Radio Magica's community Talking Maps®: Digital, linguistic and cognitive accessibility for cultural heritage

Abstract

The Talking Maps® project aims at developing a "digital common good" based on multimodality to promote the dissemination of Italian Cultural Heritage through a narrative language, enjoyable and accessible by a wide range of users, including non-experts such as children, and individuals with cognitive disabilities or linguistic special needs. Maps are both digital and paper-based. Digital contents connected to each Talking MapⓇ comprise multimodal stories and fun-facts developed by a multidisciplinary team of experts and artists, in line with the principles of universal design. Maps are conceived as community maps, since the production methodology involves citizens of all ages. Empirical investigation conducted between 2018 and 2023 made it possible to point out the strengths of the project and analyze its development on a longitudinal basis.