RISE IMET 2021: International Conference on Interactive Media, Smart Systems and Emerging Technologies

The RISE IMET International Conference on Emerging Technologies and the Digital Transformation of Museums and Heritage Sites will be held in Nicosia, Cyprus, on June 2-4th 2021 (after bring postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic). The conference is organised by the Research Centre on Interactive media, Smart systems and Emerging technologies (RISE). RISE constitutes a centre of excellence and a joint venture between the three public universities of Cyprus (University of Cyprus, Cyprus University of Technology and Open University of Cyprus), the Municipality of Nicosia, the Max Planck Institute for Informatics (Germany) and University College London (UK) (http://www.rise.org.cy). This is the first conference in a series of RISE annual conferences focusing on Interactive Media, Smart Systems and Emerging Technologies (RISE - IMET). 

The conference is dedicated to the exploration of current practices in the use of emerging and interactive technologies such as augmented, mixed or virtual reality, holographic models, 3D models, artificial intelligence, sensors and gamification in museums and heritage sites. The aim of this conference is to promote critical and interdisciplinary approaches and conversations between participants from diverse fields and to encourage interdisciplinary dialogue between academics and professionals from various backgrounds on digital advances, innovation and their impact on the field of cultural heritage. Thus, we encourage the submission of full papers, posters or workshops from academics and professionals from the fields of museum studies, cultural heritage, computer science, heritage management, artificial intelligence, visual arts and cognitive science amongst others. 

Potential themes include but are not limited to:

  • Advantages, challenges and limitations of emerging technologies 
  • Current theoretical and practical approaches in digital heritage
  • Case studies of successful or not-so-successful implementations of emerging technologies in museums and heritage sites (critical approaches to the application of emerging technologies) 
  • Emerging trends in the digital presentation, interpretation and management of cultural heritage
  • VR, AR, MR, Mobile Applications and Gamification in museums and heritage sites
  • Cultural Informatics and ethical considerations 
  • The application of emerging technologies in specialised areas of cultural heritage, e.g. contested heritage, intangible cultural heritage, World Heritage Sites
  • Immersion, immersive experiences and authenticity in cultural heritage
  • Interactive/Emerging Technologies and education/museum pedagogy
  • New technologies and visitor behaviour analysis/visitor studies
  • Cultural tourism and emerging technologies: museums, heritage sites and smart applications 
  • Technologies of crowdsourcing for museums and heritage sites/participatory memory practices through technology
  • Affective technologies and museums
  • Galleries, technology and contemporary art

The organisers also welcome proposals for poster presentations and workshops. Proposals should be no more than 500 words and should follow the specific instructions for posters and workshops found on our website.

All accepted papers will be included in the conference proceedings. It is planned to publish the proceedings with Springer in their Communications in Computer and Information Science series (final approval pending). Submitted full papers will go through the process of peer-review. In addition, all abstracts (including accepted posters and workshops) will be published in the conference abstract book which will be available as a booklet at the conference.