A History of Participation in Museums and Archives: Traversing Citizen Science and Citizen Humanities

311 Pages·2020·25.658 MB·English

by  Per Hetland (editor), Palmyre Pierroux (editor), Line Esborg (editor)

A History of Participation in Museums

and Archives
Traversing disciplines, A History of Participation in Museums and Archives provides
a framework for understanding how participatory modes in natural, cultural, and
scientific heritage institutions intersect with practices in citizen science and citizen
humanities.
Drawing on perspectives in cultural history, science and technology studies, and
media and communication theory, the book explores how museums and archives make
science and cultural heritage relevant to people’s everyday lives, while soliciting their
assistance and participation in research and citizen projects. More specifically, the book
critically examines how different forms of engagement are constructed, how concepts
of democratization are framed and enacted, and how epistemic practices in science
and the humanities are transformed through socio-t echnological infrastructures.
Tracking these central themes across disciplines and research from Europe, Canada,
Australia, and the United States, the book simultaneously considers their relevance for
museum and heritage studies.
A History of Participation in Museums and Archives should be essential reading for
a broad academic audience, including scholars and students in museum and heritage
studies, digital humanities, and the public communication of science and technology.
It should also be of great interest to museum professionals working to foster public
engagement through collaboration with networks and local community groups.
Per Hetland (PhD) is Professor at the Department of Education, University of Oslo,
Norway. Hetland holds a Dr. Philos. in science communication from University of
Oslo and a PhD in innovation studies from Roskilde University, Denmark. His current
research is focused on natural history research museums and citizen science.
Palmyre Pierroux (PhD) is Professor at the Department of Education, University of
Oslo, Norway. She leads the Cultural Heritage Mediascapes project, which examines
how participatory democracy concepts and digital media and technologies are
transforming knowledge and communication practices in the cultural heritage sector.
Line Esborg (PhD) is Associate Professor at the Department of Culture Studies and
Oriental Languages, University of Oslo, Norway. Esborg serves as Senior Advisor at
the Norwegian Folklore Archives, and her research is centered on folklore, digital heri-
tage, and the politics of identity in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.

A History of Participation

in Museums and Archives
Traversing Citizen Science
and Citizen Humanities
Edited by
Per Hetland,
Palmyre Pierroux,
and Line Esborg
First published 2020
by Routledge
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN
and by Routledge
52 Vanderbilt Avenue, New York, NY 10017
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
© 2020 selection and editorial matter, Per Hetland, Palmyre Pierroux, and Line Esborg;
individual chapters, the contributors
The right of Per Hetland, Palmyre Pierroux, and Line Esborg to be identified as the authors
of the editorial material, and of the authors for their individual chapters, has been asserted
in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised
in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or
hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information
storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers.
Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks,
and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe.
British Library Cataloguing- in-P ublication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging- in- Publication Data
A catalog record has been requested for this book
ISBN: 978- 0- 367- 18671- 5 (hbk)
ISBN: 978- 0- 429- 19753- 6 (ebk)
Typeset in Times New Roman
by Newgen Publishing UK
Contents

List of figures vii

List of tables viii

Departure 1

1 Traversing citizen science and citizen humanities: Tacking stitches 3
PALMYRE PIERROUX, PER HETLAND, AND LINE ESBORG
Democratization 25

2 Museums as sites of participatory democracy and design 27
PALMYRE PIERROUX, MATTIAS BÄCKSTRÖM, BRITA
BRENNA, GEOFFREY GOWLLAND, AND GRO WEEN
3 Participation and engagement in a world of increasing complexity 46
BERNARD SCHIELE
4 Infrastructures that democratize? Citizen participation and
digital ethics 73
JENNY KIDD
Divides 91

5 Knowledge infrastructures for citizen science: The taming of
knowledge 93
CHRISTINE HINE
6 Engaging disenfranchised publics through citizen humanities
projects 109
LINE ESBORG
vi Contents
7 Engaging older adults in climate science education: Making the
case for relevant, neighborhood- focused interventions 126
KAREN KNUTSON AND KEVIN CROWLEY
Drives 145

8 Remembering in public: A case study of museum- user
communication on Facebook 147
EMILY OSWALD
9 The participatory turn: Users, publics, and audiences 168
PER HETLAND AND KIM CHRISTIAN SCHRØDER
10 Searching for deeper meanings in cultural heritage
crowdsourcing 186
SANITA REINSONE
Developments 209

11 Museums that connect science and communities: Using
boundary objects and networks to encourage dialogue
and collective response to wicked, socio- scientific problems 211
MARY ANN STEINER, MANDELA LYON, AND KEVIN CROWLEY
12 The participatory epistemic cultures of citizen
humanities: Bildung and epistemic subjects 236
DICK KASPEROWSKI, CHRISTOPHER KULLENBERG, AND
FRAUKE ROHDEN
13 The quest for reciprocity: Citizen science as a form of gift
exchange 257
PER HETLAND
Deductions 279

14 Citizen science, citizen humanities: Relevance for museum
research and practice 281
PALMYRE PIERROUX
Index 297
Figures

6.1 Final Report of The Documentation Project 113
6.2 Logo for oral history project showing microphone
(Photo by Karen Knutson) 116
7.1 Program participants making model rain gardens (Photo by
Karen Knutson) 132
7.2 Program participants using heat guns to measure temperature
differences in shade, sun, and on the pavement 133
8.1 Representations of all user comments on the Facebook post
described in Excerpt 1 156
8.2 Representations of comments and replies on Facebook post
described in Excerpt 2 159
8.3 Representations of all user comments on the Facebook post 162
10.1 Krišjānis Barons (1835– 1923), Latvian folklore collector 192
10.2 CWW promotional mask 192
10.3 Muris showing her photo album, Riga, October 6, 2017 197
11.1 Kit building workshop at Center for Creative Reuse.
(Photo: Mary Ann Steiner) 216
11.2 Hidden Cost Cafe: Foods weighted by carbon cost.
(Photo: Lindsey Scherloum) 218
11.3 Extreme Weather Events: infrastructure to mitigate storm
sewer overflow incidents. (Photo: Lindsey Scherloum) 219
11.4 Climate playground at local sewer authority community day.
(Photo: Lauren Allen) 219
12.1 Typical example of volunteer transcription of handwritten
text (Emigrant City) 239
12.2 Casual talk on Old Weather 248
13.1 Age distribution 264
13.2 Education 265
13.3 Why people use SO 266
13.4 SO users’ reports on species groups 268
13.5 How users use SO 270
newgenprepdf
Tables

3.1 From deficit paradigm to engagement paradigm 57
3.2 Participation models 58
3.3 Engagement models 61
3.4 Citizen- science models 67
7.1 Mean scores for sense of place and connection to nature 135
9.1 The participatory turn in citizen science – access, interaction,
and participation 179
11.1 Data corpus for CUSP case studies in New York City and
Philadelphia 222
11.2 Boundary object decision code rules 223
11.3 CUSP theory of action decision code rules 224
14.1 Disciplinary organization of chapters 282
Departure