The main goal of the Museums and the Web conference is to study the results of cutting-edge research and the examples of practical application of digital technology in the field as well as to preserve and develop cultural, natural and scientific heritage. In other words, most events and activities featured in the conference program focus on figuring out how museums, their personnel and users can benefit from the use of the World Wide Web and other contemporary technology.
The results of meetings, discussions, lectures, plenary sessions, museum project demonstrations, exhibitions, debates, how-to sessions and other events held during the Museums and the Web conference are freely available on the web. Selected papers are published in a printed proceedings each year. Today museum workers, technologists, researchers and students have free access to more than 1,000 videos and papers online, and this number grows every year.
Museums and the Web is designed for a wide range of participants including educators, webmasters, librarians, curators, designers, directors, managers, scholars, programmers, consultants, publishers, analysts and developers representing museums, galleries, science centers, libraries and archives as well as the foundations, governments and companies that support them. The inaugural conference featured about 400 delegates from different countries and the attendance has been growing steadily ever since.
One of the highlights of the conference is the annual GLAMi Awards. GLAM is acronym for “galleries, libraries, archives, and museums” and the letter “i” in the name of the awards stands for innovations The awards are presented to recognize the best work and innovation in the GLAM sector. The nominees are submitted by GLAM professionals from across the globe and reviewed by a professional committee.
The main Museums and the Web conference is held in the United States or Canada each spring. The organizers have also held additional conferences in other countries and regions including Hong Kong, mainland China, South Korea, and Australia.
In 2020 and 2021, the event was held online due to the coronavirus pandemic.
