Recap: Sharing Stories onContested Histories (2018)
How do you tell the stories of shared cultural
heritage? What should be the role ofmuseums in facilitating a dialogical andpolyphonicapproachtowards
disputed
histories? And how can that be achieved? For
the first time, an international training on
approachingand
presenting
contested
heritage was organised in the Netherlands
last year.
The first edition of the Sharing Stories onContested Histories training programme,
which took place from the 2nd of December
until the 14th of December 2018, focussed onstorytelling and communicating heritage
through a multi-perspective and inclusiveapproach. The group of 18 participants,
selected from the 10 partner countries of theShared Cultural Heritage Programme of theNetherlands, consisted of young heritage
professionals and academics in museum andheritage studies.
I liked having the opportunity to explore
Dutch heritage sites alongside Dutch people
and place my own work in conversation withnew practices, concerns, and approaches.
– Participant
The goal of the training is to exchange
approaches with the partner countries on howtocreate
anenvironmentformultiperspectivity
inrelation
tothepresentation and the handling of shared
heritage. By looking at several examples ofshared cultural heritage that could beconsidered as contested, the participants
research how heritage professionals canaccommodate different perspectives on
heritage.
In this first edition of the training, theAmsterdam Museum functioned as ‘client’. In
this role, the museum offered several rooms
within its exhibition space to be reconsideredby the trainees. Working side by side withcurators of the museum, the participants
critically reflected on the presentation andrepresentation in the exhibition rooms andevaluated the attention for multiperspectivity,
biased narratives, and inclusivity. Annemariede Wildt, curator of the Amsterdam Museum,shared her experiences as ‘client’ in her blog
https://hart.amsterdam/nl/page/695773/shar
ing-stories?sfns=mo.
The evaluation of the training showed that
this first edition was successful andmemorable for the participants and theinstitutions partnering the training. Highlights
mentioned were the multilateral learning

environment which increased the awarenessof biases and stereotypes and the need for a
multi-perspective and inclusive approach. The
theoretical lectures and site visits added tothe development of skills to create open
spaces for discussion. The open and curious
attitudes of the participants and themuseums and heritage institutes involved
enabled everybody to engage in fruitful
discussions about the content and the futureof exhibitions concerning shared culturalheritage.
I would like to apply the experience I
have gained at this workshop to adjust myteam’s conceptual discussion and decision
making framework since the results of ourwork should provide a medium facilitating
the expression of different voices andperspectives.
– ParticipantParticipating in this training programme has
resulted in new partnerships between
trainees and the partner institutes. They
continue to work together and exchange
expertise within our international alumni
network. The organisers of the training, theCultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands
and the Reinwardt Academy, consider it very
important that the training keeps resonatingwith the participants and that the network
remains an active platform to exchange
knowledge and expertise on how to sharestories on contested histories.

In December 2019, we hope to welcome a
new group of participants to Amsterdam tofurther
investigate
thecomplexityofpresenting contested heritage.
For more information about Sharing Stories
on Contested Histories, please contact Arjen
Kok (a.kok@cultureelerfgoed.nl) or Ruben
Smit (ruben.smit@ahk.nl), project leaders of
the training programme.