Reflecting the Future

• What can you explore?
  
• Over the two days you will experience:
  

• In-depth 90-minute workshops exploring the impactful legacies of our international Multaka Network partners from Berlin, Florence, Oxford, Turin, and Zaragoza,
  
• A vibrant panel discussion highlighting shifting perspectives in community & cultural sectors,
  
• Multaka tours across Museum Island, led by Berlin guides, bringing different voices and personal insights.
  
• This anniversary is not just a celebration – it’s a moment to pause, reflect, and imagine what lies ahead.
  

Register your place to secure your attendance.


For further questions, please contact us at multaka@smb.museum

Programme

Day one – Friday 5 December 2025, 10.15am - 5.30pm
9.30 – 10.15


10.15 – 11.15
Key-note & welcome speech by Prof. Dr. Stefan Weber & Dr. Silke Ackermann
Introduction by Multaka Berlin & Multaka Oxford

11.15 – 11.45
Tea and coffee break

11.45 – 1.15
Bridging histories. Reframing narratives. Building shared futures

Workshop 1
Museo Egizio, Turin - “Bridging the Gap Between the Past and Present”
Using object-based learning, this workshop explores ancient Egyptian ideas related to daily and religious life. Through a simulated exhibition featuring replicas and photos from the Museo Egizio and Berlin’s Egyptian collection, together we will reflect on our own cultural and personal similarities with people from this ancient past.

Workshop 2
Amir Project, Florence - “Colonial Photography and Decolonial Gazes”
Through collective observation and discussion of colonial-era photographs from the Italian occupation of Ethiopia and Eritrea (1935–1936), we will critically examine the role of images in shaping historical narratives. Together, we will reflect on the interplay of photography, anthropology, and the power of images in shaping narratives, while deconstructing the stereotypes, clichés, and racism embedded within these visuals.


1.15 – 2.15
Lunch


2.15 – 3.45
Reimagining museums with young adults, for the futures we share


Workshop 1
Multaka Berlin & MultakaOxford - “Engaging Young Adults: Meeting Points of Creativity, Belonging & Collaboration”

In this workshop, we will consider the approaches and impact of working with young adults and older teenagers. Participants will experience two different approaches. Firstly the Toolbox: Shared Future from Multaka Berlin, which is playful, participatory and flexible, creating space for fun, dialogue and personal stories rather than formal knowledge transfer. Secondly, The Culture Club MultakaOxford, where young people become leaders, artists, and researchers and share their perspectives and shape museum spaces with film, photography and art.

Together, will also reflect on the wider impact: the importance of giving space for discussion and dialogue to young people who are empowered to share opinions. This not only supports young adults to build confidence, wellbeing, and transferable skills, but also contributes to wider discussion on diversity, migration, identity and to build stronger, more connected communities.


Workshop 2
Multaka International Partners - “Responding to Change - Acting Transformation: Innovation & Vision in International Museum Practice”

As society changes around us, the museums who form the Multaka International Network are reimagining their roles in response to social, political, environmental, and technological shifts. Through community-led practice, the projects within the network have been changing the approaches to public programming, decolonisation, digital engagement, database enhancement and permanent exhibitions and sustainable practice. This workshop highlights how the different institutions are moving beyond traditional short-term, discrete projects to create embedded organisational change through their community-centred, social impact models of practice.


4.00 – 5.30
Panel discussion chaired by ShaNon Bobinger – “Envisioning the Future”
A panel of Multaka members, volunteers, and project partners in discussion on shared questions:

• How do we continue community work within museums?
  
• What challenges do we face?
  
• How do we move forward together?
  

5.30 – 5.45
Closing remarks


Day two - Saturday 6 December 2025, 10am - 2pm
9.30 – 10am
Welcome, registration for new attendees
Tea & Coffee

10 – 11.30am
Memory is our future – The impact of communities and cultural mediators


Workshop 1
University of Zaragoza, Spain - “Training in Cultural Rights And Mediation from the University of Zaragoza”

The workshop will start with a discussion on methods and practices that promote cultural rights and mediation within the university context. It will then explore Mudéjar art as an example of cultural coexistence in medieval Spain, highlighting the lasting impact of interactions among Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. Overall, the session seeks to reflect on how cultural mediation can be integrated into university programs and how a multicultural understanding of heritage can help counter divisive rhetoric and language.


Workshop 2
Multaka Berlin - “Where to? – From Roots to the Future

In this interactive workshop, participants will reflect creatively on the Multaka project's ten-year journey — from its origins to its current form — while considering new directions for its future development.
Together, we will explore how Multaka’s identity and objectives can evolve to remain vibrant and relevant in today's ever-changing cultural and social landscapes.


11.45 – 12.15
Closing remarks - Call to Action: Reimagining Museums



1 – 2pm
Multaka Guided Tours

Altes Museum (Collection of Classical Antiquities)
Neues Museum (Egyptian Museum and Papyrus Collection)
Bode Museum (Sculpture Collection and Museum of Byzantine Art)
Please note:
By attending the event, you consent to the creation and publication of photos and video recordings of the event. The recordings will be used exclusively for the project’s non-commercial public relations purposes.


Registration conditions
Registration is required. Registration will be for both days on December 5th and 6th.
Last day for registration is Tuesday, 2 December 2025 or until the event is fully booked.


IN ENGLISH