Getting ready for year three: the META-MUSEUM journey continues!
META-MUSEUM is getting closer to the start of its third and final year, and we have many activities ahead where all our partners will work together to reach great results!
At the end of October, the consortium will meet in Barcelona for our 5th General Assembly, hosted by the Museum of Archaeology of Catalunya, an associated partner of the project. During this meeting, partners will share our current results and ongoing work, and they will be able to see with their own eyes and take part in the experimental activities happening at the museum. These neuroscientific experiments will run from October 25 to 30, 2026, where anyone can join and take part!
There are many new things waiting for us in the coming months, including new digital and physical prototypes, new sessions of our educational modules, the refinement of the TM theory, and the carrying out of our three pilots—which just started in September with an intense week of activities at the MuséoParc d’Alésia in France.
Stay tuned for more updates!
Theoretical framework and Transformative Theory
How can a museum visit change the way we see the world?
Under WP2, the META Museum consortium is developing the TransforMEANS Theory (TMt) to explore how cultural heritage experiences may shape people’s perspectives, encourage participation and support social inclusion. The next version of the theory will bring together survey findings with feedback from the project’s museum experiments and pilot activities.
So far, the survey has received more than160 completed answers. Participants have shared information about their museum visiting habits and backgrounds. As the research continues, the consortium is extending its outreach to people who rarely or never visit museums. Their perspectives will help us better understand what encourages cultural participation and what may stand in its way.
Title: After the Pilot Is Before the Pilot
Early September marked a milestone for WP4’s prototypes: during the pilot testing at MuséoParc Alésia, our “Carry the Coin” experience was put in front of real visitors for the first time.
During a tablet-guided journey (also available for BYOD such as smartphones), visitors chose Gallic and Roman coins representing our core set of values – courage, unity, foresight and responsibility – and learned what the coins and values symbolize. All led up to receiving personal evaluations and reflections tied to the stories of Vercingetorix and Caesar, and finally taking home a physical, 3D-printed coin matching the value that resonated most with them, as a keepsake.
The sessions gave us valuable, hands-on feedback on how visitors actually move through and interact with the experience, and WP4 is now working through those insights and “lessons learned” to sharpen the prototype and get it ready for the next stage.
But after the pilot testing is just before the pilot testing! While we are working through the valuable feedback and insights from Alésia, we are getting ready to bring the next prototype into shape: this time for MAC Barcelona!
The concept and framework are already in place: visitors will identify traits from their own personality and get matched to a historical role. With these connections between past and present made, they are guided through the history of the Circus Maximus Mosaic and the surrounding stories through their role’s lens.
Heading into action: a successful First Pilot at MuséoParc Alésia!
From September 7 to 12, the teams from POLITO, UNIROMA1, NCK, UNIJENA, and MuséoParc Alésia came together for our very first project pilot at the museum!
This was much more than a set of neuroscience experiments; it was a chance to completely rethink how people experience cultural heritage by connecting past stories, figures, and events with modern-day challenges and themes. Our main question was: how can exploring the transformative power of cultural heritage help us face our current fears and worries?
To answer this, the partners designed a cultural experience where visitors played an active role, testing brand-new digital and physical prototypes for the very first time.
Visitors got to experience heritage through a fresh lens, combining scientific content with current perspectives to reflect on the core values behind the historic clash between Julius Caesar and Vercingetorix at Alésia—courage, responsibility, foresight, and unity.
To find out more, keep following us to discover the different activities carried out and those coming up in the next museum measurement sessions!
Bringing Cultural Heritage into Hospitals: Preparing a New Virtual and Digital Experience for Wellbeing and Resilience
Over the last few months, the UNIROMA1 team continue to prepare the next experimental protocol for the development of WP7 as part of the META-MUSEUM project, which will investigate the potential of digital cultural heritage experiences in healthcare settings. The team keeps working closely with colleagues from UniJena to further develop and refine the research protocol.
The study will introduce a digital and virtual cultural heritage experience within hospital environments. Building on the project’s previous work in museums, the study will explore whether access to cultural heritage through digital technologies can contribute to participants’ confidence, wellbeing, and resilience. By bringing cultural experiences into clinical settings, the project aims to generate new evidence on the role that culture can play in supporting health and quality of life.
Update: The study was approved by the local Ethics Committee, ready to start soon!
Reflecting on 24 Months of Communication and Dissemination in the META-MUSEUM Project
Over the past two years, the META-MUSEUM project has been working to reframe how audiences connect with cultural heritage through empathy, emotional engagement, and active participation. As we mark the 24-month milestone, we take a moment to reflect on the communication and dissemination activities that have supported this shared journey, connecting our research with museum professionals, academic communities, and the wider public across Europe.