5th International Artefacta Conference: Sustainability and Heritage
14–16 April 2027
Estonian National Museum, Tartu, Estonia
University of Tartu Viljandi Culture Academy, Viljandi, Estonia
The Fifth International Artefacta Conference will be held in Estonia on 14–16 April 2027, organised by the Estonian National Museum and the University of Tartu.
At the core of the Artefacta Conferences are things and artefacts, as well as the materiality and material culture associated with them.
The theme of the Fifth International Artefacta Conference is “Sustainability and Heritage”, which connects objects and material culture to discussions of sustainability and cultural heritage. Sustainability is increasingly significant and relevant to the study of artefacts, material culture, and heritage. Beyond cultural, social, and economic sustainability, concerns about ecological viability and the climate crisis are prompting scholars to view artefacts, material culture, and the materiality of cultural heritage in new light and contexts, and to ask new questions. The meaning of cultural heritage, both tangible and intangible, is shifting from an object of preservation to a cultural resource for sustainability and resilience.
The 2027 conference focuses on the importance and advances in the study of objects and material culture through the combined lens of sustainability and cultural heritage. It also examines the inherent and potential innovative links between cultural heritage and sustainability. The conference invites participants to theorise “sustainable artefacts”, “material cultures of sustainability”, and “sustainable cultural heritage”, and to ask what they might be and how best to study them.
Abstract proposals and submission
The conference welcomes abstract proposals on the theme “Sustainability and Heritage” from around the world and from interdisciplinary perspectives, including material culture studies, history, archaeology, ethnology, anthropology, folkloristics, craft science, conservation, museology, art history, design, architecture, heritage science, cultural policy, and related fields. The conference is open to all kinds of academic research, including practice-led and artistic research.
The conference invites oral and poster presentations, as well as practical workshops, on topics such as:
- Material living heritage
- Revisiting past practices of sustainability
- Heritage-based future solutions for sustainability
- Museums and memory institutions as the guardians of artefacts
- Teaching artefacts
- Craftsmen, designers, and craftivists in search of sustainable futures
- Sustainable design and architecture
- Sustainable production and consumption
- Repair, reuse, repurposing, and low-tech recycling
The deadline for submissions is 15 November 2026.
Submissions are welcome via the conference webpage.