“Don’t Touch!”: a podcast on accessibility in cultural institutions

“Don’t Touch!”: a podcast to rethink accessibility in cultural spaces

Available from 17 March 2026, “Don’t Touch!” is a podcast promoted by the Ministry of Culture and produced by the National School of Cultural Heritage and Cultural Activities. Curated by Giovanna Brambilla, an art historian specializing in heritage education, the series asks a central question: what does accessibility mean in museums, archives and libraries today?

Main focus

The podcast treats accessibility as a cultural matter as well as a technical one: beyond ramps and tactile maps, it explores institutional practices, mediation strategies and inclusive design approaches that expand participation and reframe the role of cultural institutions.

Series format

The series features interviews and conversations with professionals working in cultural institutions. Twelve contributors plus a special episode share experiences, challenges and visions to rethink routine approaches and suggest new directions.

Episode highlights

• Episode 1 — Parole corsare (Corsair Words): discussion on the meaning of «accessibility» as an ongoing process, and the museum as a relational device rather than a location for a single visitor type (with Emanuela Daffra and Luca Dal Pozzolo).
• Episode 2 — Fuori dal vaso (Out of the Pot): a dialogue between ethnographic museums and botanical gardens on cultural heritage as a shared resource (with Mario Turci and Mara Sugni).
• Episode 3 — Punti di svista (Blind Spots): perspectives on what remains unseen and how broadening accessibility opens new points of view (with Stefania Vannini and Nicola Stilla).
• Episode 4 — Escape Room: how cultural places design experiences that involve visitors and creators through mediation and language (with Irene Balzani and Melania Longo).
• Episode 5 — Don’t Open That Door: a call to challenge institutional habits and open up to new stories and relationships (with Cristiana Iommi and Luca Vitone).
• Episode 6 — Behind the Scenes: reflections on barriers in artistic and performance training and who can access and imagine themselves as artists (with Laura Barreca and Chiara Bersani).
• Special episode — Fairytales Are Real: the accessible future of museums: focus on the exhibition «Le fiabe sono vere… Storia popolare italiana» at the Museum of Civilizations, exploring how the show served as a model for inclusive exhibition practices (voices of curators and designers involved).

Why listen

• Provides practical insights for museum professionals, cultural educators and service designers.
• Promotes the idea of accessibility as an evolving cultural process, not a one‑off fix.
• Shares concrete cases and reflections from practitioners active in the field.

Where to find it

The podcast is freely available on major streaming platforms and is addressed to museum staff, educators, students and anyone interested in making cultural places more inclusive.