"LEM - The Learning Museum" is a network project funded by the Lifelong Learning Programme Grundtvig (2010-2013) which aims to establish a permanent network and webspace for museums and adult educators to participate in a learning society and in a knowledge based Europe.
To keep up with change, museums are not only expected to be learning places, but learning organisations themselves: learning from the communities, from the public, from their stakeholders, and also from other agencies, with whom they have to build alliances to accomplish the ambitious objectives set by policies at national and European level and meet the challenges of the future decades.
Starting with 23 partners from 17 European countries and the United States of America, LEM aims to create a network of museums and cultural heritage organisations, to insure that they can play an active role with regard to lifelong learning and to raise awareness among decision makers at national and European level. It will do so through working groups focusing on specific issues, international conferences and meetings, the publication and dissemination of thematic reports and the piloting of a mobility scheme for museum educators within the partner countries to support peer learning and the exchange of knowledge at European level.
More specifically:
- A dedicated and dynamic website has been created (www.lemproject.eu)
- Working Groups have been set up to research specific topics and encourage the encounter of and exchange of information among museum professionals in Europe. Each working group will produce a final report and present their findings at a planned public event.
Topics are:
WG 1 - New trends in the museums in the 21st century
WG 2 - Museums and the ageing population
WG 3 - Audience research, learning styles and visitor relation management
WG 4 - Museums as learning places
WG 5 - Intercultural dialogue
The reports of the Working Groups will be published and disseminated.
- A Mobility Scheme for museum professionals will take place in the context of the LEM project: five of the LEM partners agreed to host colleagues interested in spending between some days and two weeks in their organisation, for job-shadowing or study visits.
- International conferences and meetings will be organised.
For more information, check the LEM website at www.lemproject.eu

Funding
European Commission (Lifelong Learning Programme 2007-2013), Istituto per i Beni Artistici, Culturali e Naturali (IBACN) of the Region Emilia Romagna (Italy), State Museums of Upper Austria (Austria), Gallo-Romeins Museum (Belgium), German Museums Association (Germany), Association of Danish Museums (Denmark), Hellenic Ministry of Culture & Tourism-Directorate of Museums, Exhibitions & Educational Programmes - Department of Exhibitions & Museum Research (Greece), Finnish Museums Association (Finland), Ministry of Culture of Spain - Office of State-owned Museums (Spain), Cap Sciences (France), National Gallery of Ireland (Ireland), Chester Beatty Library (Ireland), City of Torino (Italy), Amitié (Italy), Estate Academy of Rumsiskes Museum (Lithuania), Latvian National Museum of Art (Latvia), European Museum Academy, Sverresborg Troendelag Folk Museum (Norway), National Network of Romanian Museums (Romania), Nordic Center of Heritage Learning (Sweden), Glasgow Museums/Glasgow Life (United Kingdom), Manchester Museum (United Kingdom), National Institute of Adult Continuing Education (United Kingdom), University of Denver-Museum of Anthropology (USA).