This year's topic responds to modern time and encourages the inclusion of museums into society, underlining the power of the richness of cultural heritage and its potential for constructive cultural change, the Slovenian committee of the International Council of Museums (ICOM) wrote on its website.

Head of the committee Tanja Roženbergar said at a press conference ahead of the Museum Day that museums can help change society by offering creative solutions and informal education opportunities like workshops and programmes.

Moreover, museums contribute to shaping local identity as houses of memories and intergenerational dialogue, she added.

To mark the International Museum Day, the Slovenian Museum Society will confer on Monday the annual Valvasor Award for lifetime achievements in museology.

The Museum and Galleries of Ljubljana (MGML) have exhibited in front of the Ljubljana City Museum the organisation's BMW Art Car project, a BMW M3 painted by Australian aboriginal artist Michael Jagamara Nelson.

The project is the first in line in the organisation's cooperation with BMW Group Slovenija and will be followed by an exhibition on a 5,200-year old wheel.

The Slovenian Etnographic Museum, a nominee for the 2013 European Museum of the Year Award (EMYA), is also marking the occasion with two projects - an architectural project which will continue to host events in front of the museum in the future and an exhibition of photos dealing with urban environment in third world countries.

The ICOM declared 18 May Museum Day in 1977 to raise the awareness of the importance of museums for the development of society