We are Europeana: The Europeana Network Association AGM 2015
Rather remarkably for a Dutch November morning, it was with blue skies overhead that 240 members of the Europeana Network Association gathered in Amsterdam for the 2015 AGM, this year bearing the title ‘We are Europeana’. So what did we all get up to?
Well, with a busy programme brimming with thought-provoking talks, fascinating workshops, and an unforgettable evening at the Rijksmuseum, it’s tricky to know where to begin. I think we speak for the whole Members Council if we start by saying a huge thank you to everyone who came and made it such a lively, positive two days. The commitment of the Europeana Network Association to the future of digital cultural heritage was inspiring to see.
And if we had to choose our highlight? Perhaps it would be the paper plane exercise, ‘Fly your Europeana Dream’. To the rhythms of Harry Verwayen’s harmonica, our dreams for Europeana and our community took flight and Jill Cousins was there to catch them… well, at least try to! You can watch a great video about it here:
AGM 2015 - Fly your Europeana dream from Europeana on Vimeo.
Throughout the two days the conference’s simple motto - ‘We are Europeana’ - was picked up on by presenters and speakers to express their vision for Europeana’s future.
By Max Kaiser, Chair of the Europeana Network Association, in his welcome speech, as he encouraged members to build on the impressive progress made by the Network Association during its first year.
By Members Councillor Merete Sanderhoff as she opened the Commons session, calling on the cultural sector to work together for the mutual benefit of everyone.
By hilarious anthropologist Colin Moon, who showed us cultural differences and ways to understand each other.
And by Head of Creativity Unit at the European Commission, Javier Hernandez-Ros, in his rousing keynote on the second day, reminding attendees that “Europeana belongs to all of you” and its success is down to us all.
If you’re looking for any of the presentations from the two days, you can find them on Slideshare, and there are some striking photographs on Europeana's Flickr too.
We look forward to seeing you next year on 7-9 November in Riga at the majestic National Library of Latvia. A new AGM Working Group will form to organise the programme and other details, so if you’re keen to get involved, keep an eye out for news in the coming month or contact us to share your interest.
You'll also hear from our colleague Rolf on 24 November with the results of this year's elections. Thanks to all the fantastic candidates, and of course, the hundreds of voters too.
Last, but not least, we want these get-togethers to be the best they can be. If you have time, please fill out our survey to help us improve next year’s event. We’re very grateful for any feedback you can offer.
