In this session, ICSC and project participants from John Dickinson Plantation, the Chinese Historical Society of America, Hermann-Grima + Gallier Historic Houses and the Illinois State Museum will share frameworks and strategies for building reciprocal community partnerships. You’ll hear about the relationship building activities between the museums and community partners that began with getting to know each other personally before diving into a project together. We will also share how institutions can intentionally share power with partners, how to identify a larger shared purpose with your partner, and important ingredients needed to create and maintain reciprocal relationships.

This webinar is the second of three in a series that share stories and tools for reflection, collaboration, and internal change as the International Coalition of Sites of Conscience leads a cohort of thirteen museums and community partners across the United States in Addressing the Silences, a three-year project intended to help sites create ever deeper, more meaningful relationships in their communities. Since first coming together in late 2022, project participants have worked to foster co-creation with their communities and correct silences and absences in their institutions, enabling them to better leverage their extraordinary capacity to serve as spaces for reflection and centers for positive social change.