Institutional Approaches to Sustainability
October 31st, 2020, 4-7 PM CET

This conference is part of our virtual trilogy [re]Framing the Arts: A Sustainable Shift organized in collaboration with the Amsterdam School for Heritage, Memory and Material Culture at the University of Amsterdam and Nyenrode Business University.

In this first edition, Institutional Approaches to Sustainability, we will focus in on the structural and institutional shift towards a carbon zero arts sector. We will discover the options for an environmentally sustainable building, discuss the organizational choices behind sustainable storage facilities and learn about sustainable climate control systems.

The speakers will also discuss how we might engage both individual operations and those on the international scale in adopting practices in line with the UN Sustainable Development Goals. If sustainability is an organizational priority, how can we adopt a holistic approach within our arts organizations and take responsibility for our actions?

 

Our Speakers

 

Sarah leads Sustainable Museums, a consultancy helping the staff and leadership of cultural and natural resource organizations plan for a more sustainable future. She works with zoos, gardens, museums, aquariums and historic sites to create cross-sector partnerships to advance climate action.
In 2017 she created #MuseumsforParis in response to the United States’ announced intention to withdraw from the Paris Agreement. In 2018 the group was adopted by We Are Still In, the largest coalition of organizaitions, anywhere, that support the Paris Agreement. Sarah is a member of the We Are Still In Executive Committee and the sector lead for cultural institutions. 
She writes about environmental sustainability in print and online. She is the author of Environmental Sustainability at Historic Sites and Museums, and The Green Nonprofit: The First 52 Weeks of Your Green Journey. She is co-author of both editions of The Green Museum: A Primer on Environmental Sustainability (published under the name Sarah S. Brophy.)  

Sarah Sutton
Sustainable Museums

A Post-”Plus/Minus Dilemma” Reboot: Where are we Now, Where are we going?

Samantha Owens is the Assistant Conservator at Glenstone Museum in Maryland. She holds an M.S. in Art Conservation from the Winterthur/University of Delaware Program in Art Conservation (WUDPAC) specializing in objects conservation and a B.A. in Art History from Emory University. Samantha was previously a fellow at Glenstone, and held graduate internships at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Cleveland Museum of Art, and the Hamburger Kunsthalle.

Samantha Owens
Glenstone Museum

Glenstone: A Case Study in Sustainable Measures for a Contemporary Museum

Sofie Öberg Magnusson work as an administrative officer at the National Museums of World Culture in Sweden. She has an academic background in Global Studies and an MA in International Administration and Global Governance. Since 2017 she co-leads the transformation of the sustainability management system in the organization. In September 2019 she initiated and organized a national conference for museum staff where different aspects of sustainability were approached. The conference lead to a currently ongoing collaboration exploring the possibilities to establish a digital sustainability platform for museums in Sweden.

Sofie Öberg Magnusson
National Museums of World Culture

Sustainable Organization of Art Institutions – Experiences and Reflections Underway

Stephanie Shapiro is a change innovator providing collaborative strategy and direction to the cultural sector to advance climate action. Stephanie mobilizes the cultural sector’s individuals, associations, and organizations to play an active role in the climate change solution as trusted communicators and educators by facilitating conversations and leveraging connections across sectors. Stephanie is currently the chair of AAM’s Environment and Climate Professional Network’s Partnerships Committee and is certified as a Project Management Professional (PMP). She holds a M.A. in Museum Studies from the George Washington University and B.A. in Art History from Dickinson College.   

Stephanie Shapiro
Sustainable Museums

A Post-”Plus/Minus Dilemma” Reboot: Where are we Now, Where are we going?

Foekje Boersma is Head of Collection Care at the National Library of the Netherlands. Prior to joining the library, Foekje worked as the program manager establishing the Managing Collection Environment initiative at the Getty Conservation Institute, a multiyear initiative addressing a number of compelling research questions and practical issues pertaining to the control and management of collection environments in museums. In her current role she is implementing more sustainable climate control strategies at the national library as well as working on plans for a new remote storage facility using passive climate control.

Foekje Boersma
National Library of the Netherlands

High-tech and low-key storage solution for the national library collections

Our Moderators

 

Paula Toppila is the Executive Director of Pro Arte Foundation Finland and IHME Helsinki. The festival transformed led by Toppila into commissioning agency IHME Helsinki in 2019. IHME brings together art and science in the times of climate and biodiversity crisis. During her directorship IHME has produced during 2009-2018 new annual commission in public space in collaboration with internationally recognised artists: Antony Gormley, Susan Philipsz, Superflex, Christian Boltanski, Miroslaw Balka, Jeremy Deller, Yael Bartana, Katerina Seda, Theaster Gates and Henrik Håkansson. The artists to conceive each annual public commission are selected by the IHME Helsinki expert team chaired by Paula Toppila and by her fellow team members Curator, Professor Ute Meta Bauer (Singapore), Professor Hanna Johansson, artist and researcher Antti Majava and Professor Jussi Parikka (UK). She has a Master of Arts Degree in Art History, took part in Curatorial Training Programme of De Appel Foundation, Amsterdam and graduated from vocational studies in management and leadership at Business College, Helsinki.

Paula Toppila
Executive Director of Pro Arte Foundation Finland and IHME Helsinki.

MA Saara Korpela works as an eco-coordinator in four Finnish art organisations: IHME Helsinki which produces one art-work in a public space a year; Frame Contemporary Art Finland which is an advocate for contemporary Finnish art supporting international initiatives and facilitating professional partnerships; HIAP – International Artist Programme and Mustarinda which are artist-in-residence programs. She has a Master of Arts Degree combining translation studies and environmental protection and additional training in sustainable development and leading sustainable change.

Saara Korpela
Eco-Coordinator for IHME Helsinki ; Frame Contemporary Art Finland ; HIAP; and Mustarinda.