Discussion Papers

CFM's new research report is Demographic Transformation and the Future of Museums, commissioned from the Cultural Policy Center at the University of Chicago. This paper explores the majority-minority future of America and issues a call to action for museums to better serve their rapidly diversifying communities. It will be released at the AAM Annual Meeting in Los Angeles and highlighted at a session on Monday, May 24, 2010 at 2:15 pm PDT.

In 2008, CFM commissioned its first discussion paper, Museums & Society 2034: Trends and Potential Futures. This paper explores the challenges that society and museums will face in the next quarter-century, especially in the areas of demographic change, globalization, new forms of telecommunication, and new expectations about narrative and the consumption of culture. The report was prepared by James Chung, Susie Wilkening and the staff of Reach Advisors—a marketing strategy and research firm with extensive experience in the museum field—in consultation with CFM staff and outside experts.