Keynote presentation Small Museum Conference 2012 Toowoomba

1. Making Change in a Volunteer Run
Museum
Suzanne Gibson: Manager Cairns Historical Society Museum

2. DISCLAIMER

3. Outline
• Background to myself and the Cairns
Historical Society Museum.
• Overview of the planning work we’ve
been doing and where we are at.
• Snapshot of a few community
engagement activities we’ve tried.
• Reflections .. lessons; the good the
bad and the ugly of change … ;)

4. Me

5. Cairns Historical Society Museum
• Part of the Cairns Historical Society, the
earliest Historical Society in NQ
• Society has four operations: research
archive/library; imaging department; shop;
and a museum.
• Society as a whole has an active volunteer
base of 50, of which 20 are active in the
museum
• Museum established in 1980, and
extensively refurbished in 1983

10. Why change?
• Falling visitation
• Invisibility in the community
• The building was extremely run down
• The museum didn’t seem to reflect
Cairns

16. The case for change
The museum didn’t really seem to
reflect the Cairns that we could
see, smell and hear around us

22. Strengths
• There is a great story to tell
• There was no other museum in town
• We have a huge international and
national visitation to our city
• Great premises – potential!

23. • Great resources in terms of the CHS
collection
• An organisational culture of public
service
• Willingness to think about changing
• POTENTIAL

24. Making change
• A plan for renewing the museum
• Reach out to locals
• A better relationship with CRC

25. Irritating and unjust as it seems:
we had to demonstrate the value of
what we do and the potential of our
organisation.

26. Short story
• Successful in obtaining two years of
funding from CRC to rethink the
museum.
• New strategic plan, new collection
policy, thematic survey of the
collection, strategic collecting priorities.
• The process got us out talking to people
outside our organisation.

27. The surprises
• Most volunteers understood that the
museum had stagnated
• Many also recognised that the museum
needed to be modernised
• Most volunteers were enthused at the
potential for change

28. The Vision
A museum that reveals the past
and connects with the present of
Cairns as a tropical city.

29. Our Mission
The Cairns Museum
collects, conserves, researches
and exhibits the
history, heritage, people, places
and changing environment of
Cairns.

30. Our Values
• A sustainable museum and collection as an
endowment for the future
• Fostering community connections and social
inclusion
• Integrity in the presentation of stories and
displays
• An advocate for the importance of our
place, and its history and heritage

31. Our Purpose
• Interpret the history of Cairns through stories
about life in the tropics and
people, places, objects and the environment
• Orient visitors and the community to the
history, heritage, places and cultures shaping
the development of Cairns
• Engage the community and visitors, sharing
stories about life in the tropics
• Provide education opportunities to people of
all ages
• Care for a significant collection for present and
future generations

32. Reasons to be cheerful …
• CRC has set aside $3.75 million to renovate the
School of Arts building
• Included is dedicated space for the CHC and its
collection, as well as dedicated space for the
museum … ie we’re not being evicted
• Wheelchair accessible and new street entry
• Talking with CRC about an MOU that will provide
some financial support to the CHS
• Funding to re-imagine our display and interpretation
of Aboriginal cultures
• Funding for replanning the museum

33. Reasons to tear out your hair …
• There is no money for a fit out (plan to
win that one)
• They won’t put the museum on the
ground floor (won’t win that one)
• Still don’t really see the potential of
the museum as a CBD drawcard (can
change that)

34. Outreach

44. History on the Move trailer

50. Reflections: the internal community
• Change needs leadership.
• Just because people don’t want to lead a change
process doesn’t mean they don’t want change.
• Ask your internal community what they would
like to see in the museum. Insightful and
positive.
• Keep talking – even when people don’t like what
you are saying, keep saying it – tactfully.
• Know when you have said enough.

51. Reflections: volunteers
• If you recruit volunteers from different
cultural backgrounds, more will come
• Volunteers like project – something with
a beginning, a middle and an end
• Keep talking
• Take their advice

52. Reflections: external stakeholders
• Tell people what you are doing
• Especially tell local Councillors and key
Council officers
• Building relationships takes time
• Find good partners to work with

53. Has the been change?
Yes there has been change - renewed
enthusiasm, forward
thinking, inclusiveness, defined direction for
future of museum and collection policy more
business-like, changed community
involvement, development of school
programs, deaccessioning progress, clean up.

54. Yes, a more friendly feeling and a cooperation
with everyone. It seems much more
organized, and more business like.

55. appearance of the museum entrances, good
quality exhibition WHICH WE DID OURSELVES
AND DIDN'T HAVE TO GET CONSULTANTS IN FOR
(yay), better relationship with CRC and other
organisations partly because a museum
professional is now fronting the organisation
(and because of your pre-existing
networks), important documents
updated, significance statements for
objects, better accessioning process, shed
situation more under control, new and creative
types of outreach activities as well as the trailer.

56. I would have like to see more stuff being culled
more quickly however I appreciate the delicacy
of the matter. Having taken the de-accessioning
more slowly seems to have worked wonders. It’s
amazing that XX has even agreed to the printing
press being relocated (even if it isn’t to the
dump)

57. The Cairns in 1942 display has clean features full
of interesting information and contrasts
markedly with the rest of the displays in the
Museum. I can’t wait for them all to be
revamped.

62. What could we have done
better/differently with hindsight?
Still nervous about shed clean-up and what has
been discarded/is being discarded given
accession for those objects was so minimal - are
we throwing out stuff which we don't know the
significance of?

63. Importance of respecting the past contributions
of section leaders & various volunteers

64. I would have liked to see something done about
the shop. Our love for XX made it hard to make
hard decisions. I don’t think we should feel bad
about caring about our members …

65. Are we doing the right thing?