through her Master’s thesis which included field research in Pune, India and extensive textual analysis of 100s of online blogs. She further grew her research expertise during an internship with the strategy department at the Girl Guides of Canada head offices where she helped plan, conduct, and analyse various research projects. She is also equipped with participatory research and evaluation skills that have allowed her to successfully engage and learn from communities in Canada and Ghana, West Africa. Sarah has worked with people of all ages but especially enjoys working with youth. Sarah is excited to be working in a museum environment and to engage with the Canmore community, where she will particularly enjoy the many hiking and other outdoor opportunities.
Ron Ulrich serves as the Canmore Museum’s Executive Officer. With over 35 years in the museum sector, Ron brings extensive experience in the museum and cultural sector and brings a strong vision and a holistic understanding of the arts, heritage and tourism sectors to each project and institution he leads. With a background as senior cultural manager, he has become a keen and perceptive leader with extensive experience in strategic and business planning, facility development, project management, and fund development. He also has considerable experience in developing and executing marketing campaigns and public relations plans and events. Ron is also a skilled curator, interpretive planner and programmer, co-curating exhibitions, programs and publications with diverse communities such as southern Albert’a Japanese-Canadian, Jewish, Italian and Indigenous communities, for which the project teams have received numerous awards of excellence.