Rethinking heritage through an ethics of care
Insights into NGO–university collaboration from the “Sensitive Legacy” conference
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 21574233 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Agata Strządała (0000-0002-3465-8025), Agnieszka Jabłońska (0000-0001-7685-4334) |
| Year | 2026 |
| Volume | 29 |
| Issue | 4 |
| Pages | 11-31 |
| Publication date | 2026-05-14 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Prace Kulturoznawcze (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0860-6668 • E-ISSN: 2957-2401 |
| Publisher | Uniwersytet Wrocławski (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.19195/0860-6668.29.4.2 |
| OpenAlex | W7161137430 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 10 |
This article analyzes the Sensitive Legacy conference (Wrocław, 2024) as a case study of how the ethics of care can be operationalized in academic, museum, and NGO contexts. By examining the event’s approach, interdisciplinary dialogue, cooperation, and the involvement of Indigenous representatives, the article highlights the paradigm shift from traditional, detached approaches to heritage preservation toward a relational and community-centered model. The ethics of care, rooted in the work of Carol Gilligan, Joan Tronto, and Karen E. Till, is explored as a moral and political framework that informs collaborative heritage practices in a specific geographic and urban context. The paper emphasizes the role of NGOs—particularly the Urban Memory Foundation—as key actors in reshaping institutional responsibilities through advocacy, dialogue, and inclusive memory work. The conference’s focus on the repatriation of human remains and difficult colonial-era collections created in Germany, and now part of Polish collections due to the post-WWII border shifts and property transfers, illustrates how heritage institutions can move beyond knowledge production toward ethical restitution and reconciliation. Drawing on international cooperation between Australian, German, and Polish partners, the article demonstrates how universities and NGOs can co-create new practices for ethically engaging with sensitive heritage
Cultural heritage management · Indigenous · Industrial heritage · Operationalization · Politics · Repatriation · Restitution · Archaeological Research and Protection · Cultural Heritage Management and Preservation · Memory, Trauma, and Commemoration
| Highly cited | No |
|---|