Ecomuseums: from institution to cultural firm

In order to meet the requirements of quality, efficiency and solidity expected by the global market, the European institutions have increasingly enhanced the role of local communities within territorial development processes, through the improvement of the concepts of sustainability, participation, accessibility. As well as through the implementation of new services for people and firms and new actions for the valorisation of the local identities. Within the general tendency towards smart cities and territories, the capability of managing the cultural assets results essential to increase the regional competitiveness. This change seeks new multidisciplinary and multi-scale tools able to manage complex projects characterized by high levels of technological innovation within processes, planning and governance models. This means a cultural revolution, from an approach based on restrictions, and regulations toward a bottom-up approach, characterized a balance among stakeholders’ interests. In these terms, meta-projects and strategic guidelines represent coherent tools in order to cope with the necessity of sharing goals and encouraging the active participation of local communities. Nonetheless, in the small urban areas, communities are often unprepared to assume this responsibility and they need sensitization, education and a step-by-step approach of involvement in order to bridge the gap between social, politic and productive subjects. Within this complex scenario, ecomuseums play a key role, supporting the cultural mediation and education through design, enhancement of knowledge, preservation of collective interests and quality of actions. Ecomuseums are conceived as laboratory of participation and experimentation. This flexible role represents an evolution of the initial concept from the 70's, in accordance with a progressive process of development of active communities experienced over the last few decades, in the field of integrated services as well as of the development of new technological solutions to mitigate environmental impacts. The basic principles of the ecomuseum are rooted both in the social values of the territorial asset and in the capability of improving the economy. Within a context of crisis of the public funding, ecomuseum may assume an active role in generating new economic flows, becoming economically sustainable and self-sufficient. To achieve this aim, it is necessary to define specific strategies, design outputs, conditions, as well as an accurate governance model. Unfortunately, nowadays the majority of ecomuseums does not meet these characteristics. The lack of common objectives, the absence of scientific and juridical acknowledgement, the difficulties for a continuous involvement of local communities and the shortage of economic availability represent the most relevant lacks. The meta-design proposal, addressed to public and private actors willing to take part in a ecomuseum initiative, is based on three main actions - definition and establishment, development and management, involvement and participation - through which roles, objectives, contents are structured and defined. Furthermore, the meta-project has been tested on the Mantua territory which represents a unicum for cultural and environmental heritage. Thanks to the well-established collaboration between the University and the main private and public stakeholders, it has been possible to realize different research projects, such as the Territorial strategic marketing plans and the Cultural districts, characterized by the conception of the local heritage as primary element for a sustainable territorial development. Thus, the “Mantua Model” represents a significant case of territorial development based on the strengthening of the local network of relationships, adapt to a high-complexity context and coherent with the EU orientations for the implementation of “place/resource based” policies (F. Barca, An agenda for a reformed cohesion policy, 2009).