In 2019, UCL and the British Museum teamed up to organise a year-long series of events. The conferences, symposia, workshops and networking events covered everything from the reconstruction of ancient food systems to the colonial legacy of universities and museums.
Experts from both organisations are also working together to explore possibilities for reciprocal training, joint research and funding applications.
The project came about partly through the ongoing development of a Knowledge Quarter based around King’s Cross, the Euston Road and Bloomsbury, which encompasses both UCL and the British Museum.
Collaborative activity between the two institutions dates back to the university’s foundation in 1826, but this is the first endeavour that’s created a framework to explore and enable long-term collaboration.
Among the topics explored at the events was a session on how the global ambitions of major metropolitan universities and museums can be reconciled with the problematic legacy of colonialism.
There was also a symposium on bioarchaeology, exploring potential collaboration in laboratory-based research techniques. These include proteomics (the study of proteins), isotope and dental studies, and the reconstruction of ancient food and climate systems.
David Wengrow, Professor of Comparative Archaeology at UCL, said: “We held discussions with researchers across UCL and the British Museum to think of possibilities for reciprocal training arrangements, joint research and funding applications.
“We feel we have established a format for joint consultation which could now be extended to include other parts of the university.”
UCL and the British Museum have subsequently worked together on other research projects, conferences and collaborative student supervisions.