Cultivating Sustainable Collections: Regenerative and community driven care practices

Cultivating Sustainable Collections is a two-day gathering focused on advancing sustainable practices in collection management and preventive conservation. Hosted by Agnes Etherington Art Centre, the initiative brings together professionals, community leaders, researchers, artists, students and collectors to share and exchange innovative, practical and community-rooted solutions for a greener approach to cultural heritage care.

The event addresses the urgent need for systemic change in how art galleries, libraries, archives and museums preserve collections in the face of climate change. It challenges traditional practices, such as strict climate control and the heavy dependency on single-use industrial materials, and highlights the importance of integrating Indigenous, local and community knowledge with scientific approaches to foster regenerative and low-impact care.

The mornings of 12 and 13 September feature public panels on the challenges and solutions in sustainable collections care, while the afternoons offer workshops on practical issues regarding climate control and collecting practices.

Our main goal is to propose and build together an active network for collaboration, advocacy and implementation of environmentally responsible practices focused on small and medium cultural heritage organizations.

By embracing both ancestral wisdom and new evidence-based methods, this initiative hopes to foster transformative practices that empower institutions, professionals and communities to care for their past while safeguarding a shared future.

Photo by Garrett Elliott