What Makes Public History Truly International?

Public History and history didactics are two subdisciplines of history that focus on reaching the world outside the academy. Both put an emphasis on “practising” history while at the same time grounding practice on theoretical reflection and empirical research with the ultimate goal of developing the most effective strategies of reaching diverse audiences to enhance historical knowledge and understanding. This roundtable explores what we mean by international public history and by the internationalization of history didactics, drawing on initiatives such as The Italian Public History Manifesto (2016) issued by the Italian Association of Public History (Associazione Italiana di Public History (AIPH). Our discussion will revolve around questions such as How must we re-shape history didactics and public history so that we take full account of transnational, diasporic and other identities based on class, gender, race, ethnicity, religion, sexuality, or ability? How can we enhance knowledge building globally by embracing different local experiences and perceptions? How do we address imbalances and the traditional North American and European centredness of our subdisciplines?