What we do

MEG’s Early Career Subcommittee was established in 2022 as a space for anyone at an early stage of, or interested in starting, a career in museum ethnography. Current members hold a range of positions in museums or study them. Membership of MEG is required to join. In addition to feeding into the work of MEG’s main organising committee, members focus on three distinct areas of work:

Events: Members have the opportunity to organise events, online and in person, around the subjects that interest them. We recently organised an online event about developing practices of care for museum workers.

Social Media: Members have the opportunity to develop content around a chosen theme through a series of social media ‘takeovers’.

Early career development and peer-to-peer support: One of the most valuable aspects of the subcommittee is its function as a space for socialising, mentoring and peer-to-peer support. See our recent event hosted by Kew Gardens and organised by subcommittee members. In the future, we intend to deliver more informal peer-to-peer sessions.

Who we are

Andrea Potts

I am a PhD researcher at the University of Brighton. I am interested in how contemporary museum exhibitions represent histories of European colonialism and how these histories are engaged with by audiences. Through my research, I assess what role exhibitions play in mediating how people engage with colonial pasts. My research is funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council. I am also a member of the Museum of British Colonialism, a joint UK/Kenya initiative founded to accessibly communicate histories of British colonialism. For me, the MEG subcommittee is a great opportunity to meet and collaborate with people working on such interesting subjects.

Laharee Mitra

I am a PhD researcher at the University of Brighton, looking at staff experiences of decolonisation policies and guidance. I am particularly interested in working with staff in learning and engagement roles (broadly defined) and design research to respond to their specific goals, challenges and expectations. I have previously worked as a Curatorial Assistant at the Dr. Bhau Daji Lad Museum, Mumbai, developing learning and outreach programmes to engage audiences with our permanent and temporary exhibitions. Being part of the MEG Subcommittee has helped me to connect with others in the sector and learn from their work.

Gayathri Anand

I recently graduated with an MA in Anthropology and Museum Practice from Goldsmiths, University of London. My research interests focus on the accessibility of digital collections platforms, particularly from the perspectives of source community and diaspora community stakeholders. I have assisted on collections-related projects at the Horniman Museum in London, including Rethinking Relationships and Building Trust around African Collections, the Object in Focus loans programme showcasing Kayan tattoo practices and a review of Indigenous Australian objects within the museum’s Study Collection Centre. Through the MEG subcommittee, I have benefited by learning from peers with common interests, who generously share their first-hand knowledge and experience.

Alba Ferrándiz Gaudens

I am a PhD researcher at the Sainsbury Research Unit for the Arts of Africa, Oceania and the Americas, University of East Anglia. I am looking at 18th and 19th century Oceania collections kept in Spanish museums, with a special focus on Micronesian collections - which have been widely overlooked before. My thesis focuses on their collecting and museum histories, as well as the possibilities for cross-cultural collaboration they allow. My research is funded by CHASE, the AHRC consortium for the East of England universities. I am currently Events Officer at MEG, and as an early career researcher I am acting as liaison between the MEG committee and the subcommittee. My role will benefit both the committee and subcommittee, allowing a more balanced communication.

Maria Chiara Scuderi

I am a PhD researcher funded by AHRC Midlands4Cities at the University of Leicester and Leicester Museum and Art Gallery, broadly interested in understanding material culture histories through a global perspective. My collaborative project analyses the history of the Dryad ‘handicraft’ collection and its linkage with the colonial context, particularly the international circulation of objects in missionary exhibitions, world’s fairs and international expositions, and how this new material culture history relates to museum practice today. With an interdisciplinary approach, my goal is to define the role of objects in these cultural and political events, and how their mobility and display fostered transcultural relationships during the early twentieth century. For me, the MEG subcommittee provides a fantastic opportunity for peer learning among scholars interested in colonial, post-colonial and neo-colonial studies within the museum context.

Erin Messenger

I am a Collections Manager for the Economic Botany Collection at Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. I have been at Kew for about two years now, in various roles from Gallery assistant to Digitisation Officer to my current position. I have a background in Anthropology, with various research interests including the representation of Polynesian culture in British museums and, of course, how the role of plants has influenced society from the 19^th century to the 21^st, through communities’ local practices and traditional knowledge. The MEG Subcommittee thus far has inspired insights into different research projects and provided a platform in which to have an equal knowledge exchange and discussion on current issues within the industry.