Mentoring for Te Manawa museum

Palmerston North’s Te Manawa Museum of Art, Science and History is one of only 20 worldwide organisations — and one of only two in the Southern Hemisphere — to have been accepted into a prestigious global mentoring programme.

Led by Santa Cruz Museum of Art and History in California, the ‘OF/BY/FOR ALL’ programme aims to assist cultural organisations in becoming more visitor and community-centred, a goal that is essential to the vision Te Manawa has for the future.

“We’re thrilled to have been selected because of the work we’ve been doing with the community, and our intention to do more,” says chief executive Andy Lowe.

“Manawatu¯ is a tremendously diverse place, a real melting pot of cultures, values and ideas. It is crucial to ensure that our services, spaces and programmes cater to the needs of our people.

“We also want to attract more people from out of Palmerston North to our region and showcase our unique culture and creativity. If museums want to stay relevant in the 21st Century, they must become much more customer and visitor-focused — it’s a matter of survival.”

OF/BY/FOR ALL follows the success of the Santa Cruz Museum’s director, Nina Simon, in turning her organisation into a thriving centre for community and cultural life, with visitor numbers and revenue both thriving.

She is a published author and is recognised across the world for her work on making cultural institutions more dynamic, relevant, and essential places.

She is called upon worldwide to share her knowledge with organisations with the goal of working more inclusively.

“The opportunity to be mentored by a figure like Nina Simon is huge for us in Palmerston North and for the New Zealand museum and cultural sector,” Lowe says. “This work will inform the redevelopment planning currently underway at Te Manawa and make sure our community is part of this process so that the museum continues to thrive into the future — 2025 and beyond.

“The great thing is that we know by listening to our community and working together, we will remain an active and vital civic space.”