The status quo is failing us: Museologist Robert R. Janes on climate communication
By Yaroslava Kutsai
European Journalism Observatory
In this interview, published by European Journalism Observatory, Yaroslava Kutsai talks to Dr. Robert R. Janes — a museologist with more than five decades of experience — reflecting on the ethical responsibilities of cultural institutions amid deepening social and ecological uncertainty, pointing to a role they could play in complementing journalism’s work. But only if they relinquish the comfort of neutrality. Drawing on a career spanning museum leadership, scholarship, and activism, Dr. Robert R. Janes calls on these organisations — uniquely positioned to cultivate long-term thinking — to rethink their ethical foundations, confront uncomfortable truths, and leverage the public trust they hold to foster not just awareness but agency.