Ethics and Best Practices in Museums

Ethics, Standards and Best Practices

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Importance

Ethics and standards help foster common vocabulary, expectations and assumptions. They foster informed decision-making, which contributes to an accountable and credible museum field. Adherence to mutually agreed-upon standards also enables museums to self-regulate, to a large extent, in a flexible and appropriate way that accommodates the huge diversity of our field, rather than have regulations imposed by lawmakers.

(AAM) encourage(s) all museums to commit to these standards, best practices and ethical guidelines in order to fulfill their roles as essential educational and community institutions. This commitment to excellence is necessary to secure the support, trust and recognition we need to advance our goals with lawmakers, funders, other community groups and the general public. [...]