Elif Gokcigdem is a thought leader, historian of Islamic art, and a museum
scholar who is committed to creating fertile grounds of empathy through
informal learning platforms to inspire positive behavior change, caring
mindsets, and compassionate worldviews that value all of humanity and the
planet.
It's time to harness the power of empathy
by creating shared terminology, vision, and values across disciplines and
sectors. As leaders of cross-industry dialogue and innovation, we are
positioned to develop the standards and best practices of the
empathy-building movement.
Fostering Empathy Through Museums features fifteen case studies with clear
take-away ideas, and lessons learned by vividly illustrating a spectrum of
approaches in the way museums are currently employing empathy, a critical
skill that is relevant to personal, institutional, economical, and societal
progress.
More..
Designing for
Empathy is a volume of twenty-five essays contributed by multidisciplinary
thought leaders, collectively exploring the state of empathy for its design
elements that might lead to positive behavior change and paradigm shift
towards compassionate worldviews and action.
As museums are currently shaping their tools for fostering empathy as an
intentional outcome of museum experiences, the idea of empathy-building is
shaping them back as socially relevant institutions that increasingly value
diversity, accessibility, and equality. This is a non-linear, multi-layered,
and multi-dimensional transformation that requires multidisciplinary,
cross-industries, and cross-sectors alliances for its sustainability. The
potential of this collective transformation effort includes the invention of
unconventional, evidence-based, and sustainable solutions that can be scaled
up beyond the walls of traditional museums to all kinds of informal learning
platforms to help eliminate the empathy-deficit in our world. More... Preface - Elif M. Gokcigdem Introduction - Zorana Ivcevic
Part I: The Object of our Empathy:
How Do We Define and Perceive the "Other"?
Chapter 1:
The Heart: The Heart's Knowledge Will Never Decay - Dario Robleto
Chapter 2:
The Brain: Living Narratives: Neurobiology of Empathy - Erik Jahner
Chapter 3:
Conscious Experience: Empathic Space and Shared Consciousness: Museums and
the Application of the Spread Mind Theory - Riccardo Manzotti
Chapter 4:
The Worldview: Empathy, Narcissism, and Visual Arts Engagement - Sara
Konrath
Chapter 5:
Augmented Reality: Augmenting Empathy and Decolonizing AR/VR Mediums: How Do
We Reimagine Augmented and Virtual Reality Experiences? - Amir Baradaran and
Isolde Brielmaier
Part II: The Alchemy of Empathy:
Fifteen design elements of empathy that make it conducive to be a state of
transformation. The pitfalls and the potential of empathy.
Chapter 6:
Intentionality: Discovering the Power of Art in Forging Empathic Connections
- Jon Carfagno
Chapter 7:
Intersectionality: Building Transformative Empathetic Experiences to Talk
About RACE -
Yolanda Moses and Joanne Jones-Rizzi
Chapter 8:
Curiosity: Social Inquiry Exhibits: Fostering Social Learning in Museums -
Thomas Rockwell, Joshua Gutwill, Heike Winterheld, and Shawn Lani
Chapter 9:
Play: Building a Culture for Kindness Through Collaborative Design - Lisa
Brahms and Anne Fullenkamp
Chapter 10:
Vulnerability: From I to Thou: Transformation Through Traumatic Events -
Andreas Heinecke
Chapter 11:
Contemplation & Nuance: Found in Translation - Mohamed Zakariya
Chapter 12:
Proximity: Designing for Place and People at the Border of Freedom: Niagara
Falls Underground Railroad Heritage Center - Seth Frankel
Chapter 13:
Storytelling: Empathy in Environmental Communications: Why People Matter for
Saving Nature - Anastasia Khoo, Jamey Anderson, and Conservation
International
Chapter 14:
Synchronicity: Tap Dancing Towards Empathic Communities - Andrew Nemr
Chapter 15:
Awe & Wonder: Designing for Wonder: Losing Your Self at the Museum -
Nicholas Bell
Chapter 16:
Collective Journeying: Religious Pilgrimage and Sacred Relics as
Empathy-Builders -Ari Gordon and Menachem Wecker
Chapter 17:
Breaking Bread: Breaking Bread and Building Bridges: Repairing Ruptures in
Our Communities - Reverend Jennifer Bailey, Lennon Flowers, Emily May, and
The People's Supper
Chapter 18:
Optimism & Hope: Optimism to Action: One Smithsonian, the Conservation
Commons and the Earth Optimism Initiative - Catherine Christen
Part III: The Scope and the Spectrum of Empathy
Empathy as a Cross-Industrial Shared Value & Its Potential for People and the
Planet
When Mia launched the Center
for Empathy and the Visual Arts, in 2017, Elif Gokcigdem was among the
project’s advisors. Born in Turkey, she became a historian of Islamic art and
a scholar of museums themselves before focusing on building empathy. In her
2016 book, Fostering
Empathy Through Museums, she introduced the notion that museums could
function as sites of empathy-building and social change. Her latest book, Designing
for Empathy, expands on this idea through the perspectives of
researchers, academics, and museum professionals (including Mia’s Director of
Learning Innovation, Karleen Gardner, writing about museums as incubators of
innovation and social impact).
Five Ways Museums Can Increase Empathy in the World
Museums are a safe place to explore other points of view, cultures, and
histories.
BY ELIF M. GOKCIGDEM
JANUARY 9, 2017
"Empathy is our inherent ability to perceive and share the feelings and
thoughts of another. It allows us to connect with others who seem different,
making us more aware of our commonalities. When we tune into empathy for
others, we are more likely to act with compassion and altruism to help reduce
their suffering. And, when we increase our caring for the environment, we are
more likely to make choices that help preserve it for future generations."
A
Heart to Heart Conversation on Empathy
FEBRUARY 14, 2015
"I find this discovery extraordinary, not only because it will lead to many
medical treatments, but also because it simply touches my heart. This
discovery makes me feel like I have just witnessed an extraordinary moment of
empathic connection between a fully formed human heart, peering into and
synchronizing with its microscopic origins and potential."
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