Conference – Museum Leadership in the 21st Century:
Regional Challenges and Global Impacts –
1 – 5 November 2024, Livingstone, Zambia

INTERCOM, ICOM ZAMBIA, ICOM AFRICA, ICR and NATHIST are preparing for a museum conference in Livingstone, Zambia, with a key focus on managing the museum through regional challenges and global impacts. With this conference, partners are building on the results of INTERCOM global 2021 leadership survey and focusing on the core topics from that large-scale survey, specifically fundraising, museum management, digital transformation and strategic planning for the museum sector seen from a regional perspective.

For the Zambia conference, ICOM ZAMBIA, ICOM AFRICA, ICR, NATHIST and INTERCOM are now seeking regional examples and analyses of issues for museums on a global and regional scale cast in professional paper that will be assessed for suitability and scientific relevance by a team of professionals from the organizing committees. The chosen scholars are expected to present their submissions in-person during the conference in Livingstone.

Steering towards a strategy of resilience and growth

The INTERCOM Directors Forum organized in 2022 showed that museum leaders from Africa have taken a very prominent and constructive role. The discussion of African directors was instructive and serve as a basis of further discovery during this conference.

It has been found that the pandemic was a wake-up call for the African museum sector and has put the need for new business models and visionary leadership center stage. The survey further revealed a growing need for a crisis management strategy for cultural institutions in the country. Museum leaders in Africa indicated that both the existence of a risk management plan, and continuous encouragement of innovation in their institutions are necessary strategic elements towards a more resilient future for their museums. It is on this knowledge that the conference builds.

The outlines of the event are defined by three main themes, all related to fundraising, digital transformation, and strategic planning. We encourage the authors to share different perspectives of museum management and actions. We welcome contributions that address the following non-exhaustive list of topics:

· Museum fundraising
· Digital transformation
· Strategic planning
· Museum leadership: current challenges

We welcome a diversity of submissions, in English or French, that can inform the sector on what is being done or emerging in this sphere and develop inspirational ideas for future practice.

Submission process
Abstracts of between 250 and 300 words, written in English / French should be submitted for selection to intercom.icom@gmail.com. An abstract is a summary of the journal manuscript. It provides a concise overview of the final article which will cover between 5 to 14 pages in length. The abstract should read as a standalone document. The abstracts received will be examined on a blind review basis by a panel of experts on the topic.

All accepted speakers will be ensured a discounted attendance fee. The following information should be included with the abstract:

● Title of submitted paper, word count
● Name(s) of author(s)
● Author(s) ICOM number(s)
● Professional background up to 85 words
● Agreement that the presentation can be recorded and made available on the partner websites

The abstract submission deadline is June 1th, 2024.

Important note:
Presenters may be chosen for any format by the review committee although they are to
indicate preference when submitting the abstract.

For information, you can write to secretary.intercom@icom.museum or info.icr23@gmail.com