Maximising our collaborative capacity for Interdisciplinary Cultural Heritage Research

An ambitious new research initiative led by Professor Vince Dziekan, Senior Academic and Practitioner Researcher (Monash University), and Dr Jamie Larkin, Assistant Professor in Culture, Media and Creative Industries (University of Warwick) is setting out to tackle some of the most urgent issues facing cultural heritage today.

These include how cultural ecosystems operate in an increasingly complex world, how the value of culture in society is supported and sustained in a post-digital age, and how emerging technologies, including but not limited to Artificial Intelligence, are both extending and challenging traditional cultural heritage practices.

This project is enabling Monash and Warwick academics to build upon research expertise in creative technology, digital culture, museum studies, and cultural policy by establishing an international research collective that strengthens their combined capacity through collaboration with other European partners (including those affiliated with the EUTOPIA university alliance) and leading cultural organisations in responding to such challenges.

Focused by an intensive week-long residential workshop hosted jointly at the Monash University Prato Centre and the Warwick Venice Centre in Italy, the project has identified core research objectives and laid foundations for future large-scale collaborations and funding opportunities, including EU Horizon and MSCA Doctoral Networks.

Ultimately, through transforming existing research strengths and connectivity with the creative and cultural sector into a powerful network capacity, this initiative brings an ethically responsible and sustainable approach to innovative interdisciplinary research that addresses complex cultural heritage challenges.