Don't Touch! A Podcast on Accessibility in Cultural Venues

"Don't Touch!": a podcast to rethink accessibility in museums

The Directorate-General for Museums presents "Don't Touch!", a six-episode podcast series produced by the National School of Heritage and Cultural Activities to explore accessibility in cultural venues. Curated by Giovanna Brambilla, the project approaches accessibility as a right and a cultural process, beyond mere technical fixes.

Where to listen: the series is freely available on major podcast platforms.

Why this podcast

By playfully reclaiming the familiar museum injunction, "Don't Touch!" invites listeners to engage with ideas, practices and design solutions. The aim is to foster a shared reflection on how museums, archives and libraries can become more inclusive, participatory and welcoming.

Themes and contributors

Twelve professionals from the cultural sector share concrete experiences and theoretical perspectives, addressing both established practices and elements that still need to be imagined. The podcast highlights how accessibility concerns language, design, exhibition routes and educational activity.

• Episode 1 – Parole corsare (Corsair Words): on the meaning of "accessibility" and the museum as a relational device, with Emanuela Daffra and Luca Dal Pozzolo.
• Episode 2 – Fuori dal vaso (Out of the Pot): dialogue between demo-ethno-anthropological museums and botanical gardens about collective heritage, with Mario Turci and Mara Sugni.
• Episode 3 – Punti di svista (Points of Oversight): perspectives on the "unseen" and broadening accessibility beyond single tools, with Stefania Vannini and Nicola Stilla.
• Episode 4 – Escape Room: cultural venues as spaces of experience and participation, with Irene Balzani and Melania Longo.
• Episode 5 – Don't Open That Door: proposals to make institutions more open and inclusive, with Cristiana Iommi and Luca Vitone.
• Episode 6 – Behind the Scenes: visible and invisible barriers in artistic and performative training, with Laura Barreca and Chiara Bersani.

Special episode

The additional episode, Fairy Tales Are Real: the Accessible Future of Museums, examines the accessible choices behind the exhibition Le fiabe sono vere… Storia popolare italiana held at the Museum of Civilizations in Rome from 24 July 2025 to 24 May 2026. Contributors include Andrea Viliani and Maria Rosaria Lo Muzio, interviewed by Miriam Mandosi.

Context and funding

The series is part of the national training programme "Personeper. Accessibility in Cultural Venues", funded by the European Union under NextGenerationEU within the PNRR Cultura 4.0 framework and promoted by the Directorate-General for Museums.

Practical takeaways: the podcast provides actionable ideas on tactile maps, tactile-pedagogical paths, LIS videos, relational design and cross-departmental collaboration—useful for museum professionals and curators.