MUSEUMS AND SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES: SUMMIT OF THE MUSEUMS OF THE
AMERICAS

Museums and Sustainable Communities is a conference designed to provide
the opportunity for museum and related professionals to identify issues
in their work that impact the sustainability of their institutions and
collections in service to their communities. Scheduled for April 16 -
20, 1998, in San José, Costa Rica, the conference is organized by the
American Association of Museums (AAM) and convened by ICOM-Costa Rica,
in collaboration with AAM/ICOM, ICOM Canada, the Museum Association of
the Caribbean (MAC), and ICOM's Latin America/Caribbean Regional
Organization, in response to the International Council of Museums'
1995-98 Triennial Plan.
        The conference will gather 150 professionals from across the
Western Hemisphere who are actively engaged in the fields of museum
work, cultural heritage, and community development to hold a dialogue on
how museums are involved in the sustainable development of their
communities and how they can cooperate to the benefit of both.
Participants will break into working groups to discuss the theme as it
relates to five topic areas: management and protection of cultural
property and heritage; cultural and eco-tourism; emergency preparedness;
the educational role of museums; and technology. By the end of the
conference, participants will have developed plans of action that might
result in specific projects and networks that lay the groundwork for
expanded dialogue, ongoing collaboration, and cooperation.
        A small delegation from the U.S. will be chosen to participate.
Announcements and application forms are now available.

         Application deadline is November 7, 1997. 

        Contact: Museums and Sustainable Communities, American
Association of Museums, 1575 Eye Street, NW, Suite 400, Washington, DC
20005; 
        fax (202) 289-6578; e-mail [log in to unmask]


Roxana Adams
"The old order changeth, giving way to new." Tennyson