Ruby Satele Asiata Gives Keynote at Workshop on Human Remains in Viennese Collections

On Friday, 5 September, our colleague Ruby Satele Asiata contributed as keynote speaker to the workshop “Human Remains in Viennese Collections – An Exchange of Experiences”, hosted by the Weltmuseum Wien.

Speaking virtually from Samoa, Ruby delivered the opening keynote through a pre-recorded address ((due to unstable connections in Samoa). In her talk, she emphasized responses and perspectives drawn from her community engagement, and reflected on how these can be meaningfully mediated with museums’ practices of care.

The workshop brought together representatives from several Viennese institutions, including the Natural History Museum, the University of Vienna, the Austrian Academy of Sciences, the Vienna Museum, and the Volkskundemuseum. Each institution shared experiences of working with human remains in their collections, opening discussions on provenance, ethics, and responsibility.

Ruby’s keynote set the tone for a day of critical dialogue, underscoring the importance of community voices, cultural sensitivity, and cross-cultural collaboration in shaping future approaches.

We warmly thank the Weltmuseum Wien for hosting this important exchange of experiences.