Respect: Engendering participatory relationships in conservation education

Abstract

In 2004, the Centre for Cultural Materials Conservation (The University of Melbourne) established a new subject, Respect, as part of a new Masters by Coursework in Cultural Materials Conservation. In this subject, guest lecturers who have extraordinary or senior cultural expertise and knowledge introduce students to the political and societal aspects of cultural materials conservation. They lead students through the complexity of issues relating to context, disruption, authenticity, legal standing, development, reinvention, identity, and minority status. In Respect, students are asked to think about conservation as a practice that could benefit from incorporating intellectual positions and e..