How to Improve Your YCW Application | Améliorez vos demandes Jeunesse Canada au travail

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As employer applications are received for the 2014 Young Canada Works (YCW) program, the CMA would like to thank last year’s peer review committee for their hard work.

During last year’s review process, we asked the committee to identify general recommendations for developing stronger employer applications. 

We would like to share the top 5 tips to help you write your best application yet!

Weaving a Web of Your Own

"Strike a pose…then share the results. In the entrance to the exhibition #DoubleTake. Multiple frames to choose from… ow.ly/i/1Ptg8" — excerpt from the @Civilization Twitter feed.

Along with many cultural organizations, the Canadian Museum of Civilization is using social media to reach new audiences and engage the community. Social media is less about experts disseminating information to visitors and more about building an online community and having conversations with members.

For most cultural institutions, having a Facebook and a Twitter presence is a priority but social platforms shouldn't be used to push ideas or use academic jargon; posts should be kept simple. They can be about current collections, upcoming exhibitions and interesting facts. But let’s face it, who is going to reply to those posts? Get creative! Twitter and Facebook posts should tell followers how curators develop exhibitions, share behind-the-scenes photos, ask provocative questions, tell jokes, share weird facts, and be entertaining. These kinds of posts will generate a reaction and encourage your community to interact with you online.

Q&A with Nancy Noble, New President of the CMA Board of Directors | Entrevue avec Nancy Noble, nouvelle présidente du Conseil d’administration de l’AMC

The CMA is very pleased to welcome Nancy Noble who was elected to serve as President of the CMA Board of Directors at the CMA Annual General Meeting which took place on May 29, 2013 in Whitehorse, Yukon. Nancy has served as a member of the CMA board since 2008, most recently as Vice-President. We asked Nancy about her views on the Canadian museums community and how she feels about being involved with the CMA. 
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What motivated you to get involved with the Canadian Museums Association?

I have been a member of the CMA since my days as a Master’s student in Museum Studies at the University of Leicester in England. I have always believed that one’s ability to succeed in any profession is directly related to how connected you are to others in your field and how much are willing to learn from them. The CMA has been an avenue for learning and networking for me. It is a respected organization that puts people and ideas together and over the years that has been very beneficial to me and to the organizations I have led. In fact, I don’t think I would be as engaged in my work or as successful without those connections. They have led to life-long colleagues and friends whose knowledge and counsel I rely on regularly. One of the reasons I have stayed in the field (because we all know it has its share of challenges) is the diversity of people who work in the field and their immense creativity and passion.

My decision to get involved in the governance of the organization came from an obligation to give something back to the Association and, even more importantly, to a community that has supported me throughout my career. It is an odd moment in your life when you realize you are no longer the “next generation” of leaders, but “this generation” of leaders. It was at that stage that I thought I should give something back. 

Sex Talk in the City exhibition: Q&A with Viviane Gosselin | L’exposition Sex Talk in the City : entrevue avec Viviane Gosselin

The following interview, conducted with Museum of Vancouver curator Viviane Gosselin, is intended to provide a behind-the-scenes look at Controversy and Condoms: Showing Sexuality in Canadian Museums, an article by Kierra Jones in the July/August 2013 edition of the CMA’s Muse magazine. The exhibition Sex Talk in the City is presented until September 2, 2013.
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How did this exhibition come about? Where did the idea come from?

From a confluence of events: Years ago I worked at a science centre on an exhibition exploring aspects of human biology. The segment on puberty and teens' sexuality provoked so many fun and challenging conversations on the part of museum staff and visitors that I promised myself I would one day work on an exhibition entirely dedicated to the topic of sexuality. Sex Talk in the City is the first project I proposed when I joined the curatorial team at the Museum of Vancouver (MOV) three years ago.

What a Week in Whitehorse! | Quelle semaine à Whitehorse!

We hope you have returned safe, sound and stimulated from the 2013 CMA National Conference; we certainly have! We were treated once again to the genuine hospitality of the people of Whitehorse. Even Mother Nature gave us a warm welcome! It was the perfect setting for learning and networking with some of the best in the museum community. From singing keynote speakers and inspiring award recipients, to throwing atlatls at mock mammoths and panning for gold — the week flew by!

You can relive some of your favourite moments by viewing photos on the CMA Flickr site (can you tell which ones were taken at midnight?), and videos of the Award recipients on the CMA YouTube channel. To see the entertaining “photo-booth” pictures taken during the event at the MacBride Museum of Yukon History, click on this hyperlink and use the access code “museum”. Who knew museum professionals could strike a pose like that? Our thanks to the MacBride Museum for sharing those images and for hosting a wonderful evening.

A Busy Spring and Summer

What a most amazing Conference we just had. You should see my photos of what midnight looks like in Whitehorse! 

The Conference was terrific and I wish everyone could experience the wonderful Yukon hospitality!

While up North, I went to Skagway which is one of the most beautiful drives in the world. Forest, dessert, lakes, barren rocks above the tree line, crossing the Rockies, and then straight down to Skagway. I had lunch in a brothel (now a museum), took a helicopter ride over the mountains, one of which my grandfather climbed on the way to the Klondike looking for gold a century ago (he never found much, just enough for my grandmother’s wedding ring). And then it was back to Whitehorse, where I had the opportunity to have dinner with the Premier of the Yukon, Darrell Pasloski.

I also did several important things before getting to the Yukon, such as attending the Organization of Military Museums of Canada conference in London, ON, attending meetings with the President of the Chinese Museums Association in Toronto, and I was one of three speakers to officially open the new Robert Bateman Museum in Victoria, BC.

And now I’m in New Brunswick, where I will be working for the summer. I want to wish everyone a great summer and look forward to seeing everyone in the fall!

John G. McAvity

Executive Director

ICOM Europe Conference: Public Policies towards Museums in Times of Crisis

City of Lisbon, Portugal

In April 2013, I participated in a conference in Lisbon on the funding crisis facing museums in Europe, which was sponsored by ICOM. I was also invited to speak on “the Canadian experience”.

I was eager to attend this conference and to learn more about how museums in Europe are dealing with the massive cuts. While there, I heard many horror stories but felt the hope of my museological colleagues. There have been many closures of museums, aggressive programs for merging museums, rushed privatization of some sites, and many layoffs. These extensive changes have even paralyzed many museums. The seriousness of the situation was very evident in Lisbon where youth unemployment is over 50% and the economy is stagnant.

The Black Wolf Squadron

The story of the first transcontinental flight to land in Whitehorse

As we embrace the northern spirit before making the trek to our 66th CMA National Conference, we'd like to share this fascinating article about the first transcontinental flight to land in Whitehorse, Yukon. We hope you enjoy this little piece of history as you prepare to make your way north.

The first powered flight in aviation history — when the Wright brothers flew the Flyer in North Carolina — lasted 12 seconds and covered 36.5 metres. Just 17 years later, the United States Army developed an audacious plan: a 14,500-kilometre transcontinental flight. No one, military or otherwise, had attempted such a feat. 

Membership Corner | Le coin des membres

Hello Megan,

I am a CMA member but I am not receiving the daily news clippings. I may not have signed up for it. Do I need to do something in order to receive it by email? Let me know. Thanks for your help. 
— Susan

Since starting with the CMA back in October I’ve received several questions regarding subscription to our exclusive CMA Clipping Service. For those of you who are not familiar with it, the Clipping Service provides subscribers with a daily email that links them to museum news and headlines from publications across Canada in both French and English. It covers everything from record breaking art sales and controversial exhibitions, to new museum appointments and programming success stories. The Clipping Service offers museum professionals and enthusiasts a convenient and reliable way to stay on top of current affairs in the field.

Celebrating Future Museum Professionals

On the evening of Thursday, April 25, I had the privilege of addressing the soon-to-be graduates of Algonquin College's Applied Museum Studies (AMS) program at a well-attended public event. The students talked about their experiences as interns at various museums across Canada as well as several international sites.

© CMA / AMC 2013

This three-year Ontario College Advanced Diploma program provides students with a background in museum work and the technical areas common to all museums including collections management, exhibit preparation, conservation, educational programming and museum management.

The AMS program — one of the most recognized of its kind in Canada — is currently celebrating its 40th anniversary. Congratulations to Algonquin College and all the graduates!   

The CMA is the proud employer of a number of the students who were introduced at the event. These young people represent the future of our profession–we will be in good hands. Bravo Algonquin!

 






John G. McAvity

Executive Director

Special Exhibition on Parliament Hill | Exposition spéciale sur la colline du Parlement

On the evening of Tuesday, April 23, Audrey Vermette and I had the opportunity to go to the Prime Minister's office and Cabinet Rooms for the unveiling of a special exhibition of rare artifacts from the Franklin Expedition, organized by the Canadian Museum of Civilization. With several cabinet ministers and MPs also in attendance, Audrey and I had the opportunity to discuss key issues facing museums in Canada. 

© CMA / AMC 2013

Few people know that the Cabinet Rooms showcase a number of important Canadian works of art as well as artefacts, underlining to our federal representatives the importance of Canadian heritage and the role museums play in preserving it. Plans are underway to continue displaying collections on loan from museums. 

John G. McAvity
Executive Director
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Pendant la soirée du mardi 23 avril, Audrey Vermette et moi sommes allés au Cabinet du Premier Ministre et aux salles de réunion du Cabinet pour l’inauguration d’une nouvelle exposition d’artefacts de l’expédition Franklin, présentée par le Musée canadien des civilisations. Tandis que plusieurs ministres et députés étaient aussi présents, nous avons eu l’occasion de discuter des principaux enjeux auxquels font face les musées au Canada.

Peu de gens savent que les salles de réunion du Cabinet servent de vitrine pour présenter plusieurs œuvres d’art et artefacts canadiens importants. Ceci souligne aux représentants fédéraux l’importance du patrimoine canadien et le rôle que jouent les musées pour le préserver. Il est prévu de continuer de présenter des collections prêtées par des musées.

 






John G. McAvity
Directeur général