Renee Riedler at Workshop on Digital Restitution in Münster

From 3–5 September 2025, our colleague Renee Riedler participated in the international workshop “Digital Restitution. Bridging Access, Conservation and Ethical Challenges”, held at the University of Münster. The event was organized by Ursula Frohne and Jolanda Saal and featured keynote lectures by Dan Hicks (University of Oxford / Pitt Rivers Museum) and Annette Löseke (Hochschule für Bildende Künste, Braunschweig).

The workshop explored how processes of digitalization are transforming the way colonial collections are documented, accessed, and debated. Central to the discussions were the promises and limits of digital restitution: Can digital replicas meaningfully address historical injustices, or do they risk becoming substitutes for material restitution? Alongside ethical, legal, and technological perspectives, panels examined case studies from international collaborations, community-driven initiatives, and artistic interventions.

Renee contributed to the panel “Technological Innovations in Heritage Preservation” with her talk “Beyond Restitution: The Role of Replicas in Cultural Transmission and Heritage Preservation.” Her presentation reflected on the ways replicas can serve not merely as stand-ins for restituted objects, but as active tools for cultural transmission and preservation in their own right.

More information and the full program can be found on the University of Münster workshop website.

Renee Riedler presenting in Münster. Photo Credit: Nora Kluck.