While Charting a Course: A Study of Heritage in Prince Edward Island
Draft Report, provides the context for all recommendations and should be consulted, this compilation is being posted to provide the recommendations as a list:
Charting a Course: A Study of Heritage in Prince Edward Island
Draft Report
1. We recommend that responsibility for heritage remain in the Culture, Heritage and Libraries Division, that it be strengthened by giving it greater clarity and profile of mandate, that it be given sufficient resources to realize its mandate and provide leadership and expertise on heritage matters provincially.
2. We recommend that heritage concerns be given greater consideration in the decision-making of the Province by:
• Tasking the Council of Deputy Ministers with the development of measures to give heritage concerns a higher profile in the decisions of the Province
• Making heritage impacts become more prominent in the Environmental Impact Assessment process
• Requesting that the Commissioner on Land and Local Governance (announced in the April 4, 2008 Speech From the Throne) develop mechanisms for the protection of heritage features in unincorporated areas as well as in communities that do not have official plans
3. We recommend the development of a three-to five-year capital funding program to improve the condition of the buildings at the seven Provincial Museum sites and to invest in new, high-quality exhibitions at the sites. Further, a budget and plan should be established for ongoing operations and annual site maintenance for these Provincial sites.
4. We recommend that the Government provide sufficient base-level funding to Provincial Museum sites to enable all of them to remain open a minimum of two months longer to accommodate school visits and the tourism shoulder seasons.
5. We recommend that the provincial government increase support to the community museums by expanding the standards-based community museum operating grant program and administer this program in partnership with the Community Museums Association.
6. We recommend that the Province make greater use of existing landscape protection legislation; include more public education, building local capacity and heritage expertise in related areas; and develop new mechanisms to encourage owners in heritage preservation, including better financial incentives such as tax accommodations, loans, grants, and outright compensation.
7. We recommend that the powers of the Heritage Places Protection Act be used more effectively to promote and regulate the protection of heritage property, especially in the designation of places, and coordination of the Act with enhanced planning and development control legislation.
8. We recommend the appointment of at least one full-time Heritage Officer within the Department of Communities, Cultural Affairs and Labour.
9. We recommend, in light of the pending discontinuance of federal government funding, that a plan be developed for future management of the Historic Places Initiative.
10. We recommend the following actions regarding administration for archaeology:
• Immediate proclamation of the Archaeology Act, preparation of the necessary regulations and the undertaking of adequate publicity and
enforcement
• Reconsider the 150-year BP (Before Present) time limit as a qualifier for designating sites and artifacts, so that the natural and cultural historic importance of the site or source is the deciding factor
• Greater use by the Minister of the power to designate or temporarily designate archaeological sites in peril, and a reconsideration of the legislation to allow the Minister to extend the initial stop-order period if necessary
• Specification in the Regulations for Permit Applications that the applicant is obliged to carry out a conservation evaluation of the site prior to excavation, and to demonstrate that appropriate conservation support can be provided for excavated materials
11. We recommend that the Government of PEI undertake a professionally-led study that:
• Identifies the functional requirements for a new Prince Edward Island Museum and Archives
• Projects the financial costs associated with building and operating a new Prince Edward Island Museum and Archives
• Assesses potential locations and recommends a preferred site for the Prince Edward Island Museum and Archives
12. We recommend that changes be made to the existing crown corporation, renaming it the Prince Edward Island Museum and Archives (PMA); that the corporation be governed by a Board of Governors that includes the minister (or representative); that the board report to the minister; and that the corporation be given clear responsibility for management of endowment funds, governance of the provincial museum sites and management of tangible and intangible provincial collections of archival, natural, and cultural history materials.
13. We recommend that the Board of Governors of the re-mandated corporation, drawn from the various communities of interest, should be a policy board and would be responsible for administering endowment funds, including those to be transferred from the PEIMHF. The Chief Executive Officer of the Prince Edward Island Museum and Archives should report to the minister through the Board.
14. We recommend that the Government of PEI develop a human resources plan that gives priority to and sets out timelines for filling the need for additional capacity in the following areas: curatorial (natural history, archaeology, and architectural history), conservation (artifact and archival), archives, and education.
15. We recommend an updated provincial museums and archives collections policy to meet professional standards and broaden cultural representation in collections; as well as an acquisitions policy to delineate collections mandates among the provincial heritage institutions with criteria to ensure each collects according to its mandate.
16. We recommend that the Prince Edward Island Museum and Archives curatorial and conservation staff meet with Aboriginal representatives to determine how best to assist in building capacity for care of and access to Aboriginal collections, both in provincial collections and in their communities.
17. We recommend that a provincial conservation policy be developed, and that assessments be prepared by conservators for each provincial museum site and the Public Archives to identify critical collections care needs. We further recommend that the Government provide the necessary support to address these needs.
18. We recommend that purpose-built museum and archival storage facilities for the provincial collections be provided to replace existing storage. We further that recommend conservation facilities and equipment be provided as part of the new PMA.
19. We recommend that the proposed new Prince Edward Island Museum and Archives take the lead to develop joint action with UPEI, to collect, preserve and make accessible to the public the intangible heritage of the Island, including the creation of a sound and film/video recordings archives.
20. We recommend that the Province review and develop provincial cultural policies and programs in consultation with cultural communities to help promote PEI’s intangible culture by:
• Improving co-ordination among cultural programs, and including diverse cultural perspectives into mainstream projects, such as heritage sites, landscape and architectural conservation.
• Liaising with representatives of the two main Aboriginal organizations in PEI, the Mi’kmaq Confederacy of PEI and the Native
Council of PEI, to ensure equitable representation of Aboriginal culture.
• Increasing support to community programs for recording and preserving intangible heritage in areas like traditional knowledge, arts, dance, music and languages of diverse Island cultural communities like Mi’kmaq, Francophone, Lebanese, Scottish, Irish and recent immigrants communities; and in consultation with cultural communities, explore the possibility of a government office for multi-cultural affairs and policies.
• Supporting cultural venues, such as those provided by the rural community halls, and Aboriginal and Francophone and other
21. We recommend that natural heritage be more fully integrated into the seven sites of the existing provincial museum system, as well as the proposed new Prince Edward Island Museum and Archives
The provincial natural heritage collection be expanded
Natural heritage curatorial expertise be added as a priority as noted in the Human Resources section of this report.
22. We recommend that the Province mandate the proposed Prince Edward Island Museum and Archives to conduct research necessary for exploring, interpreting and revising knowledge about Prince Edward Island and to tell a more complex version of the Island story. We also recommend that the PMA pursue opportunities to establish partnerships with individuals and institutions to conduct research that contributes to the objectives and programs of the PMA and other similar institutions.
23. We recommend that the provincial government mandate a role for education in the new PMA, so that for the benefit of students and the wider community, contact is maximized between institutional educational representatives, Island schools and the community at large.
24. We recommend that the Prince Edward Island Museum and Archives provide permanent and temporary exhibition space and support facilities for the provincial collections to meet the highest professional standards and practices in exhibition concepts and design.
25. We recommend that an interpretive master plan be developed to identify the key natural and cultural themes that constitute the ’Island story’; and that protocols are established to ensure appropriate cultural representation and collaboration so that the story is inclusive.
26. We recommend that the Prince Edward Island Museum and Archives expand its resources and services to serve the public interest in genealogical research by establishing a Family History Room, and by collaborating with non-governmental genealogical organizations to the same end.
27. We recommend that the Prince Edward Island Museum and Archives, the Department of Tourism, and the heritage community work together to target the Island diaspora in promotion and programs.
28. We recommend that the “Island Studies” course mentioned in the Speech from the Throne (April 4, 2008) include environmental awareness and the importance of local citizenship and the global community. It should be offered in all high schools.
29. We recommend that the Province encourage Holland College and similar educational centres to explore providing training in traditional trades in order to make such occupational options more available and to ensure succession in areas that are part of Island heritage.
30. We recommend that the Province create a provincial heritage strategy; take immediate steps to address some of the most pressing needs recommended in this report; and prepare annual reports on the progress in implementing the new provincial heritage strategy during its first five years.
Immediate (within eight months):
• Develop a heritage strategy to guide government action
• Make more effective use and enforcement of existing legislation (e.g., Heritage Places Protection Act to protect heritage places; proclaim the Archaeology Act and develop regulations)
• Strengthen and clarify the mandates regarding administration of provincial heritage resources
• Give more prominence to heritage concerns within government as part of the decision-making process
• Establish the Prince Edward Island Museum and Archives as a re-mandated and enhanced heritage crown corporation
Short-term (one to two years):
• Build capacity throughout the system -- which involves developing a human resources plan, and hiring professional curators, archivists, conservators and an educator. These professionals will initiate programs within the existing infrastructure and plan future facilities, programs and policies
• Undertake a study for the proposed new PEI Museum and Archives facility to identify functional requirements and financial costs, and to recommend a preferred site
• Increase the operating funding to the seven provincial museum sites to expand their operating season and improve programming
• Increase support for community museums through the Community Museums Association
• Develop collections policies
• Develop mechanisms to protect natural and cultural landscape and built heritage through the use of economic instruments
• Develop an inclusive interpretive master plan integrating natural and cultural themes in consultation with cultural communities
Medium-term (three to five years):
• Develop a capital funding program for the seven provincial museum sites
• Ensure the new PMA fulfills the natural heritage mandate of the Museum Act
• Move personnel and stored collections into the new Prince Edward Island Museum and Archives facility
Long-term (six to ten years):
• Continue to build, conserve and manage collections, while developing exhibitions, programming and educational resources
• Maintain the physical infrastructure
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