Lord Cultural Resources is looking forward to participating in the Museums Association of the Caribbean (MAC) 2026 Conference & AGM, taking place November 9–13 in Trinidad & Tobago. Centered on the theme Caribbean Museums: Connectors, Conveners, and Catalysts for Change, the conference will bring together cultural leaders to explore the evolving role of museums in their communities.

Among the program highlights is a special conversation between Lonnie G. Bunch III, Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, and Ariana Curtis, Ph.D., Curator of Latinx Studies at the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture. Together, they will reflect on the role of museums in preserving memory, fostering dialogue, and shaping more inclusive futures.

“Presented annually, the [2026 Ontario Tourism Awards of Excellence] recognize the organizations, businesses and individuals whose innovation, leadership, creativity and commitment to excellence help make Ontario a destination of choice. They celebrate outstanding contributions across the tourism industry and the people and partnerships helping to move Ontario tourism forward.” 

Congratulations to the Woodland Cultural Centre on receiving the 2026 Indigenous Tourism Award at the Ontario Tourism Awards of Excellence! Presented by Indigenous Tourism Ontario, the award recognizes excellence in developing and promoting authentic Indigenous cultural experiences for visitors to Ontario. 

“The Alabama STEM Council is investing nearly $252,000 in the Saban Center to expand hands-on learning opportunities for students and educators.

The council, part of the Alabama Department of Workforce, on Oct. 15 announced the $251,939.59 investment. The $120 million Saban Center, currently under construction on the former site of The Tuscaloosa News building, is projected to open in the spring of 2028.”

“Philadelphia’s historical sites, societies, museums, archives, gardens, preservation efforts, and neighborhood programs will soon have an amplified voice to speak on their behalf. The Histories Collaborative of Philadelphia (HCP), formally launched earlier this year by 45 participating organizations, aims to serve as the central convening and advocacy body for Philadelphia’s histories sector. 

According to [Sam] Katz [HCP’s current chief collaborative officer], ‘the fire was lit’ in 2018 after the Philadelphia History Museum at Atwater Kent was closed, followed by layoffs at the Historical Society of Pennsylvania and the bankruptcy filing by the National Museum of American Jewish History. Along with interested stakeholders, he engaged the histories community in multiple conversations that led to seed funding in 2023 by Poor Richard’s Charitable Trust, William Penn Foundation, and the Philadelphia Funder Collaborative for the Semiquincentennial. Lord Cultural Resources was subsequently selected to conduct an assessment of Philly’s histories industry.

“Before a full house in the Bram & Bluma Appel Salon at the Toronto Reference Library, four prominent speakers discussed whether Canada should have a National Portrait Gallery, tackling what could potentially be one of the country's most significant cultural institutions yet to be established.

“Located on the first level of the Michael O. Leavitt North Capitol Building in Salt Lake City, the Museum of Utah is officially open to the public.

The museum is free and open to the public year-round, Monday-Thursday 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Friday-Sunday 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Inside the museum are more than 900 artifacts carefully curated and organized into four galleries.

The project has been in the works for many years, with Utah being the second-to-last state in the nation to receive its own museum. The now completed museum began in 2019 and was officially opened on June 27, 2026.” 

Lord Cultural Resources was engaged to prepare a business plan and projections for a new Museum of Utah to be located next to the State Capitol in Salt Lake City. The business plan was based on contextual, comparables and market analyses as well as operational and facility planning recommendations. 

As part of a testimonial letter to Lord Cultural Resources, the Project Manager said the following: “Your thorough assessments and comparisons, combined with your world-wide experience has benefited our project greatly. I especially appreciated your deep dive into our community and your willingness to interview so many of our leaders and community advocates.”

“The Museum of Toronto is officially moving into a permanent home in the city — situated inside a historic building previously home to a bank.

Set to open its doors in the spring of 2027, the Museum of Toronto will be located at 2 Queen St. E., a space previously used by the Bank of Montreal.

“The British Museum in London announced a £30 million ($40 million) gift from a longstanding supporter on October 17, according to Artnet News. It will go towards the implementation of the museum’s Masterplan redevelopment. The donor’s identity has not been revealed.

“Hundreds protested at Colombia’s national museum in Bogotá this weekend, days after the country’s far-right government ordered the removal of objects addressing political violence, women’s rights, and LGBTQ+ history — including a rainbow Pride Flag — in a move straight out of the Trumpian playbook.

“The Louvre Abu Dhabi has named its next director as the emirate prepares for its biggest art season yet. Souraya Noujaim will return to the museum where she previously spent five years as its collections director. She succeeds Manuel Rabaté, who stepped down in February after a decade at the helm, to lead the Kiran Nadar Museum of Art in New Delhi.

“The Brooklyn Museum is undertaking a $48m overhaul of its century-old infrastructure, as New York City steps up efforts to make its cultural institutions—and the city more broadly—energy efficient and less dependent on fossil fuels. The endeavour is the most comprehensive energy initiative that the Brooklyn Museum has undertaken.

This year, join the Niagara Academy for Indigenous Relations in the annual Valour & Victory ceremony honouring indigenous veterans. This year’s event also marks the 10th anniversary of the Landscape of Nations Memorial at Queenston Heights Park in Niagara. Since its unveiling in 2016, the Memorial has become more than a place of remembrance, serving as an important space for Indigenous education, gathering, ceremony, and reflection. This event will honour Indigenous veterans, celebrate and reflect on a decade of the Memorial’s impact, and look ahead to continued opportunities for education, remembrance, and relationship-building. All are welcome to attend, RSVP requested but not required.

“What does Canada look like to you? Which landscapes, memories, traditions, and communities shape your sense of belonging? For the sixth annual Canadian Art Inspiration Student Challenge, we invited students across the country to respond to the theme ‘Canada through My Eyes.’ Young artists in Grades 7 through 12 answered with remarkable imagination and insight. Drawing inspiration from William Kurelek (1927–1977), Zachari Logan (b.1980), Meryl McMaster (b.1988), Norval Morrisseau (1932–2007), Annie Pootoogook (1969–2016), and others, students explored what it means to experience Canada through personal and often deeply meaningful lenses.

“The Touring Exhibitions Organisation (Teo), a one-stop resource platform for the international touring exhibitions community, has opened responses to the 2027 Cultural Dialogue Survey, exploring the future of touring exhibitions.

“When the French sculptor Léopold Morice designed his 9.5m-tall allegory of French republicanism for the Place de la République in Paris, in the late 1870s, he gave the figure a Phrygian cap. With the bloody Paris Commune of 1871 still fresh in everyone’s minds, this was a contested choice, the so-called “liberty cap” being a symbol of the republic at its most revolutionary.

“The latest attempt to halt the impending construction of President Donald Trump’s 250-foot-tall triumphal arch involves a local government body. The five-member Arlington County Board filed a lawsuit Thursday in the Eastern District of Virginia, related to the project’s questionable review process.

“Japanese architect Junya Ishigami, known for airy designs that link the built environment to nature, has been announced as the first winner of the newly launched Barragán Prize, the Architect’s Newspaper reports. Named for renowned Mexican architect Luis Barragán, the prize is a collaboration between La Cuadra, a cultural space outside Mexico City occupying a compound designed by Barragán and his protégé Andrés Casillas, and fashion brand Bottega Veneta. 

“British studio Foster + Partners and local architect Luis María Uriarte have expanded the Bilbao Fine Arts Museum in Spain with a 55-metre-long elevated gallery.

Named Agravitas, the bridge-like extension sits on large V-shaped columns that straddle the existing museum, not touching the original building fabric.

“Breeze Creative, a leading interactive product company creating innovative installations that combine technology, play, and education, is looking beyond the screen to reimagine visitor engagement using interactive projection technology.

“I’m sitting at a long, low table, colouring intently. Large screens cover the walls around me, giving the room a blueish glow. I’ve been handed a black-and-white outline of a dragon with a crown covering its eyes, and boxes of crayons are spread out in front of me. I carefully colour its head green, its body blue and its scales a riot of rainbow colours — knowing that, in a few minutes, this imaginary creature will come to life. 

This is Mercer Labs’ Ecosystem and Drawing Station, one of 15 interconnected rooms that make up New York’s Museum of Art and Technology. When I hand my finished drawing to the attendant to scan, the dragon appears on a circular, portal-like screen in front of me, dancing and waving as though it knows I’m watching. I’ve barely had time to take it in before it disappears, only to reappear on another screen.

‘You become part of the artwork,’ says Anna Karnowski, Mercer Labs’ VP of Sales, as she leads me through the museum.”

“The cover of a new report on AI from a US museum thinktank restyles the Sistine Chapel’s Creation of Adam, with the hand of God replaced by a Terminator-style robotic one. So far, so obvious.

In Remuseum’s Five Ways AI Can Humanise Museums, AI has presumably replaced God as the enabler of all things. But who is Adam’s hand supposed to represent: the museum visitor or the museum worker?

“The music platform Deezer says 44% of tracks uploaded to it are AI-generated. Its research also found that 97% of listeners couldn't tell what was AI-generated and what wasn't. But here's a third statistic: more than half of those surveyed said they did care if it was made by AI. They want humans to be involved.

Daniel Susskind, an economics professor at King's College London, says many of us place huge value on the human role in making art. It's what makes the creative process different from more functional, practical tasks, he thinks.”

“A Canadian seafood tycoon’s financial troubles have turned into a debate over who gets to decide what happens to his art collection, which includes dozens of Indigenous artifacts that some experts say should be returned to their communities of origin. 

“Gunther Fehlinger-Jahn, an Austrian economist, analyst, and 2028 presidential hopeful, has declared his intent to return a 16th-century feather headdress to Mexico if he is elected. The artifact is from the Aztec or Mexica civilization, and was possibly worn by Emperor Moctezuma II, is currently at the Weltmuseum in Vienna.

“A group of museums in Switzerland have been awarded SFr100,000 (£91,000) to examine the provenance of more than 6,300 objects from Cameroon currently held in their collections. The Swiss Federal Office of Culture said in a press release on 29 September that the initiative will investigate how the items were acquired, their chains of ownership and their significance in Cameroon today. It brings together museums across Switzerland, in Basel, Bern, Burgdorf, Geneva, Lausanne, Neuchâtel, Winterthur and Zurich, including the Museum der Kulturen Basel, the Musée d’ethnographie de Genève and the Bernisches Historisches Museum.”