Now accepting Abstracts for the 2020 Safety and Cultural Heritage Summit: Preserving Our Heritage and Protecting Our Health Virtual Professional Development Seminar
The Washington Conservation Guild, the Potomac Section of the American Industrial Hygiene Association, the Smithsonian Institution’s Office of Safety, Health and Environmental Management, and the Smithsonian National Collections Program will once again collaborate with the Lunder Conservation Center to host a Safety and Cultural Heritage Summit.
Half-days beginning
Thursday, 29 October 2020
Presented online
We are now accepting abstracts focusing on controlling health and safety risks from preparing, treating, managing, and exhibiting artistic, historic, and natural science collections as well as abating structural hazards and responding to disasters impacting collections, including challenges of the pandemic. We welcome case studies and action plans, and we encourage joint presentations by conservators, collections care professionals, AND health & safety professionals!
Previous Summit topics can be found here: 2019 Summit Abstracts. Topics and themes for consideration include but are not limited to:
- Safety challenges in installing and managing gallery exhibits–working at heights or outdoors; with heavy, large, or hazardous objects; with touchable/interactive exhibits
- Strategies for building constructive, working relationships between safety and collections professionals, illustrated by case studies, with action steps to resolution
- Identifying and managing hazardous materials in collections
- Safety strategies at both staff and management levels
- Identifying risks posed by conservation treatments and implementing safe work policies for conservation laboratories, with object- and material-specific hazards and management
- Emergency preparedness and response in collections, with action steps
- Pandemic response strategies, including closing down an institution and re-opening with modified procedures
- Scalable solutions for small and large institutions with small or large budgets
Presenters have 3 submission options:
1. A presentation of 20 minutes, with 5-10 minutes for questions. (30 min. max)
2. A lightning round presentation of 5-7 minutes. Group Q/A segment will follow.
3. A 5-10 minute presentation that lays the context and framework for a discussion-based breakout session. (30 min. max)
Registration is complimentary for presenters. International submissions welcome.
Abstracts must specify your submission preference, include a provisional title, and not exceed 300 words. Presentations may be delivered live or prerecorded.
Questions Welcomed! Please send your presentation and poster abstracts to safety-summit@washingtonconservationguild.org by COB August 7.
