MuseumNext is a global conference series on the future of museums, taking place in the world’s cultural capitals since 2009. It defines itself as a catalyst for innovation, transformation and collaboration in museums, galleries and heritage sites. On 15-17 February 2017 the conference will take place for the first time in Australia. With three days of presentations, workshops and debates at the Australian Centre for the Moving Image (ACMI) in Melbourne. Every MuseumNext conference has a theme, around which the community comes together to discuss the future of museums. For MuseumNext Melbourne this theme is inspired by the values of ACMI which state ‘we enable a culture that embraces creative risk taking, supporting bold ideas and new voices with energy and commitment’. Organisers are now inviting proposals for MuseumNext Melbourne on the theme of ‘RISK’. They are specifically interested in opinions, case studies and discussions on the following subjects:

• Encouraging risk taking – How can museums reduce the fear of failure and encourage their staff to take chances in the face of uncertainty?
• Doing bold and daring things – How have you taken risks in your museum? That could be stepping out of your comfort zone to with exhibits, content, audiences, outreach or tech.
• Fail forward – How have you failed and what have you learned from this process?

MuseumNext follows a fast-paced format of twenty-minute presentations with the focus very much on practice rather than theory. In addition, proposals for 2-hour workshops are also invited. Proposals for presentations or workshops should contain a title, names of presenters, a summary of the themes to be addressed, relevant links as well as a description of the expected learning outcomes. The deadline for submitting proposals is 30 September. For additional information about the call for papers and the MuseumNext Melbourne 2017 conference, please visit http://www.museumnext.com/conference/call-for-papers/