Can Skopje Museums Regenerate the Social and Urban Sustainability, Through “Social Friday Activity”?

Abstract

The Republic of North Macedonia is a multi-ethnic state, but the lack of treatment in legal, political, social, and cultural aspects has engendered a problem of socio-cultural identity. The political factor, especially in a state with a democracy (dictatorship imposed) like the Republic of North Macedonia, social institutions especially museums are exploited to creating a national identity that results in the state's assimilation of multi-ethnic identity. This misuse of museums destroyed the primary purpose of these institutions by converting them into institutions where transparencies, trust, truth, and non-discrimination are taboo. The revival of museums means a revival of institutional, social, and urban sustainability, where every city of the Republic of North Macedonia and, ultimately, the capital of the state—Skopje—deserve their resurrection. In this research, I focus on the possibilities of revitalizing museums through social activity, called Social Friday activity. The social, cultural, historical, art and crafts, distinctive transformation, and occupation potential of the museums enable the variety of activities that can be realized in institutional staff-community-other institutions collaboration. The goal of Social Friday Activity is to help the local community, the flexibility of choosing the activity and method of intervention enables us to be closer to the problems of community. Categorizing and prioritizing problems, based on opportunities and means of interventions, opens a way to glocalization. Glocalization in context is a linear process of local and global development and interaction in every sphere. Raising awareness of “the back to the local community” creates sociality and urban sustainability, catalyzed by museums.