Sarike van Slooten

Dr. Sarike van Slooten serves as a Lecturer and coordinator of the minor "Heritage Experience Management" at bachelor's level and the elective "Contemporary Issues in Heritage" at master's level at NHL Stenden University of Applied Sciences. She is also a researcher at the European Tourism Future Institute (ETFI).

Her research focuses on the representation, interpretation, and visitor experience of cultural heritage in relation to contemporary heritage and management issues. Her specific interests include postcolonial representations, identity formation and memory, inclusivity and diversity, as well as dark tourism. She approaches these topics through critical analysis of how cultural institutions engage with contemporary social debates.

Dr. van Slooten completed her PhD research at the University of Amsterdam's Amsterdam School of Heritage, Memory and Material Culture in February 2023. Her doctoral study, titled "A Postcolonial Museum?", investigates how museums can better connect with contemporary debates on colonialism through three perspectives: the museum as an institution, its material presentation, and the visitor experience. Her work argues that meaningful connection between museums and contemporary colonial debates requires imagining the (im)possibility of constructing a postcolonial museum.