Projects per year
Abstract
It has been over a decade since the last sector wide survey of museums and collections in Australian universities. This period has arguably seen the most dramatic changes in higher education. A survey of university natural history museums and collections was undertaken in 2009 to ascertain what changes have been implemented as a result of the numerous recommendations made in the 1998
Transforming Cinderella Collections report. The survey revealed that many still lack the operating policies and procedures necessary for proper professional management and few are integrated into institution wide approaches to material collections despite the large number of significant items held therein. While there has
been increased awareness of the importance of preventative conservation strategies, poor resourcing often prevents implementation. Few have disaster preparedness plans in place. Despite broad contributions in the areas of teaching support, research support and community engagement, there is still a marked over reliance on inadequate internal funding mechanisms. Universities should be encouraged
to align the work of these museums and collections with strategic institutional objectives in order to develop equitable and sustainable funding models.
Original language | English |
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Title of host publication | Interesting times |
Subtitle of host publication | new roles for collections : Museums Australia National Conference 2010 : conference papers |
Place of Publication | Canberra |
Publisher | Museum Australia |
Pages | 169-173 |
Number of pages | 5 |
ISBN (Print) | 9780958029025 |
Publication status | Published - 2011 |
Event | Museums Australia National Conference - Melbourne Duration: 28 Sept 2010 → 2 Oct 2010 |
Conference
Conference | Museums Australia National Conference |
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City | Melbourne |
Period | 28/09/10 → 2/10/10 |
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Dive into the research topics of 'A Recent survey of the current status of university natural history museums and collections in Australia'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.Projects
- 1 Finished
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Australian University Collections: towards a third sector-wide review
1/08/09 → 31/07/11
Project: Research