The second session of this new series is scheduled on 23 June at 17:00 CET, exploring the pivotal role of strategic communications in shaping museum culture, both outward and inward-facing: promoting inclusive narratives and fostering a safe environment.
Museums today face a double challenge: to create change, they must navigate contested narratives, colonial legacies, and rising demands for inclusive representation. But transformation begins at home. Internally, museums also confront a troubling reality – workplace toxicity, burnout, and systemic inequities that undermine their stated values. In both arenas, communication is a fundamental tool for preventing and addressing harassment, racism, and discrimination.
“Museum as Safe Spaces” brings together leading voices in the museum field to examine how strategic communication – both outward and inward-facing – can protect the museum’s public mission and its people.
In cooperation with the “Tourism & Heritage” Innovation Hub and Ulysseus WP6 “EDI & CE”, ICOM ICTOP, ICOM INTERCOM “Museum Communication” Working Group of ICOM Italy and NEMO, this initiative is presented by ICOM COMMS, the International Committee for Communications, Marketing and Audience Engagement of ICOM – the International Council of Museums, the leading international non-governmental organisation of museums and museum professionals, partner of UNESCO.
It is curated and conducted by Cristina Chiaiso, Research Fellow at the University of Genoa, Board Member of ICOM COMMS, and Coordinator of the national Museum Communication Working Group of ICOM Italy.
The project is aligned with the International Museum Day 2026 theme “Museums Uniting a Divided World”, highlighting the potential of museums to act as bridges across cultural, social, and geopolitical divides, fostering dialogue, understanding, inclusion and peace within and between communities worldwide. Organised by ICOM each year since 1977 to raise awareness about the fact that “Museums are an important means of cultural exchange, enrichment of cultures and development of mutual understanding, cooperation and peace among peoples”, the IMD represents a unique moment for the international museum community.
>> Join us in these two open conversations to support an inclusive environment within museums and cultural spaces. It’s a proactive framework for institutional integrity: understanding what is happening and what we can do about it.
>> What you will take away: A conceptual framework connecting external narrative strategy to internal organizational culture, grounded in cutting-edge research and real-world data.
MUSEUMS AS SAFE SPACES – SESSION 2: LOOKING INWARD
STRATEGIC COMMUNICATION TO PROMOTE INCLUSIVE NARRATIVES IN MUSEUMS
This session turns the lens inward to examine how internal communication systems – reporting channels, equity data, accountability mechanisms – can transform organisational culture and protect the people who make museum work possible
PROGRAMME
Cristina Chiaiso, PhD, Research Fellow at the University of Genoa and its Dissemination Officer for the Ulysseus European alliance, is Project Manager of the “Tourism & Heritage” Innovation Hub.
With specialised expertise in designing and coordinating cultural enhancement projects, her research focuses on communication and innovation strategies for the cultural sector, particularly within museum and academic fields. She leads the Ulysseus joint R&I group “Innovation Strategies for Cultural Heritage”.
She is a curator of cultural initiatives and presenter, lecturer and tutor at international conferences, seminars, workshops and other training activities.
A committed advocate for best practices in the field, she is affiliated with FERPI, the Italian Public Relations Association. She coordinates the ICOM Italy “Museum Communication” Working Group and is an elected Board Member of the ICOM COMMS International Committee for Communications, Marketing and Audience Engagement.
Professor François Mairesse teaches museology and cultural economics and holds the UNESCO Chair on the study of museum diversity and its evolution, Museum Prospect, at the Université Sorbonne nouvelle (Paris 3). Scientific coordinator of the Heritage in the making: emerging strategies project (HERMES, France 2030), he was formerly President of the International Committee for Museology of ICOM (ICOFOM) and Director of the Musée royal de Mariemont (Morlanwelz), in Belgium. He is the author of several articles and books on museology.
Mia Locks is Executive Director and Co-Founder of Museums Moving Forward (MMF), a limited-life organization with a mission to create a more just sector by 2030. She is a co-author of MMF’s biannual report, Workplace Equity and Organizational Culture in US Art Museums (2023, 2025). She is also a curator of contemporary art and worked previously at the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York; The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles (MOCA); and MoMA PS1, New York. Currently based in Los Angeles, she serves as an editorial advisor on the podcasts The Art World: Hope & Dread (2021-2022) and The Art World: What If…?! (2024-2026).
(Ph: Sarah Orbanic)
Liz Levine is the Head of Programs at Museums Moving Forward (MMF). She is the co-author of MMF’s bi-annual data study, Workplace Equity and Organizational Culture in US Art Museums, and the Art Museum Unions Index, among other projects. Prior to joining MMF, she worked for AFSCME Cultural Workers United, the J. Paul Getty Trust, and other cultural organizations.
Jessica Ramírez Rivera is a graphic designer, visual communicator, and cultural manager specializing in feminist museology, inclusion, and gender-inclusive design. She holds a PhD in Arts and Design and a Master’s degree in Visual Arts from UNAM. With more than fifteen years of experience, she has worked in museums, cultural institutions, and educational programs for academic institutions and NGOs. She currently serves as Operation Manager at the Kahlo House Museum. Her work focuses on inclusive museographic strategies, safe cultural spaces, citizen participation, and feminist museum practices. She has presented workshops and lectures internationally in collaboration with institutions such as ICOM, INAH, and UPV.
