“Museums have a role to play in addressing the climate crisis,” says Nakabuye
Hilda Flavia Nakabuye, a Ugandan climate and environmental rights activist, has urged museums to take on a new level of consciousness regarding their environmental impact.
Nakabuye, the founder of Uganda’s Fridays for Future movement, stated that it is time for museums to serve as conservation monuments rather than simply preserving them because we cannot have sustainable museums on a wrecking planet.
The Ugandan climate activist made these remarks while speaking at the 26th International Council of Museums (ICOM) General Conference in Prague, the Czech Republic on Tuesday.
She said that “Museums should have a new responsibility of consciousness when it comes to their impact on the environment. How often do you check the impact of your carbon footprint, energy usage, infrastructure or waste management?”
“We cannot have sustainable museums on a wrecking planet. Without the planet, there cannot be museums and that is why we need each other in this climate fight,” she added.
According to Nakabuye, if museums do not step up their efforts, Uganda and the rest of the world risk losing biodiversity, and future generations may find images of the animals we have today in museums due to our failure to protect them.
“We should not wait for these animals to die before posting pictures of them, collecting their bones, or preserving their dead bodies in chemicals for future generations to see.” “We have the opportunity to act now to protect the life around us,” said Nakabuye.
Nakabuye also chastised countries in the global north for being responsible for the climate crisis that is endangering humanity while doing so little to assist vulnerable countries like Uganda in dealing with climate-related disasters.
The 26th ICOM General Conference is scheduled to take place from August 28 to August 28, 2022.
The conference’s theme this year is “The Power of Museums.”
At the conference, museum professionals from around the world are expected to present topics and set the direction of the museum sector for at least the next three years.