Global Voices, Local Choices brings people together at Derry Tower Museum

GLOBAL CHOICES, LOCAL VOICES LAUNCH. . . . .The Mayor of Derry City and Strabane District Council, Patricia Logue pictured at the 'Global Choices, Local Voices' launch in the Tower Museum, Derry on Friday afternoon. Included are Agrippi Njanina, Community Engagement Officer, National Museums NI, Karen Scrivens, Active Citizens, Ruth McPhillips, DCSDC and Bernadette Walsh, Archivist, DCSDC. Included are representatives from the Active Citizens Engaged group. (Photos: Jim McCafferty Photography)

The project aimed to provide opportunities to engage marginalised communities, bringing people together, and using word culture museum objects to promote conversation and learning.

Global Voices Local Choices is led by National Museums NI, in partnership with the African and Caribbean Support Organisation Northern Ireland (ACSONI) and Northern Ireland Museums Council (NIMC), and is funded by the Esmee Fairbairn Collections Fund.

At the Tower Museum, participants explored a range of objects from the World Cultures Collection at the Tower and at the Ulster Museum, including the Mbira, a family of musical instruments, traditional to the Shona people of Zimbabwe. Through sharing music and Asian food, the group had the opportunity to explore new cultures and identities, and discuss the importance of diversity and inclusion.

The Mayor, Patricia Logue in conversation with Agrippi Njanina, Community Engagement Officer, National Museums NI and Bernadette Walsh, Archivist, DCSDC at Friday's 'Global Choices, Local Voices' launch in the Tower Museum, Derry.

Mayor of Derry and Strabane, Councillor Patricia Logue, said: “Museums are important shared spaces where people can get together to discuss heritage and how it has shaped society. Programmes like Global Voices Local Choices bring different cultures together to share their stories, and use artefacts as the starting point for conversations around culture and heritage and the traditions that are unique to different ethnic communities. I am delighted that the Tower Museum is engaging with the programme and providing a place for local people of all backgrounds to come together.”

Visitors can now view a Mbira at the Tower Museum, on loan from National Museums Northern Ireland, which is on display alongside a short film about the project.

The instrument was donated by Agrippa Njanina the project facilitator who, during one of the sessions, played the instrument and explained its significance to his community.

Find out more about the Global Voices Local Choices project at https://www.nationalmuseumsni.org/global-voices-local-choices-project