How things connect people. debating access to ethnographic collections

Debates concerning the restitution of stolen museum objects tend to overshadow questions about the future role of artefacts currently held in collections acquired through gift-giving or purchase by ethnographers in the course of their research. This contribution originates from a participatory workshop held in Namibia in which community members, custodians, museum staff, and academics tackled such questions. While colonial collections in the region frequently served to divide groups along ethnic lines, the central theme here has been how artefacts connect people. These connections include links established through the materials associated with particular environments and places but they also touch upon questions of access, property rights, a sense of belonging, and connected to issues with regard to digital and generational divides. Based on this case study we formulate more general lessons for scholars and their research counterparts seeking to reflect and improve on the role of the material culture that connects them.