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Bimonthly magazine of the Association of Science-Technology Centers
September • October 2014
Celebrating Community Engagement
Dimensions September • October 2014 3
September • October 2014 contents24Learning Conversations: Inviting Community Partnership in a Science CenterBy Wit Ostrenko and Fred Steier
28Building an Exhibition One Relationship at a TimeBy Jason Bosher
32A Kaleidoscope of Stories from the People of La Guajira, ColombiaBy Sigrid Falla and Augusto Reyes
35From Fossils to Face Masks: Connecting with Collections in AlaskaBy Theresa Bakker
38From Downtown to Across the State: Taking a Central Role in STEM Education in Arizona By Michele A. Meyer
41Science Festivals: Celebrations of Science Around the World
47Six Ways to Make Your Science Festival UnforgettableBy Natalie Ireland
48 Community Engagement in the Wake of Disaster
Cover: Visitors explore the Science Village on the plaza of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina in Alexandria, Egypt, during the annual Science Festivity. The library’s Planetarium Science Center has hosted the festival for the past nine years, even in 2011, just three months after Egypt’s revolution. Photo courtesy the Bibliotheca Alexandrina
5 FROM THE CEOthe communities (in which) we serve
6 INBOXletters to the editor
7 SPOTLIGHTSpuzzling things out in
Beyond Rubik’s Cube
11 NOTES FROM ASTCDiversity and McGrath Fellows
announced; Dimensions honored
with an APEX Award
19 VIEWPOINTSif you could change one thing about
the science center and museum field,
what would it be?
20 PEOPLEcomings and goings
features
departments
Biologist Nalini Nadkarni gives a lecture about trees to inmates at Stafford Creek Corrections Center, Aberdeen, Washington, as part of a monthly science lecture series through the Sustainability in Prisons Project. Photo by Benj Drummond and Sarah Joy Steele
52 Into the Light: Bringing Science Education to the IncarceratedBy Nalini Nadkarni
21 WHAT WE LEARNEDwhen life gives you lemons . . .
57 GRANTS AND AWARDS
58 Q&A
Molly Paul, 15-year-old junior curator, on
empowering youth and saving turtles
55Engaging Families of Incarcerated IndividualsBy John Polatch
CHEAPBOOKS GREATEST HITS!
Featuring 30 “classics” from Volumes 1, 2, and 3
plus 10 all new cheap exhibit hits! EDITED BY: Paul Orselli
Volume 16, Number 5
EDITORIAL
Anthony (Bud) RockPRESIDENT AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER
Emily SchusterEDITOR
Margaret Glass, Wendy Hancock, Mary Mathias, Rowena Rae, Christine Ruffo, Kalie Sacco
CONSULTING EDITORS
Christine RuffoPHOTO EDITOR
Christopher LotisCOPY EDITOR
Red Velvet CreativeART DIRECTION AND DESIGN
BUSINESS AND ADVERTISING
Larry H. HofferCHIEF OF STAFF
To advertise in Dimensions, contact Larry H. Hoffer, (202) 783-7200 x114, [email protected].
Jessica JainADVERTISING COORDINATOR
Alejandro AsinPUBLICATIONS ASSISTANT
EDITORIAL ADVISORS
CONTRIBUTORSAlejandro Asin, Theresa Bakker, Sharon Barry, Jamie Bell, Brigitte Belleville, Jason Bosher, Cynthia Brown,
Anne-Marie Bruyas, Azura Daud, Ayman Elsayed, Sigrid Falla, Regan Forrest, Jonathan Frederick, Elizabeth Hand, Lila Higgins, Larry H. Hoffer, Natalie Ireland, Jessica Jain, Adam I. Kane, Miha Kos, Eli Kuslansky, TM Lim, Mary Mathias,
Michele A. Meyer, Ingit Kumar Mukhopadhyay, Nalini Nadkarni, Wit Ostrenko, Neville Petrie, John Polatch, Augusto Reyes, Anthony (Bud) Rock, Deborah Lee Rose, Kalie Sacco, Joelle Seligson, Fred Steier, Ian Simmons, Charlie Trautmann,
Gerri Trooskin, Grace Troxel, Ben Wiehe, Isao Yamasaki
Dimensions (ISSN 1528-820X) is published six times a year by the Association of Science-Technology Centers Incorporated, 818 Connecticut Avenue NW, 7th Floor, Washington, DC 20006, U.S.A. Copyright © 2014 the Association of Science-Technology Centers Incorporated. All rights reserved.
Dimensions is intended to keep member institutions apprised of trends, practices, innovations, perspectives, and news of significance to the science center and museum field. Any paid staff member of an ASTC-member institution can request a free print or electronic subscription at members.astc.org. For nonmembers, print subscriptions are USD 60/USD 70 outside the U.S. (electronic: USD 35). For students, print subscriptions are USD 35/USD 45 outside the U.S. (electronic: USD 29). Students also receive a free subscription to the biweekly INFORMER enewsletter. Students must provide a copy of a valid student ID. Subscribe at www.astc.org/pubs/dimensions.htm or send name, address, and payment in U.S. dollars to ASTC at the above address, Attn: Dimensions Subscriptions. For help, call (202) 783-7200 or email [email protected]. Dimensions is included in EBSCO Publishing’s products. ALTERNATE FORMATS AVAILABLE ON REQUEST.
Dimensions is printed on 30% post-consumer paper with environmentally friendly inks. By printing this issue on recycled paper, ASTC has saved the following resources:2,141 gallons 237 pounds 466 pounds 3,570,000 BTUswastewater solid waste net greenhouse energyflow saved not generated gases prevented not consumed
Follow us on Twitter: @ScienceCenters (twitter.com/ScienceCenters), like our Facebook page (www.facebook.com/ScienceCenters), and visit www.astc.org.
To submit ideas for features or departments, contact Emily Schuster, editor, (202) 783-7200 x130, [email protected]. To see the current editorial calendar, visit www.astc.org/pubs/dimensions/
DimensionsEditorialCalendar.pdf. Email letters to the editor to [email protected] (subject line: Inbox) or mail them to ASTC at the above address, Attn: Dimensions Inbox. Include your name,
title, and institution. We reserve the right to edit letters for publication.
SPECIAL!! The ASTC Exhibit Cheapbooks BundlesEdited by Paul Orselli ASTC (1995, 1999, 2004, 2014)
These collections of inexpensive exhibit ideas, now available in PDF format, have been extremely popular and are more afford-able than ever. Perfect for small museums and exhibit developers on a budget, each volume provides construction tips and exhibit schematics for 30 time-tested interactive exhibits.
You may also purchase The Cheapbook, Cheapbook 2, Cheapbook 3, and the new Cheapbooks Greatest Hits individually as elec-tronic editions by visiting our website below.
Order your PDF copies of the Cheapbooks to save big time on exhibits!
#169E Cheapbooks 1–3 Bundle (PDF only)ASTC members/students: $20Nonmembers: $28
#178 Cheapbooks Greatest Hits Super Bundle (includes all four Cheapbooks as PDF copies)ASTC members/students: $38Nonmembers: $45
Visit www.astc.org/pubs for availability and to order.
Ganigar ChenNational Science Museum,
Pathumthani, Thailand
Jonah Cohen The Children’s Museum, West Hartford,
Connecticut, U.S.A.
Ayman Elsayed Planetarium Science Center, Bibliotheca
Alexandrina, Alexandria, Egypt
R.L. (Chip) Lindsey ScienceWorks Hands-on Museum,
Ashland, Oregon, U.S.A.
Rachel MeyerCuriOdyssey, San Mateo, California,
U.S.A.
Paul OrselliPaul Orselli Workshop (POW!), Baldwin,
New York, U.S.A.
Erika C. Shugart American Society for Microbiology,
Washington, D.C., U.S.A.
Julia TagüeñaCentro de Investigación en Energía, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de
México, Morelos, Mexico
Harry WhiteAt-Bristol, Bristol, England, U.K.
Dimensions September • October 2014 5
Delving into the subject of community engage-ment, I stumbled upon an instructive approach proposed in 2011 by the (U.S.) National Institutes of Health (NIH). In the context of community-based health policy, NIH suggested that commu-nity engagement may be defined in two ways: first, relating to the target community in need of health care services, and second, referring to the wider community in which health care facilities must operate and coordinate to be effective (www.atsdr.cdc.gov/communityengagement).
In both of these definitions of community engage-ment there are close parallels to the work of our science centers and museums. Our missions are frequently defined by the target communities that we strive to impact—youth, lifelong learners, students, educators, underserved communities, the highly motivated, and more. At the same time, we know that our successes depend upon our ability to reflect the wider communities in which we exist and to collaborate effectively with people who share geographic proximity but are often diverse in culture, economics, skills, and interests.
The important message here is that to reach our target communities, we must embrace our wider communities. To truly collaborate with (and learn from) our community partners requires skill and commitment. NIH refers to this effort as a blend of science and art—the science of human interaction and the art of applying this knowledge of human dynamics to productive ends. As I visit science centers and museums everywhere, I am always impressed by the ways in which we successfully serve our communities by reflecting their identi-ties and joining with community partners who share our societal goals.
To reach important target groups, our role within the wider community is to ignite passions about
From the CEO Z
The Communities (in which) We Serve
Anthony (Bud) Rock ([email protected]) is ASTC’s president and CEO. Visit www.astc.org/blog/category/ceo to read more From the CEO editorials.
science and enhance critical thinking skills, technical workforce development, and societal commitment to health and sustainability. We are a vital part of the organizational effort to help our communities thrive.
ASTC was pleased to assist the Noyce Foundation in its recent announcement of the Bright Lights Community Engagement Awards initiative to rec-ognize U.S. science centers, children’s museums, and natural history museums that have done an outstanding job of engaging their local communi-ties, particularly underserved groups. (See page 57.) Key criteria for recognition include consul-tation and partnership with other community organizations with related missions. I thank the Noyce Foundation for helping to raise awareness about this important community role for science centers. ASTC looks forward to helping expand this concept throughout our global membership.
Photo by Christopher Anderson
6 September • October 2014 Dimensions
Bimonthly magazine of the Association of Science-Technology Centers
July • August 2014
Telling Science Stories
inbox
As digital outreach specialist at Science World British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada, I spend much of my time cultivating science stories and communicating the importance of storytelling in science education through web content and BC Green Games, an online environmental sciences storytelling contest (www.bcgreengames.ca). Your July/August 2014 issue, “Telling Science Stories,” was a particular success, in my opinion, since it highlighted storytelling’s effectiveness in enhanc-ing science understanding, as well as the impor-tance of craft in storytelling. We at Science World try our best to make those connections through our blog SWOG (www.scienceworld.ca/swog) and programs like BC Green Games.
Stories allow us to think expansively about sci-ence and to imagine things beyond what is already possible. Despite the reality that humans are natu-ral storytellers and our minds are always seeking a narrative, the role of storytelling is often overlooked in science education. It is possible that students are being done a tremendous disservice as a result of this missed connection.
The danger of leaving out the story in science is that students who might have something to contribute to the scientific community might never imagine their place in that community. By the same token, students who naturally find themselves in the sciences could suffer if they aren’t exposed to the craft of telling their own story.
It’s wonderful for me to know that education researchers like Brad McLain are working on projects like STEPS, that connections with culture and heritage are being uncovered, and that I have access to so many fantastic resources through these incredible educators.
Elizabeth Hand, digital outreach and teacher support specialist, Science World British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
Your July/August 2014 issue of Dimensions focused on storytelling as a means to engage visi-tors with science content programmatically and in exhibits. This is exactly what our team of exhibit developers, scientists, and educators at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County did for our new Nature Lab exhibition.
This exhibition focuses on the surprising urban biodiversity present in our city, utilizing multiple
ADVERTISER INDEX
ASTC Annual Conference .......................................60ASTC Publications ..................................................... 4Blue Telescope .......................................................... 17 Connecticut Science Center ................................... 11Eureka Exhibits ........................................................ 59 Exhibits.nl ..................................................................18 Imagine Exhibitions ................................................. 56IMAX ............................................................................2Nobox Creative .........................................................13Thank You to Our Partners ...................................... 55VCU ............................................................................10
modes of engagement including live animal displays, nontradi-tional taxidermy, multimedia interactives, and storytell-ing. During development, the design team often found ourselves recounting our L.A. nature stories. One story would spark another, and another, and would help the team uncover new concepts, directions, and design ideas. The sharing of these nature memories became an essential part of our process and in turn inspired us to include them in the exhibition, alongside those of our visitors.
The format for sharing the stories—profession-ally illustrated nature memory maps—is similar to the story maps mentioned in Allie Sorlie’s article, “Once Upon a Map: Telling Stories in the Digital Age.” Two large tables feature 16 nature memories collected from people all over the greater L.A. region—museum scientists and educators, lo-cal schoolkids, and regular visitors. To share the stories in a new and accessible way, we elected not to use traditional text panels. Instead, we chose to share the stories visually, using hand-drawn illustrations paired with embedded objects, media, and other sensory experiences. As intended, the memory maps are indeed inspiring our guests to share their own L.A. nature memories. The tables feature two notebook stations and a digital interac-tive that allow visitors to share their stories with us.
Lila Higgins, manager of citizen science, Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, Los Angeles
Dimensions September • October 2014 7
spotlights
LIVING ON THE EDGEWhat are the limits of the human body? Visitors can decide for themselves at The AstraZeneca Human Edge, a new per-manent exhibition at the Ontario Science Centre in Toronto. The 10,000-square-foot (929-square-meter) exhibition, which opened in December 2013, explores the wonders and possi-bilities of the human body through more than 80 exhibits.
“The story we chose to focus on is people pushing them-selves physically and mentally, to the point that what is hu-manly possible is being redefined,” says Mary Jane Conboy, director of science content and design. Visitors learn about the human body, health, fitness, and nutrition as they explore the incredible achievements of athletes, adventure-seekers, and extreme sports enthusiasts. “We also look at injury and illness (like diabetes, for example) to showcase that we do have boundaries but where they lie is often very different from what we imagine,” says Conboy.
The exhibition has five areas. In the Beginning focuses on in utero development and how environmental factors influ-ence the expression of genes. Mind and Body looks at the muscular, skeletal, nervous, and circulatory systems and also invites visitors to experience the fear response by crossing
an elevated glass walkway. Outer Limits presents stories of athletes and adventure-seekers who have pushed their bodies to the limits. In the immersive audio theater Single Breath, Canadian Mandy-Rae Cruickshank Krack narrates her free-diving experience to a depth of 288 feet (88 meters)—and back—on a single breath of air.
Pushing Past the Limits shows how the body responds when its limits are exceeded, as with broken bones and con-cussions. To explore diabetes, a re-creation of Banting and Best’s laboratory at the University of Toronto is used to tell the story of the Canadian discovery of insulin. Personal Limits explores popular fitness activities and provides a chance to dance on an “energy dance floor” that converts kinetic energy to electricity.
The exhibition team consulted more than 120 experts— including scientists, athletes, and adventure-seekers—and the team at the Ontario Science Centre pushed itself to create the museum’s most sustainable exhibition ever.
Major funders included naming sponsor AstraZeneca Canada; the Ontario Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport; and Sun Life Financial. —Sharon Barry
Details: Mary Jane Conboy, director of science content and design, [email protected],www.ontariosciencecentre.ca/human
In the Single Breath immersive audio theater, visitors can hear a Canadian freediver narrating her experiences. Photo courtesy the Ontario Science Centre
8 September • October 2014 Dimensions
Z spotlights
MAKEOVER ON THE MISSISSIPPI“We really wanted to take the plunge and re-energize the Family Museum by offering a completely new set of exhibit opportunities,” says museum director Jeff Reiter. So in 2009, the museum, located in Bettendorf, Iowa, embarked on a three-phase renovation of its 10,000-square-foot (929-square-meter) indoor exhibit space. The final phase was completed last November.
The renovation was inspired by the Quad Cities (Bettendorf and Davenport, Iowa; and Rock Island, Moline, and East Moline, Illinois) that the museum serves, as well as by its location on the banks of the Mississippi River, amid rich farmland. The first new exhibition, unveiled in October 2012, was Lil ‘ssippi River Valley. Its cen-terpiece is a 28-foot (9-meter) water table where kids learn about locks and dams as well as river life. They can also use a crane to load and unload cargo from a river barge.
The second phase, completed in February 2013, shows how a community interacts and how food gets from farm to market. At Fox Hollow, a replica of a town square, children can explore basic math, science, and nutrition concepts by delivering mail, treating animals at the vet clinic, or shopping for groceries. They learn where those groceries come from at George’s Farm, where they can pick fruits and vegetables and care for livestock.
The makeover’s final phase was ThinkShop, an open-ended workshop with 19 stations equipped with real tools and building materials such as vises, hammers, nails, screws, and pieces of wood. “It is a great space where the kids really get to let their imaginations run wild,” says Reiter.
The renovation cost just under $1.4 million. Funding was provided by Bettendorf capital improvement funds, grants from the state of Iowa, and corporate and private donations. Since the renovation, both museum attendance and mem-berships have climbed by about a third. —S.B.
Details: Jeff Reiter, director, [email protected], familymuseum.org
A 10-foot-tall (3-meter-tall) kinetic sculpture marks the entrance to the Family Museum’s hands-on exhibit gallery. Visitors are invited to manipulate the track to send silver balls down a variety of paths. Photo courtesy the Family Museum
Dimensions September • October 2014 9
PUZZLING IT OUT
This year marks the 40th anniversary of the invention in Hungary of Rubik’s Cube, the best-selling puzzle toy ever. On April 26, Liberty Science Center in Jersey City, New Jersey, opened Beyond Rubik’s Cube. The 7,000-square-foot (650-square-meter) traveling exhibition explores how the cube has fostered creativity across the fields of science, technology, engineering, robotics, the visual arts, music, film, architecture, and mathematics.
“Beyond Rubik’s Cube combines highly interactive physical and digital chal-lenges with authentic artifacts to create an extraordinary space that celebrates in-novation,” says Paul Hoffman, the center’s president and CEO and creative director of Beyond Rubik’s Cube. An illuminated 26-foot-tall (8-meter-tall) “Groovik’s Cube” greets visitors outside the exhibition and encourages them to work collaboratively to solve the puzzle. (After hours, people around the world can log onto the internet version at playgrooviks.org.)
When visitors enter the exhibition, they encounter three discovery zones. Invent in-cludes actual artifacts from the workshop of cube inventor Ernö Rubik, an opportunity to
create 3D puzzles from materials similar to those Rubik used, and an interactive touch table where visitors can create patterns from the cube’s colors. In Play, visitors can learn how to solve a Rubik’s Cube or direct robots through a maze. Inspire invites visi-tors to compose a haiku or control a giant Rubik’s Cube that reveals its internal work-ings. This zone also includes the world’s most expensive toy—an 18-carat gold, jewel-encrusted, fully functional Rubik’s Cube estimated to be worth $2.5 million.
“Visitors to Liberty Science Center spend more time in the Beyond Rubik’s Cube gal-lery than in any other exhibition we’ve ever had at the center,” says Hoffman. The mu-seum’s Beyond Rubik’s Cube Google Plus page has more than 2.3 million followers (plus.google.com/+BeyondRubiksCube).
The $5 million exhibition was designed by Liberty Science Center along with creative partners Google and Ernö Rubik. Major funders included Google, the govern-ment of Hungary, Josh and Judy Weston, Bank of America, and EY. The exhibition will travel internationally for seven years beginning in December. —S.B.
Details: Amy Seitz, CEO, Exhibits Development Group, [email protected], brc.lsc.org
spotlights Z
Visitors to Beyond Rubik’s Cube watch as a robot solves their scrambled cubes. Photo courtesy Liberty Science Center
R
Annual Conference
860.SCIENCE [724.3623] CTScienceCenter.org250 Columbus Blvd | Hartford, CT 06103
Proud Host of
Dimensions September • October 2014 11
ASTC ANNOUNCES 2014 DIVERSITY AND LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT FELLOWSASTC is pleased to announce the 2014 ASTC Diversity and Leadership Development Fellows. The Fellows are museum professionals from underrepresented groups who will attend ASTC’s 2014 Annual Conference (conference.astc.org) in Raleigh, North Carolina, in October to gain professional development experiences, a broader peer network, and the opportunity to acquire and hone their leadership skills. Ten new and five alumni fellows were selected:
notes from astc
New Fellows
• Sherrie Belton, EdVenture Children’s Museum, Columbia, South Carolina
• Meghan Durieux, TELUS Spark, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
• Eric Godoy, Denver Museum of Nature & Science
• Nicole Kawamoto, Maryland Science Center, Baltimore
• Christina Martinez, Science Museum of Minnesota, St. Paul
• Akiko Minaga, Exploratorium, San Francisco
• Chris Navarro, San Antonio Children’s Museum, Texas
• Adam Patterson, Oregon Museum of Science and Industry, Portland
• Brisa Rivas, California Science Center, Los Angeles
• Lene Rosenmeier, Ontario Science Centre, Toronto
Alumni Fellows
• Juanita Juarez, California Science Center, Los Angeles
• Kristofer Kelly-Frere, TELUS Spark, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
• Brittani Lane, EdVenture Children’s Museum, Columbia, South Carolina
• Stacey Lee, Long Island Children’s Museum, Garden City, New York
• Amanda Paige, University of Michigan Museum of Natural History, Ann Arbor.
For more information about the ASTC Diversity and Leadership Development Fellows Program, visit www.astc.org/about/awards/conference_fellow.htm.
12 September • October 2014 Dimensions
Z notes from astc
Got Carolina on your mind? Raleigh, North Carolina, will be the epicenter of the global science museum and informal science education fields, October 18–21, with the launch of ASTC’s 2014 Annual Conference, hosted by the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences. If you haven’t already registered to join your col-leagues from across the world, there’s just a short time left: The advance registration deadline ends September 19, so don’t miss your chance to save $100 over onsite rates.
Visit conference.astc.org to register or to get the latest details on the conference.
2014 ASTC ANNUAL CONFERENCE SPONSORS (as of August 5, 2014)We are extremely grateful to the companies and organizations that have chosen to support ASTC’s 2014 Annual Conference.
Corporate PartnersAramcoBurroughs Wellcome
TrustJMP Software from SAS
Gold SponsorsAmerican Museum of
Natural HistoryBlackbaudDinosaurs UnearthedGlobal Experience
Specialists (GES)Imagine Exhibitions Inc.Nobox CreativeNorth Carolina State
UniversityPremier ExhibitionsRedBox Workshop, Ltd.RotoRTI InternationalThe Umstead Hotel
and SpaUnified FieldvCalc LLC
Silver SponsorsEvans & SutherlandGiant Screen Cinema
Association (GSCA)Hands On! Inc.KRE8 360National Geographic
Cinema VenturesSky-SkanSuperior Exhibits &
Design, Inc.Tessitura Network
Jade SponsorsConnecticut Science
CenterEvent NetworkFriends of the North
Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences
IMAXTime Warner CableUSDA Forest Service
Bronze SponsorsArizona Science CenterElectrosonicFentress ArchitectsThe Franklin InstituteMarbles Kids MuseumNorth Carolina
Grassroots Science Museums Collaborative
PCS Phosphate
Supporting SponsorsBatwin + Robin
ProductionsDesign & Production
IncorporatedMagnolia Consulting
L’an prochain à Montréal (Next year in Montreal...)
ASTC is heading to Canada for next year’s ASTC Annual Conference, to be hosted by the Montreal Science Centre, Quebec, October 17–20, 2015. If you’re interested in sharing your expertise and/or lessons you’ve learned, or facilitating a conversation with other members of the field on an issue of interest, consider submitting a session proposal for ASTC 2015. The submission process will launch September 15; proposals are due November 17. Instructions can be found at conference.astc.org.
Want to make your session proposal stand out from the crowd? Get some practical advice from ASTC’s Conference Program Planning Committee by at-tending Creating a Great Conference Session Proposal, a brown bag lunch program on Saturday, October 18, from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. Learn about the updated guidelines and key factors that will strengthen your proposal.
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DEVELOPMENT
Dimensions September • October 2014 13
THREE MCGRATH FELLOWS NAMED ASTC’s International Committee has se-lected three recipients of this year’s Lee Kimche McGrath Worldwide Fellowship (www.astc.org/about/awards/mcgrath.htm). Named for ASTC’s first executive director, the Fellowship helps emerging professionals from outside the United States attend ASTC’s Annual Conference (conference.astc.org). For the third year, the program has received significant financial support from the Gelfand fam-ily, which is supporting the creation of several science centers in Africa.
This year’s McGrath Fellows are
Eyoel Hailu, information technology specialist at Foka Science and Engineering Center, Bishoftu/Oromiya,
Ethiopia, who is responsible for developing the center’s laboratory, annual science fair, curricula, and programs
William Kyambadde, a mobile network engineer and founder and acting executive director of the Science and Technology
Museum Uganda, Kampala, which will be the first museum of its kind in the nation
Héctor G. Pérez-González, engineering professor at Universidad Autónoma de San Luis Potosí (FI-UASLP),
Mexico, and manager of FI-UASLP’s Interactive Museum of Applied Technology, which interprets engineering topics through an immersive virtual environment, interactive exhibits, and workshops.
NEW CONTENT ON NASA PROJECTS AND MORE ON INFORMALSCIENCE.ORGSince its launch in May 2013, InformalScience.org has provided a living collection of project descriptions, research, and evaluation reports to the informal science education (ISE) community. The collection expands and deepens daily and has grown to include approximately 10,000 resources. Among the new content sources that have recently been made available via the collection are
• NASA projects. CAISE recently worked with NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory to catalog project descriptions from the Competitive Program for Science Museums, Planetariums, and NASA Visitor Centers (CP4SMPVC). This diverse array of nearly 60 NASA-funded projects includes exhibits, planetarium shows, teacher professional development activities, community outreach programs, and more. These project descriptions can be found in the Projects section of InformalScience.org by visiting www.InformalScience.org/projects/browse and selecting “NASA” from the Content Source box on the left-hand side of the page.
• Afterschool Matters journal. We recently indexed the archive of Afterschool Matters, a journal published by the National Institute on Out-of-School Time (NIOST). This archive includes more than 100 peer-reviewed articles geared toward afterschool practitioners. Articles cover a wide variety of topics ranging from science, technology, engi-neering, and math (STEM) in libraries to the strengths of community-based organizations. These articles are available under the Research tab of InformalScience.org. To see a full list of the NIOST articles, go to www.InformalScience.org/research/browse and select “NIOST” from the Content Source box on the left-hand side of the page.
In addition, the Research Agenda page is a new portal to the research resources on InformalScience.org. This page offers users quick access to ISE projects that are identifying and prioritizing research questions to improve practice, characterizing successful designs of informal STEM learning settings and experiences, and outlining future opportunities and challenges. The page can be found at www.InformalScience.org/research/research-agendas.
CAISE continues to explore new opportunities for collaboration with other collections to provide our users with a single point of access to the best ISE resources available. We also encourage users to submit their own resources to help build a greater knowledge base for the ISE field. If you have a database that you would like to be made available via InformalScience.org, please contact [email protected].
14 September • October 2014 Dimensions
Z notes from astc
DIMENSIONS WINS AN APEX AWARD OF EXCELLENCEASTC and our design team at Red Velvet Creative have received a 2014 APEX Award of
Excellence for Magazine, Journal, and Tabloid Design and Layout for Dimensions. The APEX Awards, now in their 26th year, recognize publication excellence and are sponsored by the editors of Writer’s Web Watch, published by Communication Concepts, Inc. Out of 2,075 entries, the judges recognized a total of 100 APEX Grand Award winners in 11 major categories and 832 APEX Award of Excellence winners in 122 subcategories. Winners in our subcategory hailed from Australia, Singapore, and the United States.
ASTC’S COMMUNITIES OF PRACTICE NEWS ASTC’s Communities of Practice (CoPs) are continuing to thrive in the ASTC Community (community.astc.org). There are now 616 unique members in the 19 CoPs. These members represent 298 unique institutions.
The Making & Tinkering Spaces in Museums CoP held their regular hang-outs, including a “Spotlight on a Space” featuring the Exploratorium’s Tinkering Studio, and a hangout all about chain reaction activities, such as Rube Goldberg machines. To view these hangouts and recordings of all past ASTC webinars, visit the ASTC Professional Development Vimeo page at vimeo.com/ASTCprofdev.
To learn how to join the ASTC Community and ASTC CoPs, visit www.astc.org/about/pdf/HLhowto.pdf.
Dimensions September • October 2014 15
notes from astc Z
WELCOME TO ASTC
The following new members were approved by the ASTC Board in October 2013. Contact information is available in the About ASTC section of ASTC’s website, www.astc.org.
SCIENCE CENTER AND MUSEUM
MEMBERS
• Carasso Science Park,BeerSheva,
Israel.Thisinteractivemuseumand
hands-onsciencegardenopenedto
thepublicinearly2013.Thenearly
60,000-square-foot(5,574-square-
meter)museumhousesexhibitions
onnuclearenergy,geneticsand
molecularbiology,communication,
mechanics,microchips,andmore.
• USS Silversides Submarine
Museum, Muskegon,Michigan.Since
1987,theUSSSilversideshasbeen
dockedinMuskegontoeducatethe
publicaboutmarinetechnology,
GreatLakesshipping,andWorld
WarII.In1993,theUSCGCMcLane
joinedtheUSSSilversidesasanother
vesselfordiscoveringmarinescience
historythroughovernightcamps,
exhibits,andtechnologyclasses.
SUSTAINING MEMBERS
• Cooperstown Graduate Program,
Cooperstown,NewYork.Thistwo-
yearMasterofArtsprogramtrains
creative,entrepreneurialmuseum
leaderscommittedtogenerating
programsandservicesforthepublic
good.TheStateUniversityofNew
York(Oneonta)andtheNewYork
StateHistoricalAssociationarepart-
nersintheprogram’smanagement
andexecution.
• Dillon Works!Mukilteo,Washington.
DillonWorks!wasfoundedin1987
bydesignerMikeDillon,whose
creativebackgroundspansnearly
threedecades,includingfiveyears
asaDisneyimagineer.Thecompany
providesexhibitiondesignand
fabricationservices.Clientsinclude
NationalAquarium,Baltimore;
theWoodlandParkZoo,Seattle;
andtheMarianKoshlandScience
MuseumoftheNationalAcademyof
Sciences,Washington,D.C.
• Jason Alderman and Associates,
SanDiego.Experiencedesigner
JasonAldermanwearsmanyhats,
coveringeverythingfromsketching
toprototyping.
• KRE8 360, Atlanta.Thiscompany
specializesinthedevelopment,
fabrication,andmanagementof
immersiveandeducationaltraveling
exhibitioncontentformuseums,
zoos,andaquariums.
USS Silversides. Photo courtesy USS Silversides Submarine Museum
• Magian Media Studio, Melbourne,
Australia.BackasanASTCmember
afterafive-yearhiatus,Magianisa
mediadesignandproductionstudio
developingcontentmanagement
softwarespecificallyformultimedia
insciencecentersandmuseums.
TheMuseumofScience,Boston;
theCaliforniaScienceCenter,Los
Angeles;andMuseoInteractivode
Economía(MIDE),MexicoCity,are
amongMagian’sclients.
• Mindsplash, Naperville,Illinois.
Mindsplashcreatesinteractiveexhib-
itsandenvironmentsthatarewithin
reachformostsmalltomid-sized
sciencecentersandmuseums.Clients
areconcentratedinIndianaand
Illinois,includingWonderLabMuseum
ofScience,Health&Technology;
ScitechHands-OnMuseum;andthe
DuPageChildren’sMuseum.
• Osprey Custom Publishing, New
YorkCity.Thisgroupisapublisherof
high-qualityandaffordableexhibition
andcollectionguides/catalogs,includ-
ingeBooks,apps,andwebsites.
16 September • October 2014 Dimensions
Do you have a board member you’d like to see profiled in a future “Our Boards in Action” column? Please send his or her name, position, and contact information to [email protected] (subject line: Boards).
In what ways is the Lander Children’s Museum’s work meaningful to its community?We provide exhibits, events, activities, and clubs for the children and fami-lies in our small community that they wouldn’t have otherwise without travel-ing hundreds of miles. We also house a pre-K program in our building.
As a teacher, you work with students on the student council to develop leadership skills and participate in community service. Could you tell us about a time you saw a child grow through this experience?I had a young woman on my student council as a fourth grader who joined the council because it was the “popu-lar” thing to do. Over three years, I was privileged to watch her grow into a community-minded young person, who no longer cared what was popular as long as she was assisting those in our community. She worked tirelessly to raise money for needy families, she walked laps at Relay for Life to benefit
OUR BOARDS IN ACTION: JILL ROBERTSON
Each “Our Boards in Action” column highlights a board member at an ASTC-member institution, who shares his or her insights and experiences. In this edition, we feature Jill Robertson, who has served on the board of the Lander Children’s Museum, Lander, Wyoming, for seven years and as board chair for three years. Robertson is a teacher and community leader who has worked with the Lander Community Foundation since its inception to support local nonprofits. She has also worked with the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation to protect wildlife and is active as a teacher in her church.
Jill Robertson, chair of the board, Lander Children’s Museum.
Z notes from astc
the American Cancer Society, and she led a massive food drive at our elemen-tary school, among many other projects. She has since gone on to be highly involved in high school and continues to put those in her community first.
In one of your other roles, you work with the Lander Community Foundation, which aims to strengthen communities by promoting philan-thropy and supporting nonprofits. Why do you think it is important for communities to invest in nonprofits, including museums? What roles do museums play in a strong community?The people of Lander show their “true colors” and passion through the non-profits that we begin and sustain over time. An investment in our nonprofits is an investment in ourselves and our future. Museums enrich communities by providing history, science, art, and learning in a hands-on, patron-centered environment. Through museums, we can understand our history and look to the future. That makes them an integral part of a strong community.
What do you think museum execu-tives should do to create good work-ing relationships with their boards? All good working relationships are rooted in a strong respect for one another. Executives and boards must respect each other’s positions, but also understand each other’s responsibili-ties. I spent three months taking care of the finances, applications, emails, and hundreds of other tasks that our executive director does each day while we were hiring a new person. It gave me a deeper understanding and respect for the position. I now know the daily grind that my director goes through and I use that knowledge when approaching her with . . . yet another task.
Multimedia Experiences that open up new worlds
Blue Telescope Studios uses technology, storytelling, and design to create engaging interactive exhibits and experiences. From multi-touch
and mobile apps to games, quizzes, and social interactives, our innovative solutions use the latest technology to educate,
communicate, and connect with your visitors.
212-675-7702studios.blue-telescope.com
INTERACTIVE EXHIBITSIMMERSIVE MULTIMEDIA GAMES & SIMULATIONS
ANIMATION & VIDEOMOBILE APPLICATIONS
EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES
Tesselation Table - “Beyond Rubik’s Cube” exhibition, Liberty Science Center
Z spotlights
Dimensions September • October 2014 19
I would change the fact that on the whole, science centers and museums are able to offer so few free admission days, and therefore continue to be out of the reach of many families and schools. Harnessing community and national support to make more free access would be a worthy effort across the board.
Deborah Lee Rose, science center communications, Walnut Creek, California
While keeping the informal character of science centers intact, a mandatory link with formal science teaching institutions could be put in place requiring all students to visit science centers as a part of their science curriculum. This would help the spread of science centers throughout the world with gov-ernment and private funding and public support.
Ingit Kumar Mukhopadhyay, former director general, National Council of Science Museums, Kolkata, India
For the United Kingdom, I would change funding structures. We do not have tax breaks, corporate or personal philanthropy traditions, or a National Science Foundation like the United States has. There are three government departments that could potentially support science centers—the departments respon-sible for Culture, Education, and Science—and each feels that science centers should be supported by one of the other two.
Worldwide, I would change the perception that we are about educating children about science so that they will become scientists. Art galleries aren’t about getting children to become artists—they are about the cultural appreciation of art by all ages, and we are doing the same for science, or should be.
Ian Simmons, science communication director, International Centre for Life, Newcastle upon Tyne, England, United Kingdom
I would change the field’s focus on one audience segment. Once science centers go beyond the myths that “we can’t be everything to everyone” and that every activity has to be hands-on, free-choice learning, new models of engagement will evolve fast enough to meet the needs of current and future audiences.
Eli Kuslansky, chief strategist and partner, Unified Field, Inc., New York City
If you could change one thing about the science center and museum field, what would it be?
viewpoints
I would like to see all science centers refer to our onsite audiences as “guests” rather than “visitors.” This change would help us to remember that our primary focus should be on providing friendly, informative, and memorable experiences in a clean, safe, and accessible setting.
Charlie Trautmann, executive director, Sciencenter, Ithaca, New York
I wish for science centers and museums to be more participa-tive for all visitors, to allow them to create new experiences and bring their own projects into our exhibit and public spaces.
Brigitte Belleville, project leader, Montreal Science Centre, Quebec
Via Twitter:I’d change the perception that there’s nothing there for adults, it’s all just for kids.
Regan Forrest (@interactivate), director, Interactivate, Adelaide, Australia
Cross-institutional collaboration! It would be great if more science centers collaborated/worked with art/history museums.
Cynthia Brown (@missthiabrown), traveling exhibits manager, Science Museum of Minnesota, St. Paul
Photo by Christine Ruffo
Tell us: Do you think science centers and museums should use crowdfunding resources (like Kickstarter or Indiegogo) to raise funds for exhibits and events? Why or why not? Email [email protected] (subject line: Viewpoints), post on our Facebook page (www.facebook.com/ScienceCenters), or tweet your response to @ScienceCenters.Responses may be printed in a future issue and/or on our website. We reserve the right to edit responses for publication.
Visit www.astc.org/blog/category/astc-dimensions/viewpoints for an extended discussion of this question. The above statements represent the opinions of the individual contributors and not necessarily the views of their institutions or of ASTC.
20 September • October 2014 Dimensions
Danish consumer organization) and the Danish Society for Nature Conservation. He succeeds Asger Høeg, who will stay with Experimentarium until its current expansion project is complete.
Steven Schindler is now executive director of the Birch Aquarium at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, San Diego. Schindler joined the aquarium on June 18 after serving as senior vice president
and chief marketing officer at National Aquarium, Baltimore. He replaces Nigella Hillgarth, who served as the Birch Aquarium’s executive director for 12 years. Hillgarth is now presi- dent and CEO of the New England Aquarium, Boston.
On August 1, Jan McKay became executive director of the Gulf Coast Exploreum Science Center, Mobile, Alabama.
Previously, McKay spent 14 years at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History in management and as director of commu-nications and marketing. She has also served as executive director of Old Cowtown Museum, Wichita, Kansas, and of Casa Romantica Cultural Center and Gardens, San Clemente, California.
Andrés Felipe Roldán Giraldo was named the new executive director of Parque Explora, Medellin, Colombia, in February. Prior to this appointment, he spent seven years as Parque Explora’s director of innovation and development. He
succeeds Azucena Restrepo Herrera.
Alex Benay has been appointed president and CEO of the Canada Science and Technology Museums Corporation, Ottawa, Ontario. Benay’s five-year term began on July 2. He previously served as vice president of
government affairs and business development at Open Text. Benay succeeds Denise Amyot, who is now president and CEO of the Association of Canadian Community Colleges.
The Ontario Science Centre, Toronto, has named Maurice Bitran as its new CEO, effective June 16. Bitran was most recently assistant deputy minister of the Integrated Environmental Policy Division of Canada’s Ministry of the
Environment. Bitran succeeds Lesley Lewis, who led the center for 16 years.
After 30 years with the Duluth Children’s Museum, Minnesota, including 10 as presi-dent and CEO, Michael
Garcia has announced that he will retire in December 2014. Garcia started at the museum as a volunteer and a board member.
On July 1, Kim Gladstone Herlev became CEO of Experimentarium, Hellerup, Denmark, moving up from his position as deputy CEO. Herlev, a former Noyce Fellow, previously held positions at FDB (a
The Discovery Center of Springfield, Missouri, appointed Meleah Spencer as its new executive director, effective March 24. Spencer previously served as director of development and alumni relations at Drury
University. She succeeds Emily Fox, who left the museum after 17 years and is now senior development officer at the University of New Mexico Foundation.
On June 16, the American Society for Engineering Education presented the President’s Award to
Ioannis Miaoulis, president and director of the Museum of Science, Boston, and to the museum’s National Center for Technological Literacy. The President’s Award recognizes organiza-tions that encourage students to pursue engineering careers or educate the public on engineering’s critical societal role. This is the first time a museum has received this award.
Dennis Schatz, senior vice president for strategic programs at Pacific Science Center, Seattle, has received the
Klumpke-Roberts Award for outstanding contributions to the public understand-ing and appreciation of astronomy from the Astronomical Society of the Pacific. Schatz was recognized with the award for his work as the author of more than 20 science books for children and for his contributions as principal investigator for the National Science Foundation–funded Portal to the Public, which brings scientists and the public together for face-to-face interactions.
people
Dimensions September • October 2014 21
what we learned
When we learned that a massive sewer and water line replace-ment project would turn Main Street in front of the Fairbanks Museum & Planetarium in St. Johnsbury, Vermont, to mud, our spirits withered. Detours, dirt, ruts, and the din of con-struction machinery would greet travelers during our busiest season. No good could come of that, and few visitors would likely brave the roadblocks.
But then came the stroke of inspiration. The Fairbanks Museum, with a mission to motivate stewardship of a healthy planet, could make the best of the situation by reframing the construction project as our science experiment. To paraphrase the old saying, we’d make lemonade from sewer water. The messy pipe replacement was driven by St. Johnsbury’s need to separate waste water from storm water to prevent untreated sewage spewing into the Passumpsic River during heavy rain events. Recognizing this educational opportunity, we launched Water Works: The Science Under St. Johnsbury in March. Our approach boiled down to four efforts: school classes, public programs, community outreach, and legacy products.
Our education team designed well-received, well-attended school programs on simple machines and on water quality and filtration, as well as a planetarium show called Water in the Universe.
For the public, we created an exhibition entitled How St. Johnsbury’s Water Works with author and illustrator David Macaulay. The exhibition panels traced St. Johnsbury’s water cycle and emphasized the importance of urban engineering. We also designed and built a water table that draws kids to our front yard to illustrate erosion (and to create a safe place for messy, watery play). We filled the front yard with orange construction signs with messages like “Museum Zone Ahead.”
Our community outreach took the form of public meetings about the construction project for residents. The museum served
as the place to ask questions of the construction engineers. As for legacy products, we’re developing a set of tools to
help other institutions tease the educational opportunities out of construction projects.
And what did we learn? 1. Regardless of how much lemonade you’re drinking, con-
struction is exhausting. The continual rerouting of school buses, water shut-offs, detours, building vibrations, and muddy footprints will wear you down. With or without the Water Works initiative, we would have learned this lesson.
2. Providing programming that is universally valued by the community is well worth the effort. The public reac-tion to our approach was overwhelmingly positive. We received significant foundation support from new funders and sponsorship from many new businesses, including the construction and engineering companies.
As the blacktop goes back down on Main Street in the next few months, you’ll hear a sigh of relief from the Fairbanks Museum, as well as the question, “What can we possibly do next year that will be as good as Water Works?”
Lemonade from Sewer WaterBy Adam I. Kane
An erosion table installed in the Fairbanks Museum’s front yard proved to be a big hit with visitors of all ages. Photo by Leila Nordmann/Fairbanks Museum & Planetarium
If you would like to write about what your institution has learned from a project in exhibit development, education, finance, and/or operations, contact us at [email protected] (subject line: What We Learned).
Adam I. Kane ([email protected]) is executive director of the Fairbanks Museum & Planetarium, St. Johnsbury, Vermont.
Thousands gather on the steps of the Franklin Institute to celebrate the close of the 2014 Philadelphia Science Festival with the explosive launch of 3,000 Fizzy-rockets (film canisters containing Alka-Seltzer tablets and water). Photo courtesy Jonathan Kolbe Photography
Engaging the Entire CommunityScience centers and museums are community-focused institu-
tions. In this issue, we explore many ways science centers are
engaging and empowering people in all parts of their commu-
nities. Working alongside community members and partners,
science centers are addressing key issues, from protecting
the environment, to increasing high school graduation rates,
to developing the science, technology, engineering, and math
workforce. By involving community members in the co-creation
of exhibitions or programs, science centers are building a sense
of ownership while incorporating community voices and talents
to create something greater than what could have been pro-
duced in house. To reach new audiences, science centers are
bringing programs to people where they are, whether through
festival events in underserved urban neighborhoods, mobile
outreach to rural areas, or even science education in prisons.
And centers and their communities are supporting each other
in times of disaster or unrest, highlighting the key role that sci-
ence centers play in community life.
24 September • October 2014 Dimensions
MOSI in Tampa, Florida, has extended a bridge that goes in both directions between itself as a science
center and its diverse community. MOSI is a resource for the community, and the community has
provided the inspiration for MOSI’s rich array of programs.
Learning Conversations: Inviting Community Partnership in a Science Center By Wit Ostrenko and Fred Steier
Our neighbors are, to the west, an area formerly termed “Suitcase City” due to its largely transient population; to the east, a stable residential munici-pality; to the north, the University of South Florida; and to the south, another residential area with an annual influx of 4 million international tourists, attracted to a theme park.
MOSI’s ongoing co-evolution with its mix of stable and transitory neighbors has been facilitated through learning conversations whereby we explore with our community what hands-on learning means, both for our visitors and for ourselves. In design-ing MOSI as a program-based institution, we have invited our community to participate in these con-versational processes so that the community owns the institution.
THE WORLD CAFÉ
At the heart of MOSI’s community engagement is the World Café (www.theworldcafe.com), which encourages deep dialogue as participants explore questions that matter to the community in small roundtable discussions. The approach used in a World Café meeting encourages creativity and cross-pollination of ideas.
Over the course of a World Café, the groups shift—one person stays at a table while others bring
their conversations to new tables, making the issues current, dynamic, and co-evolving. Participants share key thoughts with the whole group, and each dialogue leads to the next conversation. Action steps are then agreed upon for implementation.
The World Café method uses seven guiding prin-ciples (see www.theworldcafe.com/principles.html for more information):
1. Set the context.
2. Create hospitable space.
3. Explore questions that matter.
4. Encourage everyone’s contribution.
5. Connect diverse perspectives.
6. Listen together for patterns and insights.
7. Share collective discoveries.
We have used these World Café principles with community members to explore the future of the region and its ecology, as well as to design learning spaces at MOSI. We have also used them for board meetings. Indeed, MOSI has been recognized as a center of World Café activity for its way of build-ing a culture of dialogue (Brown & Isaacs, 2005; Ostrenko & Steier, 2005) in collaborative action research programs (Steier & Ostrenko, 2000) with its various communities.
At MOSI’s Summer Science Camp, students learn how the engineering and construction of dams impacts the environmental landscape. Photo courtesy MOSI
26 September • October 2014 Dimensions
COMMUNITY PROGRAMS
MOSI’s community engagement initiative focuses on how we, as a cultural institution and educational resource for science, technology, engineering, arts and design, and mathematics (STEAM), have col-laborated within the community to respond to the needs of people from underserved populations and those who work with them. Here are some examples of our programs and related initiatives:
• The National Hispanic Scientist of the Year (NHSOY) Award. With the high school gradua-tion rate at only 52.2% for young Hispanic/Latino students in Florida in 1999, MOSI met with Tampa area citizens and the school district to offer an opportunity for students to meet and be mentored by Hispanic/Latino scientists who had had simi-lar early lives. With community partners, MOSI named the first NHSOY and held the first Meet the Scientist Day in 2001, with 500 youth partici-pating. In 2013, MOSI hosted about 1,500 students.
The messages and stories brought by these celebrated scientists have been clear and inspir-ing. Nil Diaz, former chair of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, told students, “Life is sometimes very difficult, but you can decide what you want for your future. Staying in school will give you the tools you need to be successful. If I did it, you can, too.” In October, we will cel-ebrate our 14th distinguished scientist and will expand to include an early career scientist, as well (72.52.162.127/~wwwmosi/about-nhsoy).
• Youth Enriched through Science (YES!) Team. This year-long program, funded by the NHSOY Award event, allows 20 students, ages 13–17, to be mentored by the MOSI team to develop leader-ship and community service skills (www.mosi.org/education/yes-team.aspx). Participants volunteer at MOSI for 200 hours and can then become paid MOSI InterActors, who help teach visitors the science behind hands-on exhibits. By 2010, all of the over 200 youth who completed the program had graduated from high school, and over 92% of them had gone on to post-secondary education.
HOW TO TAKE A COMMUNITY APPROACH
Ifyouwanttoincreasethewealthofyoursciencecenteranddevelopyourcommunity’srespect,trust,andinvestmentinyou,trytheseideas:
1. Developanecologicaldesignprocessthat
valuesflexibilityandanunderstandingof
thedynamiccommunityenvironment.
2. Viewthesciencecenterasaparticipantin
thelargercommunityenvironment.
3. Createamindsetthatinvolvesconversa-
tionsandengagementwiththecom-
munityandcreatesnewknowledgethat
allowsthecommunitytointeractwiththe
sciencecenter.
4. Applytheseconversationstodevelop
neweconomiesthatcreatebusinessand
socialvalue.
5. Createawarenessinyourfamily,your
organization,andyourcommunityabout
thepowerofconversationasakey
meansforcreatingvaluedoutcomes—
whethertangibleoutcomes,likenew
projectsandinstitutions,orintangible
ones,liketrust,respect,andafeelingof
inclusioninthesciencecenter.
6. Learntechniquesofgroupdialogue,
displayedthinking,WorldCafés,mind
mapping,passthepaper,andother
meanstolistentoandinteractwithyour
communities.Seewww.mindtools.com/
pages/main/newMN_CT.htmforsome
ideasaboutnurturingcreativediscus-
sionsandideas.
—W.O. and F.S.
Dimensions September • October 2014 27
Wit Ostrenko ([email protected]) is president and CEO of MOSI, Tampa, Florida. Fred Steier ([email protected]) is associate professor of communication at the University of South Florida, Tampa, whose current research projects with MOSI explore issues of organizational learning and action research.
A visitor rides a 700-foot-long (213-meter-long) zip line, 65 feet (20 meters) above the ground, outside MOSI’s Florida Hospital IMAX Dome Theatre. Photo courtesy MOSI
• Mobile outreach. Our mission is to provide access to the science center or take the science center to the community. The MOSI in Motion Bus is a mobile laboratory for an entire classroom to do experiential learning. Although it is a fee-based program, it is provided without charge to remote county schools thanks to the Mosaic Company, which mines phosphate nearby.
• Give Day Tampa Bay. In May of this year, Tampa Bay held its first 24-hour giving day to help cre-ate a culture of philanthropy in the region. MOSI raised scholarship funds for over 400 children, ages 2–17, to attend its Summer Science Camps.
A NEW COMMUNITY APPROACH BEGINS
MOSI is always looking for new ways to work with our community. We are part of the master planning for the development of our surrounding communi-ties and are leading the way in getting the area’s major institutions integrated with all the neighbor-hood institutions to improve the entire ecosystem. One of MOSI’s current initiatives is working with
the University Area Community Development Corporation (UACDC) to have learning conversa-tions that will lead to a World Café with the transient community to our west. The goal is to get young people trained with certification or degrees, help them find jobs, and encourage them to buy homes inside the UACDC area.
MOSI will continue to approach its programs and community engagement as a learning center where the information and dialogue flow in both directions between MOSI and the community. ■
REFERENCES
Brown, J., & Isaacs, D. (2005). The World Café: Shaping our futures through conversations that matter. San Francisco: Berrett-Koehler Publishers.
Ostrenko, W., & Steier, F. (2005). Conversation as a core process: Creating a culture of dialogue. In J. Brown & D. Isaacs (Eds.), The World Café: Shaping our futures through conversations that matter (28–30). San Francisco: Berrett-Koehler Publishers.
Steier, F., & Ostrenko, W. (2000). Taking cybernetics seriously at a science center: Reflection-in-interaction and second order organizational learning. Cybernetics and Human Knowing, 7(2–3), 47–69.
28 September • October 2014 Dimensions
Building an Exhibition One Relationship at a TimeBy Jason Bosher
The result was an exhibition focused on creativity and the use of modern technol-ogy in understanding and experiencing what it takes to create music. Visitors could discover the science and engineer-ing behind musical instruments and music technology through hands-on exhibits and programming.
Many elements go into developing a community-based exhibition. Here is how Science World rallied and engaged its community in developing and run-ning AMPED, which was held from October 12, 2013, to January 5, 2014. A timeline of events appears below.
GETTING THE COMMUNITY BALL ROLLING
Ken Schneider, a member of the Science World Board of Directors, suggested creating an exhibition about music as our inaugural community partnership endeavor. Apart from being a marketing executive, Schneider is a musician, so he introduced us to his connections in the music industry.
The Science World team assembled an advisory committee of music industry
Science World British Columbia, in Vancouver, Canada, designed AMPED
(www.scienceworld.ca/amped), an original music exhibition, to inspire teens,
young adults, and families to create their own music and explore the connections
between the brain and music, creativity, science, and technology. With AMPED,
we embarked on a new model of exhibition development—involving community
partners such as local musicians and music industry leaders. AMPED was truly
a community effort.
leaders in Vancouver. Members of the committee played many roles including exhibition partners, donors, and subject matter experts.
The committee sat down with Jennifer Ingham, vice president of development, and Rob Lunde, exhibits and storytelling, to brainstorm what the exhibition could look like. Lunde notes, “It was really inter-esting to have such different viewpoints within such a small group that had the same focus. That allowed us to have a much broader viewpoint to the stories and what we wanted to do.”
However, developing the exhibition concept by committee wasn’t a linear process. “There were stories we wanted to tell, and our partners all had stories they wanted to tell,” says Sandy Eix, sci-ence learning lead at Science World. “For example, we wanted to talk about tech-nology and [some of] our partners want-ed to ‘show off’ their technology, so [we had to ask ourselves], ‘How do we present this without sounding like an ad?’” There were a lot of back-and-forth conversa-tions to create each exhibit piece.
CREATING A SENSE OF OWNERSHIP
Involving the community in the creation of an exhibition not only is a great way to form new relationships while strength-ening established ones but also gives those involved a sense of ownership of the exhibition.
Participating in the development of
Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb
Preparation
20132012
CROWDFUNDING CAMPAIGN
First advisory meeting
5
1
Dimensions September • October 2014 29
the exhibits and programs really allowed community partners to feel a sense of pride, because it was their exhibition, too. For example, Roland Canada provided musical equipment, was presenting sponsor, and created content for the exhibits. The local bands Hedley and Hey Ocean! provided music and crowdfund-ing perks. Indieloop, a cloud-based music mashup and remixing site, donated new music mixing technology for an exhibit, allowing them to test the technology while providing us with a unique interac-tive experience.
Collaboration can result in win-win situations. Science World wanted to have music-themed videos playing through-out the gallery. However, the process of obtaining rights and consent became prohibitive. Instead, Lunde approached Nimbus School of Recording Arts in Vancouver about telling the story of song production. The resulting video
1. Keep an open mind.Allowoth-
erstobeinvolvedinmorethan
justthebrainstormingsessions.
Itmayopenupnewpossibilities.
2. Experiment with temporary
exhibitions. Theirshortdura-
tionisperfectfordevelopingand
tryingoutdifferentmodelslike
communityengagement.
3. Be open to new ways of inter-
nal engagement. Sinceourcom-
munitypartnerswereinvolved
indonations,content,and
programming,ourCommunity
EngagementandDevelopment
departmentsworkedclosely
togetherinallareasofexhibition
development.Therewereno
clearlydefinedboundaries,which
madeforastrongerconnection
betweendepartments.
4. Invite short-term, specialized
volunteers toprovideexpertise
youdon’thaveinhouse,but
understandtheirlimitations.
OurvolunteerAMPlifiers(see
pages30–31)weremusic
expertsbutnotnecessarily
expertsinscience,soScience
Worldstaffandvolunteers
workedcloselywiththemto
optimizevisitorengagement.
5. Be flexible in exhibit develop-
ment. Becausethemusical
instrumentsintheexhibition
wereloanedtous,wecouldn’t
altertheirdesign.Wewent
throughmanystagesof
prototypingtodevelopexhibit
housingthatenabledvisitor
interactionwhilekeepingthe
instrumentssafeandsecure.
6. Try a crowdfunding campaign.
Thiscanbeagreatwayto
engagenewdonorstosupport
aprojectandcreatebroader
communityawareness.(Seethe
sidebaronpage30.)
—J.B.
SIX LESSONS LEARNED ABOUT DEVELOPING A COMMUNITY-BASED EXHIBITION
Feb Mar Apr May June July Aug Sept Oct
15
Presentation of exhibition storyline to core team
LaunchPreparation
CROWDFUNDING CAMPAIGN EXHIBIT FABRICATION INSTALLATION
Completion of initial exhibition design
31
Exhibition opens
121 3 22
Close
30 September • October 2014 Dimensions
worked beautifully for the exhibition and also became a promotional tool for Nimbus. (See www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQgZSIdQfSI.)
To integrate the community’s involve-ment into the exhibition and acknowl-edge everyone’s support, we created a Wall of Fame and Thank You wall.
Although community partners provid-ed insight, equipment, and expertise, the exhibition still required funding for devel-opment. One of our committee members was familiar with crowdfunding and felt that our exhibition fit with the idea of connecting with the local and global com-munity, so we developed and launched a campaign. (See the sidebar below).
MAINTAINING MOMENTUM
Once AMPED opened, Science World needed to find ways to keep interest in the exhibition alive. We accomplished
this through the partnerships we had established.
“In terms of physical space, AMPED was quite small [approximately 5,000 square feet (465 square meters)],” says Eix. “Programming allowed us to keep the buzz going and to spread it out to dif-ferent age groups.”
During the opening weekend of AMPED, Canadian music producer Garth Richardson provided a wall of amps so that people could bring their own instru-ments and experience amplification on a grand scale.
For five evenings during November, bands from various high schools were invit-ed to Teen Band Nights, where they could showcase their talents on the AMPED stage. Nimbus School of Recording Arts provided the technical expertise.
In addition, we had songwriting work-shops, live DJ performances, and even a
75-member band performing throughout the Science World building.
PUMPING UP ENGAGEMENT WITH AMPLIFIERS
Science World staff are amazing story-tellers. However, an exhibition such as AMPED required expertise that went beyond the skill sets of most staff. So we recruited 75 specialized volunteers, respectfully named AMPlifiers, who brought the music experience to life for visitors.
The AMPlifiers included 50 Nimbus students, who ran the equipment at each exhibit, taught our staff tricks of the trade, and provided technical support for programming, such as live performanc-es. Many of these students had never had the opportunity to convey their technical knowledge to the general pub-lic, so AMPED was their chance to grow
HOW TO SUCCESSFULLY CROWDFUND
Crowdfundingisawaytoraisecapitalandawarenessfromacommunitythatsharesyourpassionforaproject.ScienceWorldchoseIndiegogo(www.indiegogo.com)asitscrowdfundingplatform.Thereareafewkeyelementsinlaunchingasuccessfulcampaign:
1. Define specific and obtainable goals foryour
projectandcrowdfundingcampaign.
2. Create a videothatcoversyourmissionand
projectandfeaturespeoplefromthecommunity.
ScienceWorld’svideoisatwww.youtube.com/
watch?v=YLTZ9O_V4qg.
3. Develop a strategy to market the campaign.We
showedpartnersourspaceanddescribedwhatwe
wantedtodevelop.Byestablishingrelationships
andgettingourpartnersexcitedabouttheproject,
organizationslikeDrumCafedecidedtoholdwork-
shopsinourspaceanddonatepartoftheirproceeds
toAMPED.
4. Establish perks. Whenpeopledonatetoacrowd-
fundingcampaign,theyreceiveexperiencesor
memorabilia.Wefoundthatpeoplewerereallydrawn
toourcampaignandsitebecauseoftheperks,so
wetriedtomakethemuniqueandexperiential.For
example,weofferedticketstoaprivateconcertwith
localindiebandHeyOcean!
5. Raise about 30% of your goalbeforelaunching
yourcrowdfundingcampaign,sothatyoualready
havemomentum.
—J.B
Dimensions September • October 2014 31
Jason Bosher ([email protected]) is communications coordinator at Science World British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada.
as industry professionals and play the role of expert.
The other 25 AMPlifiers were musi-cians, music teachers, or music techni-cians. Their primary goal was to help visitors create music, and they also enjoyed showcasing their talents. Some AMPlifiers had such a great experience
that they came back to volunteer for other exhibitions.
The AMPlifiers also gave AMPED authenticity. “In order to have credibility in a music and technology exhibition,” says Eix, “we had to have real musicians in the space showing people real, live music, [while Science World staff] did the science part.”
Above: Looper Stations enabled visitors to create their own music by layering and looping sounds. They could then share their creations on SoundCloud.com. Photo courtesy Science World
Left: Local band Hey Ocean! gives a concert as a crowdfunding campaign perk. Photo courtesy Crissy Arseneau
Science World believes many positives came with the community engagement model. By involving members of the music community and the community at large in the development of AMPED, the exhibition became something bet-ter than it could ever have been if we had simply developed it in house. This model also established a sense of com-munity pride and ownership. Finally, engaging the community helped Science World develop and strengthen commu-nity relations and opened doors to future collaborations.
Science World’s next community part-ner exhibition will focus on the science and art of light and will open October 11. ■
32 September • October 2014 Dimensions
A Kaleidoscope of Stories from the People of La Guajira, ColombiaBy Sigrid Falla and Augusto Reyes
This region is the ancestral land of the Wayuú, the largest Indigenous community in Colombia. La Guajira is also inhabited by diverse ethnic groups including other Indigenous communities, African-Colombians, and Arab and European immigrants.
The new museum, called DesQbre Guajira (DisCover Guajira), is now under construction very
close to Cerrejón, one of the largest open coal mines in the world and also a rich deposit of fossils. In 2009, paleontologists working in this area discov-ered the Titanoboa, a 48-foot-long (15-meter-long) snake estimated to have weighed 2,500 pounds (1,130 kilograms) that lived 58 million years ago, during the Paleocene.
Maloka Science Center in Bogota, Colombia, helps to develop science and technology museums in
different parts of the country. We are currently working on developing a multidisciplinary museum
in the small town of Albania, located in the heart of La Guajira, one of the less developed states along
Colombia’s North Caribbean coast.
An artist’s rendering of La Gente de La Guajira (The People of La Guajira), which will be one of three main exhibit spaces in the DesQbre Guajira museum. Image courtesy Maloka
Dimensions September • October 2014 33
This important discovery of the largest snake fos-sil ever found in the world provided the initial moti-vation to create a science museum in La Guajira. However, being located in an underserved com-munity with few educational and cultural services, the museum needed to include strong strategies to empower the community.
A MUSEUM WITH COMMUNITY VOICES
Through an alliance with Cerrejón Progreso, a foundation formed by the coal mine, we decided to build a museum that will speak not only about La Guajira’s natural history but also about its sub-stantial energy resources (including coal, oil, gas, and wind) and, most importantly, about the culture and history of its people. The museum has to be a place where community voices are included and reflected in the exhibits.
The museum, due to open in 2015, will have three main exhibit spaces:
1. La Gente de La Guajira (The People of La Guajira), where visitors will find out about the region’s history and cultural heritage, such as the music, food, funeral rites, and other aspects of everyday life.
2. El Suelo Guajiro (The Land of La Guajira), which will show the region’s rich ecosystems and energy resources, as well as the natural history of the Paleocene.
3. El Cielo Guajiro (The Sky of La Guajira), which will present some basic concepts of astronomy, as well as ethnoastronomy with the mythology of La Guajira.
INVOLVING THE PEOPLE OF LA GUAJIRA
To date, we have produced exhibits related to his-tory, material culture, and mythology through the narratives of people living in La Guajira. To develop the exhibits, we visited the communities and invited people to include their own perspectives about their culture. We wanted to build a collage of memories and use oral tradition to present the history and cul-ture of La Guajira.
Another of the coal mine’s foundations, Cerrejón Indígena, helped to connect us with community leaders. We then interviewed experts in the region’s culture and history; community leaders, elders, and other representatives who are recognized for their knowledge of their community’s culture; future audi-ences of the museum; school teachers; mine work-ers; and members of the Indigenous communities, among others, to determine the museum’s contents.
With the information and ideas from these interviews, we began designing the exhibits. We highlighted the community’s interest in show-ing the ethnic and cultural diversity of La Guajira through representative practices such as music, storytelling, and traditional games. For example, we designed exhibits where visitors can play tra-ditional games like arrow shooting or identify the melodies of each ethnic group by listening to dif-ferent musical instruments.
The community also asked us to incorporate mod-ern technology, such as touch screens, into the exhib-its and to provide hands-on experiences for visitors.
THE MANY HISTORIES OF LA GUAJIRA
We developed an interactive exhibit called Una Mirada al Pasado (Looking Back to the Past) as an
The important discovery of the largest snake fossil ever found in the world provided the initial motivation to create a science museum in
La Guajira. However, being located in an underserved community with few educational and cultural services, the museum needed to include
strong strategies to empower the community.
34 September • October 2014 Dimensions
intercultural dialogue that includes some “ways of telling” by the people of La Guajira. The exhibit is an audiovisual piece where visitors can choose a person from the community who tells his or her version of the history of La Guajira. The exhibit includes Indigenous people, African-Colombian people, and history researchers, all placed with the same level of importance.
With this exhibit, we wanted to challenge the idea of one established history and instead repre-sent a permanent and dynamic process of making meaning about identity and roots. We also wanted to have the people who live in the region express their own sense of belonging to La Guajira as a terri-tory and as a culture. So we asked people to identify representatives to speak about the history and tradi-tions of their ethnic group.
We interviewed these representatives and record-ed them responding to three main questions: What does this land mean for those who live here? How was La Guajira populated? and What are the most remarkable moments in the history of this land?
Sigrid Falla ([email protected]) is director of science and society, and Augusto Reyes ([email protected]) is head of social appropriation processes, at Maloka Science Center, Bogota, Colombia. The authors wish to thank Elizabeth Hoyos, president and CEO of Maloka, for her valuable contributions to this article.
Their answers form the main content of the exhibit, which incorporates graphic elements to highlight key aspects of the stories.
The People of La Guajira space in the museum was designed as a kaleidoscope, a space in which the diversity of La Guajira converges but where each culture is visible with its own expression. The muse-um is bringing together the region’s multiple colors, musical styles, tastes, smells, shapes, philosophies, languages, and people.
The people who live in La Guajira recognize them-selves and others through their differences, but they are also recognized as a single territory, both multicultural and biodiverse. The DesQbre Guajira museum will allow both visitors and the people of La Guajira themselves to discover and be enriched by the region’s diversity. This museum is just the begin-ning of a journey, and as a science center team, we are delighted to be becoming part of the big family of La Guajira! ■
The Wiwa, one of the Indigenous communities of La Guajira, are among the diverse ethnic groups whose voices will be included in the DesQbre Guajira museum. Photo courtesy Maloka
Dimensions September • October 2014 35
By Theresa Bakker
The visitors to the University of Alaska Museum of the North (UAMN, www.uaf.edu/museum) in
Fairbanks wait patiently. As excited as they are, they don’t push or shove. They gather around the
specimens and artifacts presented from the museum’s collections. They know these objects are
treasures. And it’s not just the kids who want a look.
From Fossils to Face Masks: Connecting with Collections in Alaska
Whether they’re fossils from the Earth Sciences col-lection or masks from the Ethnology department, the museum’s collections represent millions of years of biological diversity and thousands of years of cul-tural traditions in the North.
UAMN is the only education- and research-based collection in Alaska. It is the repository for 1.5 mil-lion artifacts, scientific specimens, and other mate-rials collected in the state. Most of the work at the museum takes place in labs and research spaces that aren’t open to the public, but that doesn’t mean the museum keeps these objects a secret.
At a variety of events each year, from open houses to programs like Family Days, museum professionals, along with scientists, archaeologists, artists, and others from the community, show off the objects in the museum’s 10 research collections so that visitors of all ages can explore. Opportunities for the local community to connect with these col-lections can provide the raw materials for people to make scientific discoveries, appreciate cultural dif-ferences or connect to their own cultures, or express themselves creatively.
Most Alaskans have made a conscious choice to live here, despite harsh weather, a limited paved highway system, and other challenges. Through UAMN’s programs and collections, the commu-nity has the opportunity to participate with others who have similar interests, form stronger ties to the North, and maybe even reflect on their decision to live in such a challenging place.
MARVELING AT MASKS
At a Family Day called MASKarade, Angela Linn, senior collections manager of ethnology and history, displayed a treasure trove of masks. The museum preserves approximately 230 masks from the diverse Native cultures of Alaska. The collection includes specimens from the large Athabascan masks col-lected in the western villages of Anvik and Shageluk to the wooden masks used in Inupiaq whaling cer-emonies at Point Hope.
MASKarade visitors learned about the meaning and uses of the masks. For example, Linn explained that the Yup’ik masks of Southwest Alaska have elaborate stories associated with them, from the sacred to the secular. “There are even teasing masks used for fun,” she says.
Masks from Native cultures are traditional. They reflect both the past and the present. At MASKarade, the local Inu-Yupiaq Dance Group performed danc-es, many of them featuring masks from Alaska’s Native cultures.
Museum educator Maïté Agopian explains that when young dancers perform, they show that tradi-tions carry on into the present. “Masks reflect a cul-ture and its environment through the materials that are used and the stories they tell. They are not just something displayed on a wall in an exhibit space.”
DIGGING INTO DNA
Sometimes a Family Day will focus on a larger theme, like DNA. At a recent event, museum research staff
36 September • October 2014 Dimensions
used examples from the bird and botany collections to show visitors how every living thing is made of cells and that DNA tells those cells what to do.
They displayed trays of colorful birds to demon-strate how the museum preserves a number of sam-ples of the same species, especially those that are representative of the circumpolar North. They also demonstrated how the museum creates its own liq-uid nitrogen to store frozen tissue samples—samples full of DNA—for future research.
Link Olson, curator of mammals, likens the collec-tion to a “vast library.” The books are the specimens—some thousands of years old—collected throughout Alaska over the past century by naturalists, archae-ologists, biologists, and subsistence hunters.
Visitors also explored specimens from the muse-um’s herbarium, where the systematic collection of dried plants is a permanent physical record of Alaska’s flora. Visitors even tried their own hand at collecting plant DNA, using smashed banana sam-ples transferred via pipettes to test tubes.
Clockwise from top left: A member of the University of Alaska Fairbanks’s Inu-Yupiaq Dance Group performs at a museum Family Day. Their story-dances often include the use of masks similar to those in the museum’s collections; Ethnology and history senior collections manager Angela Linn shows off masks from the museum’s collection representing Alaska’s diverse Native cultures; Earth sciences curator Pat Druckenmiller (right) talks about dinosaurs at a museum Family Day. The University of Alaska Museum of the North hosts the largest collection of Arctic dinosaur fossils in the world. Photos courtesy UAMN Photos
Dimensions September • October 2014 37
Theresa Bakker ([email protected]) is head of marketing and communications at the University of Alaska Museum of the North, Fairbanks.
COLLECTING FOR THE COMMUNITY
The living cultural traditions and research that UAMN highlights during public events are facilitat-ed by the artifacts and specimens in the museum’s collections. The museum holds these objects in the public trust, which means it is accountable to the community for them.
Linn says that accepting an object means making a promise to take care of it, to preserve it in perpetu-ity. “We might not know much about an item when it first comes to the museum,” she says. “Maybe we
accept it because it’s really beautiful or it was used by someone who played an important role in the story of Alaska’s history. By holding it in our collection, we’re ensuring that the object has the opportunity to have its story told at some point in the future.”
Agopian adds, “Our educational task is to bal-ance between past and present, between artifacts on a wall and living traditions. We need to show how past and present are connected and how they reflect on each other.” ■
38 September • October 2014 Dimensions
COMPLEMENTING THE DOWNTOWN BIOMEDICAL SCIENCE COMMUNITY
In 1997, Arizona Science Center (azscience.org) moved into its current downtown location, which now features 300 hands-on exhibits in 168,000 square feet (15,608 square meters) of exhibit space spanning four levels. Today, it is one of the top attractions in downtown Phoenix, serving over half a million visi-tors from all over the world each year.
The center has seen the downtown area change dramatically throughout the decades. The once-modest down-town Phoenix today hosts locations for Arizona State University, University of Arizona, and Translational Genomics
From Downtown to Across the State: Taking a Central Role in STEM Education in ArizonaBy Michele A. Meyer
Arizona Science Center is the first place most Phoenix metropolitan area resi-
dents associate with science and with science, technology, engineering, and
math (STEM) education. Centrally located in downtown Phoenix, the center
serves the entire state, providing an opportunity for people of all ages to explore
the world of STEM, and for children to pursue their natural curiosity as we help
them prepare for the careers of the future.
Research Institute (TGEN), all of which have made downtown Phoenix home to their science departments. That puts Arizona Science Center in the middle of what has become known as the Biomedical Corridor of Arizona.
To complement its strategic location, the center has built programs around health and biomedical science. The New Frontiers series brings together leaders in science and engineering with members of the community to discuss biotechnology and medicine. Bio Buzz, a family-friendly monthly lecture series, gives students and the general public a glimpse into the human body, its parts and processes, and new advances in
biomedical research and technology. Bio Buzz was made possible through a five-year Science Education Partnership Award (SEPA) from the National Center for Research Resources at the National Institutes of Health. Both lecture series are free to the public. At another recent free event entitled Unbelievable BioMed, experts discussed the future of the bio-medical industry and how it affects Arizona, and the public learned about biomedical careers and participated in activities related to biomedical research.
Dimensions September • October 2014 39
SERVING SCHOOLS THROUGHOUT THE STATE
The center’s reach extends well beyond Phoenix. Approximately 167,000 school-children, representing more than 100 cities and towns throughout Arizona, visit the center annually. Included in that number are students visiting through a program called Focused Field Trips, which allows more than 48,000 Title I school youth to visit free of charge each year. (Title I schools receive assistance
from the U.S. Department of Education to meet the needs of at-risk and low-income students.)
Students in rural areas and tribal nations have the opportunity to have Arizona Science Center come to them through our Science on Wheels outreach program. Each year, Science on Wheels allows 33,000 children and adults, for whom a trip to downtown Phoenix is impractical, to experience hands-on sci-ence in their own locations annually. By
using hands-on, engagement models of learning, and incorporating content that aligns to academic standards, the pro-gram provides an opportunity for teach-ers to observe and work alongside their students in a cohesive learning process.
As an institution, Arizona Science Center is the host organization for the Arizona Science and Engineering Fair, in which more than 1,000 students from 143 schools around the state participate annually. In 2014, 16 high school students
Visitors experience how properties of materials, such as magnetism, can change with size at the Nano Ferrofluid exhibit. Photo courtesy Arizona Science Center
40 September • October 2014 Dimensions
Michele A. Meyer ([email protected]) is public relations and promotions manager at Arizona Science Center, Phoenix.
went on to represent Arizona at the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF), and six were honored with ISEF awards including 1st place in Engineering: Electrical and Mechanical and the SIYSS Award, which includes an all-expense-paid trip to attend the Stockholm International Youth Science Seminar (SIYSS) and the Nobel Prize cer-emonies in Stockholm, Sweden.
BRINGING PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT TO ARIZONA EDUCATORS
Arizona Science Center takes pride in its integrated model of learning and engage-ment with the community. The Learning Division of Arizona Science Center and Freeport-McMoRan Center for Leadership in Learning trains K–12 edu-cational leaders and teachers throughout the state. The center’s mentoring and coaching of these institutional leaders helps support changes in educational
practices. Sample signature programs include
• STEM Badge Program, which is designed to assist schools, leaders, and teachers with the competencies to further a STEM-engaged student population. The program includes professional learning and develop-ment, an online interface, small group learning, mentoring and coaching, and an independent project aligned to the engineering design process.
• SRP’s Powering Our Future Program, a free workshop on teach-ing about sustainable energy and con-servation using real-time, data-rich content and engineering concepts, while integrating lessons with the Next Generation Science Standards (www.nextgenscience.org). More than 3,000 teachers and leaders have par-ticipated in the workshops, reaching nearly 100,000 students so far.
• APS Foundation Rural Communities Expansion Project, a partnership with four school districts in northern Arizona to bring valuable teacher, leader, and community professional development to rural communities. This is possible through a two-year grant of nearly $500,000 from the APS Foundation.
As Phoenix has evolved to become a cen-ter for science and biomedical research in the state, and as state officials are giv-ing more attention to STEM as a driver for Arizona’s economic growth, Arizona Science Center’s role in promoting STEM education statewide has become more important than ever. All staff and visitors are encouraged to “never stop wondering”—to continually question and explore how science affects the world around us. With this in mind, we are able to help inspire and educate the next gen-eration of innovators. ■
Arizona Science Center is located in downtown Phoenix, in the middle of the Biomedical Corridor of Arizona. Photo courtesy Arizona Science Center
Dimensions September • October 2014 41
Science Festivals: Celebrations of Science Around the World
Science centers are involved in almost every U.S. festival as either the lead organization or a major collaborator. Science festivals enjoy the flexibility to stage events anytime and anywhere to serve hard-to-reach audiences, including many that have never visited a science center. When an entire region is a potential site for programming, the numbers add up; some festivals led by science centers are now annually serving tens or hundreds of thousands of attendees. Evaluations by independent evaluator Goodman Research Group show that around two-thirds of those attendees later seek out and take part in activities they learn about at festivals, including visiting science centers.
But there is another piece to the community engagement puzzle: collaboration. The collabora-tive call-to-arms of a festival recharges existing rela-tionships and energizes entirely new partnerships, including with new donors. Festivals feature many points of entry for scientists and engineers to get involved directly in public outreach. (Evaluations show that interaction with a science, technology, engineering, or math (STEM) practitioner is the
greatest predictor of positive learning outcomes for attendees.) Importantly, festivals activate collabora-tors that have never before been considered STEM stakeholders, and these “unusual” collaborators are powerful community gatekeepers. During a festival, any place can become a STEM venue, and anyone a STEM ambassador. Examples have included res-taurants, pubs, coffeehouses, and churches, as well as Major League Baseball teams; a tattoo studio in San Francisco; a billiard hall in Boston; an ice cream parlor in Omaha, Nebraska; a marching band in St. Petersburg, Florida; a kayaking center in Nantahala Gorge, North Carolina; and entire festival initia-tives embedded in the Missouri State Fair and in Montana’s largest powwow.
For science centers that take the lead in organiz-ing a massively collaborative festival, the benefits can extend even further. The relationships required to pull off a festival become an asset in their own right, and over time this places the science center at the center of a collaborative organizational structure that enables even greater regional campaigns serv-ing the core of our collective educational mission.
A growing number of science festivals are now taking place across the world every year. In the United
States alone, around four dozen new science festival initiatives have emerged in just the past five years.
Each science festival is the unique product of its own cultural geography, community, and leadership.
They vary dramatically in scope, but many of these vibrant celebrations of science and technology
are multiday, multivenue celebrations featuring scores—or even hundreds—of events across a region.
Ben Wiehe, manager, the Science Festival Alliance at the MIT Museum, Cambridge, Massachusetts, sciencefestivals.org
42 September • October 2014 Dimensions
In October 2013, more than 40,000 Malaysians took part in Kuala Lumpur’s first major science festival. The week-long Petrosains Science Festival (sciencefestival.my) was hosted by Petrosains, the Discovery Centre, and supported by the PETRONAS energy company.
The Petrosains Science Festival is intended to be a platform for government, industry, formal and informal learning institutions, and the public to come together to celebrate STEM in a way that is accessible and fun. One of the main objectives of the festival is to aid the efforts of the Education Ministry of Malaysia to reverse the declining inter-est in science learning among students and to increase the number of STEM professionals in sup-port of Malaysia’s goal of achieving fully developed nation status by 2020.
In line with Petrosains’ aspiration of creating won-der and inspiring people, the festival was headlined by explosive science shows, appearances by celebri-ties including Malaysia’s own astronaut-in-training Faiz Khaleed, giant bubble physics in the park, and technology showcases by festival partners including
Google, GE, and Boeing. The festival extended Petrosains’ reach beyond its traditional audience of families with children and school groups to engage with more adults and youth.
The Petrosains Science Festival will be back in September 2014 with a holistic emphasis on music, arts, and science. Highlights for the upcoming festi-val include a shadow play version of the Star Wars franchise by local artists and storytellers, fun with music and dances, and circus acts that appear to defy the laws of physics.
Azura Daud, head of public relations and communications, Petrosains, the Discovery Centre, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Chong Hon Yew of Universiti Sains Malaysia performs a bubble show in a park (top left) and Faiz Khaleed, Malaysia’s astronaut-in-training, gives a talk on gravity (bottom left) at Petrosains Science Festival 2013. Photos courtesy Petrosains, the Discovery Centre
Dimensions September • October 2014 43
Miha Kos, director, Hiša Eksperimentov (the House of Experiments), Ljubljana, Slovenia
Miha Kos, director of Hiša Eksperimentov, opens the Sciencetival by cycling over a river flowing through the center of Ljublujana, the capital of Slovenia. Photo by Domen Pal
In June, Hiša Eksperimentov (the House of Experiments) coordinated its sixth annual Sciencetival (www.sciencetival.si). The festival attracted more than 20,000 visitors, which repre-sents 1% of the population of Slovenia. During three days, performers from eight countries presented more than 70 science shows on the bridges, streets, and squares of Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia. The festival aligns with our mission to inspire curiosity and trigger a passion for learning.
The central attraction of this year’s Sciencetival was the Bicycle Bridge. Visitors were encouraged to challenge science and ride a bike on a cable across a river flowing through the center of Ljubljana. Two caterpillar excavators kept the cable—1 inch (2.5 cm) thick and 98 feet (30 meters) long—suspended by a force of 60,000 newtons. We mounted a bicycle with a low center of gravity on the cable and erected platforms on both river banks. An additional cable was mounted about 6.5 feet (2 meters) above the
main one to support a safety harness. For safety rea-sons, two mountaineers helped on each of the two platforms and a boat with personnel trained in open water rescue patrolled the river below. Only adults (18 and above) were permitted to bike across after they had passed an alcohol breath test. Safety was our primary concern, and as a result around 800 visitors crossed the river in two days without any incident. (A video is available at www.youtube.com/watch?v=vmN1R24kmak.)
Other activities included Science Cafés, lectures, interactive exhibits, and the opportunity to build simple experiments. Along with the festival, we coor-dinate a five-day workshop for creating and running science shows, the International Science Performance Is Ready Event (INSPIRE, www.inspire.si.)
Major festival sponsors include Cosylab, the Slovenian Research Agency, Teknoxgroup, Danfoss, LEK, Telekom Slovenije, and the City of Ljubljana.
44 September • October 2014 Dimensions
“Just don’t go broke or insane.” That was the man-tra we adopted here at Morehead Planetarium and Science Center at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, when we decided to launch the nation’s first-ever statewide science festival in 2010.
Each April, we produce the North Carolina Science Festival (www.ncsciencefestival.org), a 17-day event that includes a suite of K–12 pro-grams in conjunction with hundreds of public science events. This past year, we had more than 330,000 people participate in events in 95 of North Carolina’s 100 counties. Sponsors include our festi-val champion, Time Warner Cable.
Our partners are critical to our success, and they take great pride and ownership in producing festival events. According to our multiyear data, 50% of our partners reported receiving follow-up visits or enrollment from festival attendees, 55% reported forging new professional collaborations, and 64% reported learning new strategies for com-municating with the public.
By working alongside our partners and other festivals across the nation, our festival has become a catalyst for innovative programs and initiatives. For example, in 2013, we worked with thought-leaders from throughout North Carolina to launch a daylong Statewide Science Summit. The sum-mit was designed to start the conversation about fostering a better ecosystem for science in North Carolina, from getting more students into the STEM pipeline, to producing and retaining quality STEM teachers, to engaging the public and deci-sion makers to support STEM.
Heading into our fifth festival, we continue to set audacious goals. We’re shooting for 400,000 participants in 2015 and 1 million by 2020. In com-ing years, we aim to have a presence in every K–12 school in the state, potentially through a mass par-ticipation event. And while we continue to remind ourselves that this is a science outreach marathon and not a science sprint, we do wonder sometimes if we’re still sane. But that’s half the fun.
Jonathan Frederick, director, North Carolina Science Festival, Morehouse Planetarium and Science Center, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
The Philadelphia Science Festival (PSF, www.philasciencefestival.org) is an annual, nine-day celebration of STEM organized by the Franklin Institute and created by more than 200 of Philadelphia’s scientific, cul-tural, and educational institutions. Launched in April 2011, PSF annually attracts more than 85,000 participants to more than 100 events at ven-ues across Philadelphia and five surrounding counties.
With events taking place at urban farms, graveyards, laboratories, street corners, brewpubs, museums, libraries, and beyond, PSF shat-ters expectations for STEM learning and creates a social buzz. Festival activities include nature walks, astronomical observing, storytelling, panel discussions, science-infused comedy, and performances that allow participants to interact with STEM professionals, educators, and others who make STEM approachable.
Families and children of all ages take part in a day of science celebration and exploration during Discovery Day in Clark Park, a signature event of the 2014 Philadelphia Science Festival. Photo courtesy the Franklin Institute
Dimensions September • October 2014 45
Singapore is en route to becoming the world’s first smart nation (www.ida.gov.sg/blog/insg/tag/smart-nation). To real-ize this vision, we must ensure that STEM continues to pique people’s interest and evoke a sense of wonder. For 14 years, Science Centre Singapore (SCS), and the Agency for Science, Technology, and Research (A*STAR) have galvanized like-minded partners to organize the Singapore Science Festival (SSF, www.science.edu.sg/events/Pages/ssf.aspx), supported by the Ministry of Education.
Although the Singapore school curriculum provides students with a strong foundation in STEM subjects, we see a trend of students shying away from the hard sciences, especially engineering. SSF therefore wants to promote STEM-related careers and celebrate how STEM has helped Singapore become a developed country in less than 50 years. As a tiny tropical island with no natural resources, we would not be able to survive the keen competition in the global vil-lage without STEM.
For 2014, SSF’s bigger-and-better approach meant we had more than 160,000 attendees at 50 events across 17 days in July and August, organized by more than 50 partners. We hosted the presenter of the (U.K.) Royal Institution’s Christmas lecture, included shows that combined science education with circus tricks or with hip hop music and dance, organized a research and design showcase, and presented a new family-friendly science musical (for which I wrote the script) about how fertilization leads to the birth of a baby.
By sharing the message of how STEM gives us the power to create new possibilities, we hope to help fuel Singapore’s drive toward becoming the world’s first smart nation.
A festival highlight is the Science Carnival on the Parkway, which in 2014 drew 40,000 people to engage with STEM pro-fessionals through 175 activities. In this city where more than a quarter of the population lives in poverty, almost half of PSF events are held in neighborhoods reaching nontraditional museum visitors.
The Franklin Institute is one of many organizations in Philadelphia providing STEM learning opportunities in underserved communities. But before the festival, the local STEM community did not have a robust tradition of working together toward shared goals. To encourage collaboration, we made it clear that every PSF event must be a joint effort of at least two organizations.
Especially during the first year, partners had concerns about the time, energy, and resources they would need to invest in collaborations. We listened to and addressed their concerns and questions in real time, which fostered a sense of trust. Also, National Science Foundation support during the first two years allowed us to assume more financial risk, which eased partners’ uncertainties about joining what then seemed like a longshot venture. Now, many partner institutions report that working with others is one of their favorite aspects of the festival, and that they have made new connections through the festival that help them throughout the year.
Thanks to a renewed culture of collaboration, PSF events are gateways to rich networks of STEM resources in Philadelphia and beyond.
Gerri Trooskin, director of strategic partnerships, the Franklin Institute, Philadelphia
At the Science Carnival on the Parkway, part of the 2014 Philadelphia Science Festival, thousands of people gather to witness the explosive launch of 3,000 Fizzy-rockets (film canisters containing Alka-Seltzer tablets and water). Photo courtesy the Franklin Institute
Attendees participate actively during a lecture/demonstration to learn chemistry in a fun and engaging way. Photo courtesy Science Centre Singapore
TM Lim, CEO, Science Centre Singapore; co-chairman, Singapore Science Festival
46 September • October 2014 Dimensions
Foranextendedversionofthisarticle,visitwww.astc.org/blog/category/astc-dimensions.
Since 2006, the Planetarium Science Center (PSC) at the Bibliotheca Alexandrina (BA), Alexandria, Egypt, has been organizing the Science Festivity every April under a different overarching theme (www.bibalex.org/psc/en/GetInvolved/ScienceFestivity.aspx). We even held the festival in 2011, just three months after Egypt’s revolution, while facing the challenges of a very limited budget and the need to guarantee the security of our attendees at outdoor activities.
The focal point of the two-day festival is the Science Village, composed of kiosks with interac-tive activities, set up on the BA’s plaza. The PSC’s partners, including cultural centers, international schools, and charity organizations in Alexandria, host additional events on their premises. About 4,500 people attended the festival in 2014.
The goal of the Science Festivity is to help youth, ages 6–18, develop 21st-century skills, with a focus on scientific knowledge, creativity, criti-cal thinking, problem solving, and teamwork. One long-term objective is to encourage students to study and work in scientific fields because Egypt, like many developing countries, has a shortage of people pursuing careers in science. Another goal is
to figure out solutions to preserve the environment. For example, the 2014 festival featured workshops on important local environmental issues, including paper recycling, energy conservation practices, and deforestation.
The PSC is initiating a Science Festival Network in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, which will allow members to share knowledge, resources, and contacts and enhance all festivals in the region. So far, Egypt, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates are partici-pating in the network. The main challenges facing science festival organizers in the MENA region are, of course, financial constraints, plus the need to pop-ularize the philosophy of informal education itself, which is still in its first steps in the region.
Ayman Elsayed, deputy director, Planetarium Science Center, Bibliotheca Alexandrina, Alexandria, Egypt
Attendees enjoy the Super Science Show at the 2014 Science Festivity. Photo courtesy the Bibliotheca Alexandrina
Dimensions September • October 2014 47
ThecityofManchester,England,hasanattitudeanddoesthingsdifferently.Itiseverevolving,bold,challenging,creative,andplayful.AttheMuseumofScience&Industry(MOSI),we’vetakenmuchofthatManchesterattitudeandinjecteditintoourflagshipevent,ManchesterScienceFestival(www.manchestersciencefestival.com).
Fastapproachingitseighthyear,thefestivalhasastrongvisionandcreativeprogrammingethos.We’reboldinhowwewantpeopletoexperiencesci-ence.Thefestivalhasincorporatedeverythingfromadrenalinejunkiesdoingbikestuntsinourmuseum’soutdoorspace,toField of Jeans, adoublescienceartinstallationatMOSIandatalaundromat,illustratinghowwecoulduseclothestohelppurifytheair.
The11-dayfestival,heldinOctoberandNovember,attractsapproximately100,000diverseattendees,withyoungadultsformingourfastestgrowingaudi-ence.Ourresearchhasshownthatpeoplecometothefestivalseekingsocialexperiencesprimarilyandthesciencefollows.About25%ofourvisitorsdonotnormallygotoscienceeventsormuseums.
Hereareafewbiglessonswe’velearnedaboutcreatinganunforgettablefestival:
1. Let your festival have its own attitude and
personality. Asyouletyourfestivalorprogram
takeshape,putastamponitandbeboldwithit.
2. Talk about tough contemporary science
subjects in a relevant way. Taketimetoreally
designandshapehowyou’recommunicating
withyouraudiences.
Natalie Ireland ([email protected]) is head of learning and public programs at the Museum of Science & Industry (MOSI), Manchester, England, United Kingdom. MOSI is part of the Science Museum Group.
SIX WAYS TO MAKE YOUR SCIENCE FESTIVAL UNFORGETTABLE
ByNatalieIreland
Artist Luke Jerram examines a piece from his Glass Microbiology collection, which was presented as part of the Synthesis exhibition at Manchester Science Festival. The exhibition highlighted sculptures, paintings, art installations, and cinematic experiences that explored the relationship between art and science. Photo by Chris Foster
3. Create a network of partners.Getyourpart-
nerstobuyintoyourvisionandmakesurethey
canbringsomethingextraordinarytothetable.
Sometimesyoumighthavetobebrutal—ifan
organizationisn’talignedwithwhatyouwantto
do,maybethisisn’tforthem.
4. Build relationships with potential funders
at the outset. Asyourfestivalgrows,it’slikely
yourrelationshipswithfunders(andyour
funding)will,too.Wehavehadloyal,sustained
supportfrommanyfunders,particularly
SiemensandWaters,whichhasplayedalarge
roleinoursuccess.
5. Make events collaborative, participative,
and unique. Useyouraudiencesindesign-
ingwherepossible.Thiswillleadnotonlyto
greaterrelevancetowideraudiencesbutalsoto
creativepowerandbenefitsyoumightnoteven
havedreamedof.
6. Don’t be afraid to experiment.Festivalsallow
you,yourpartners,andyouraudiencetotake
risks,cross-pollinate,andembracenewwaysof
working.Somethingsaregoingtobeamazing.
Somethingsaren’tgoingtowork.Festivals
bringasenseofforgiveness,andthey’reover
quickly!Learnfromyourmistakesandsuc-
cesses,andembedthebestinyourpractice.
Takingriskscouldultimatelyleadtobetter
participationforallofyouraudiencesthrough
everythingyoudo.
48 September • October 2014 Dimensions
Dimensions September • October 2014 49
Community Engagement in the Wake of DisasterOn the night of March 4, 2013, the science center of Città della Scienza
(CDS) in Naples, Italy, went up in flames and was destroyed in a mat-
ter of hours. This criminal attack shocked and outraged the entire
community. The science center was the cultural heart of CDS, a place
visited by 350,000 people each year to discover and debate science
and technology.
This is why, since the early hours of the fire, as people stared astonished at the burning in the night, the first messages of solidarity began to flow in from the community, the rest of Europe, and the world. On March 10, the Sunday after the fire, a flash mob of 15,000 people gathered at the doors of CDS in a joyful demonstration to denounce this criminal act and to give evidence of the value of CDS to the entire society. In the following months, hundreds of events (concerts, TV programs, conferences and debates, sporting events, plays, and shows) have been held across Italy as a sign of moral support and to collect funds.
Approximately €1.5 million (USD 2,041,155) have been collected so far, of which about one-third came from small donations by citizens (through text messages and crowdfunding); another one-third from associations, cultural organizations, schools, and universities; and the rest from private enterprises including Telecom, Samsung, and the Naples Soccer Club.
The public sector has responded as well. For example, the Assembly of Presidents of Regional Councils sponsored a 5,382-square-foot (500-square-meter) outdoor facility where hands-on exhibits from San Francisco’s Exploratorium were installed in December 2013. In addition, the European Commission funded an exhibition on Responsible Research and Innovation, about oceans and marine issues.
While the science center’s founders and the citizens of Naples are still asking firmly for justice, CDS has been able to find in this wave of solidarity the energy to very quickly resume some public programs in its undamaged buildings and to begin planning for a new facility.
The new science center will be built where the previous one was locat-ed, in a modern and sustainable building. The new building will include Exhibit Fablab, an “open lab” for the exploration of new technologies,
After a criminal fire (bottom left) destroyed the science center of Città della Scienza (top) on the night of March 4, 2013, the community rallied around the science center to show its support (bottom right). Photos courtesy Città della Scienza Communication Office
50 September • October 2014 Dimensions
which CDS is developing in partnership with the MIT Museum, Cambridge, Massachusetts, and ASTC, under the umbrella of the Italian Embassy in the United States. The intermediate step will be the opening of Corporea, a science center focusing on health issues and the human body, in 2015.
When you destroy a book, a picture, or a museum, you also destroy the soul of a people. In the future, any new challenges facing CDS will be addressed, more than ever, alongside our community.
Anne-Marie Bruyas, international relations, Fondazione IDIS-Città della Scienza, Naples, Italy
In 2010 and 2011, a series of earthquakes, culminat-ing in a magnitude 6.3 quake on February 22, 2011, destroyed Christchurch, New Zealand’s second larg-est city. Science Alive! The New Zealand Science Centre was extensively damaged and subsequently demolished. With no building to operate from, our focus shifted to how we could remain relevant to our community while we planned our new center.
Within a few weeks of the February earthquake, we launched a series of outreach programs, begin-ning with science activity booths at a local farmers market. Initially, our goal was to take people’s minds off the disaster, but our activities were so popular that the programs soon expanded. The number
of participants in our community programs has increased from 2,800 in 2010 (pre-earthquake) to over 22,000 in 2013. Because we provide many of these activities in low-income areas, our outreach has become a way to engage many people who would not normally have come to the center.
Our education team takes 26 curriculum-based science programs into classrooms all over our region. The programs have been developed so schools can run a science theme on the same topic at all grade levels. In 2013, over 12,000 students participated in these programs. This year, we have also developed a teacher professional development course with web-site support.
Our Mindball Complete Program provides teachers with activities that assist concentration and relaxation for children who are living in stress-ful situations after the quakes. The data from the month-long program indicate that 75% of students have improved their concentration, and teachers have seen improvements in the classroom.
Our Science in Libraries programs, run after school in libraries all over the city, initially focused on providing fun activities for children in the worst affected areas of the city. Our focus is now shifting to identifying science in the books students are read-ing and linking simple activities to these stories.
In addition, our annual week-long Under 5 Festival has grown from an average of 280 visitors per day in 2012 to 820 per day in 2014. We are also planning a Science Week in 2015 to focus on the International Year of Light.
The earthquakes have given us a reason to look close-ly at how we remain relevant to our community. With staff dedication and innovation, we are operating successfully as a Science Centre Without Walls.
Neville Petrie, CEO, Science Alive! The New Zealand Science Centre, Christchurch
From a basket on the crane, engineers are able to inspect for further damage to the Science Alive! clock tower after the magnitude 6.3 earthquake that hit Christchurch on February 22, 2011. Photo by Neville Petrie
Dimensions September • October 2014 51
ASTChasestablishedtheScienceMuseumCrisisReliefProgramtohelprestoresciencecentersandmuseumsfacingunexpectedandcatastrophiccircumstances.Tolearnmoreandtoofferyoursupport,contactAnthony(Bud)Rock,ASTC’sCEO,[email protected].
An unprecedented 9.0 magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of northeastern Japan on March 11, 2011, causing a tsunami with 6- to 70-foot (2- to 21-meter) waves and killing more than 15,000 peo-ple. The National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation (Miraikan) in Tokyo was forced to close for three months to assess the damage to its build-ing and complete renovations to meet safety require-ments for its reopening.
During its closure, Miraikan launched sci-ence communication activities to help people to understand what was happening. In particular, the public was highly concerned about the dispersion of radiation from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant due to an extensive accident following the earthquake and tsunami. As a national science museum, we felt an urgent need to provide public workshops about radioactive materials.
Over the course of a month, a team of five science communicators from Miraikan offered 26 work-shops to more than 600 participants at 17 different locations in the greater Tokyo area. Our workshops included informative presentations and two main activities to increase awareness of radiation. A sim-ple experiment allowed participants to see traces of different types of radiation that are always found in nature and to learn that radiation has co-existed with people in the past. In another experiment, par-ticipants measured ionizing radiation with a Geiger counter and learned about the sievert, a unit that measures the effect of radiation on the body. We also informed them about relationship between amount of radiation and health risks.
Through offering the workshops, we realized that many people had little understanding of radiation. Moreover, they expected us to tell them exactly what actions they should take when confronted with a cer-tain amount of radiation. Many participants asked if it was safe to drink city water, eat vegetables from a local supermarket, or allow children to play outside. We explained to them that health risks depend on how much radiation individuals have received and told them that they needed to make their own deci-sions based on scientific knowledge.
We then realized that what caused people to panic was a lack of understanding of risks. The risks from radioactive materials have existed in our soci-ety for a long time. However, because people have rarely observed any phenomena originating from these risks, society has never prepared for the pos-sible hazards. We believe it is important for all indi-viduals to cultivate a keen sense of risks to prepare for more hidden dangers out there, and with our sci-ence communication activities, we hope to help in this endeavor.
Isao Yamasaki, science communicator, the National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation (Miraikan), Tokyo
Miraikan’s entrance hall right after the 9.0 magnitude earthquake that struck off the coast of northeastern Japan on March 11, 2011. Photo courtesy Miraikan
52 September • October 2014 Dimensions
By Nalini Nadkarni
Science belongs everywhere. Although informal science learning typically takes
place in the bright spots of society—our museums, botanical gardens, and sci-
ence centers—some science educators are creating programs for individuals
who live in the darker parts of our communities, such as prisons. Over 2 million
people are in prison in the United States, with a national recidivism level of over
70%.1 Yet men and women who are incarcerated can also participate in science
learning and contribute to conservation projects.
Into the Light: Bringing Science Education to the Incarcerated
The Sustainability in Prisons Project (SPP, sustainabilityinprisons.org) brings science and nature to inmates in prisons and jails by forging partnerships among academics, corrections staff, and conser-vationists. Dan Pacholke and I co-founded the SPP at the Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington, in 2005. Partially supported by the National Science Foundation, the SPP has now expanded to more than 20 prisons and jails in seven states (sustainabilityinprisons.org/about/spp-network). SPP activities, which vary from one correctional facility to another, include science lectures, efforts to raise endangered species, and sustainability projects within the facilities, such as gar-dening or recycling.
In Washington State, where the SPP was founded, the program now reaches all 12 of the state’s prisons, in collaboration with the Washington State Department of Corrections. Each month, between 15 and 50 inmates attend lectures by sci-entists at Washington State correctional facilities. The presentations are reviewed by SPP staff to meet appropriate learning levels. In addition, the SPP enables incar-cerated men and women to work with conservation groups to rear endangered species such as the Oregon spotted frog and Taylor’s checkerspot butterfly for release and rare prairie plants for habitat restoration projects.
PROGRAM IMPACTS
Inmates who work on conservation proj-ects pay diligent attention to the living things for which they have been given responsibility. The seedling, frog, or but-terfly pupa an inmate cares for seems to provide a link to and an opportunity to contribute to the outside world, promot-ing a positive self-image, as indicated by anecdotal evidence. Prison officials have noted that participating inmates also have more positive social interactions with each other.
1. According to the National Institute of Justice website (www.nij.gov/topics/corrections/recidivism), “Recidivism is measured by criminal acts that resulted in rearrest, reconviction, or return to prison with or without a new sentence during a three-year period following the prisoner’s release.”
Dimensions September • October 2014 53
Above: The author gives a lecture about trees to inmates at Stafford Creek Corrections Center, Aberdeen, Washington, as part of a monthly science lecture series through the Sustainability in Prisons Project. Photo by Benj Drummond and Sarah Joy Steele
Left: Two inmates at Cedar Creek Corrections Center, Littlerock, Washington, care for the endangered Oregon spotted frog as part of the conservation work of the Sustainability in Prisons Project. Photo by Benj Drummond and Sarah Joy Steele
54 September • October 2014 Dimensions
Nalini Nadkarni ([email protected]) is co-founder and former co-director of the Sustainability in Prisons Project. She is currently director of the University of Utah’s Center for Science and Mathematics Education, Salt Lake City, which houses INSPIRE: Initiative to Bring Science Programs to the Incarcerated, a program based on the SPP. Nadkarni is also a professor of biology whose research centers around forest canopy ecology. Science centers and museums that would like to get involved in the SPP Network may contact the author for more information.
The program benefits science, as well. Inmates have gathered valuable data to establish or improve protocols on grow-ing or rearing endangered species. In turn, these plants and animals have con-tributed significantly to restoration and conservation projects in the region.
Many scientists who present talks worry that inmates may not relate to, understand, or appreciate their presenta-tions. But the SPP’s quantitative surveys of inmates who attend lectures show that they do learn scientific content. In a broad sense, the SPP asks informal science edu-cators to ask questions about ourselves, including, “What are the conceptions and misconceptions we hold of people who cannot visit our institutions?”
BRINGING LIGHT INTO DARKNESS
SPP staff has found that inmates deeply engage in scientific subjects through the program and often find parallels and metaphors that relate to their daily expe-riences in prison. For example, in one project, inmates helped me learn how to grow mosses for the horticulture trade, to alleviate wild-collecting of moss from old-growth forests. I taught the men that mosses are very resilient—they can dry down and stop photosynthesizing until
they are rehydrated, even after years of no water. One of the inmates asked if he could take a sprig of moss to his cell, where he kept it in his drawer. Later, he said, “I check it every day, and even though it lies in the dark, it is still alive. Like me.”
The SPP elucidates the power of science and science education, as it reveals that even those individuals who live in what seem to be the darkest parts of our commu-nity are able to create light when presented with science education opportunities. ■
Inmates at Stafford Creek Corrections Center sow and care for rare prairie plants as part of their efforts to restore the prairie habitat of western Washington. Photos by Benj Drummond and Sarah Joy Steele
Dimensions September • October 2014 55
John Polatch ([email protected]) is learning officer at At-Bristol, Bristol, England, United Kingdom.
ENGAGING FAMILIES OF INCARCERATED INDIVIDUALS
ByJohnPolatch
StatisticallyintheUnitedKingdom,childrenwithaparentinprisonaremorelikelytoexperiencepoverty,lowermentalwell-being,poorhousing,andmultiplebarrierstoeducationalachievementandlateremployment,accordingtoareportfromthechildren’scharityBarnardo’s(www.barnardos.org.uk/everynightyoucry_briefing_final_double.pdf).
Aspartofourcoremission,At-Bristol,locatedinBristol,England,seekstoengagecommunitieswhoarenotrepresent-edwithinourexistingvisitorprofile.In2011,weapproachedthefunderChildreninNeed(www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b008dk4b)tosupport10visitstoBristolPrisontodeliveractivitiesattheirsupervisedfamilysessions,whereincar-cerateddadswhohadcompletedaparentingcoursecouldvisitwiththeirchildrenandfamilymembers.Theaimwastofacilitateinteractionbetweenfamilymembersandtoenhancethefamilysessionenvironment,whichhadfewprovisionsandnoactivitiesforchildren.
At-Bristolattendedonefamilysessionattheprison,takingsimpleactivitiesincludingpaperrocketandLEDChristmasdecorationmaking,beforegovernmentfundingcutsremovednotonlythefamilysessionsbutalsoourkeycontactattheprison.Intheinitialsession,weobserveddadsandtheirchildren
interactingwitheachotherandenjoyingtheactivitiestogether.
WithpermissionfromChildreninNeed,weusedourremainingfundingtobringthefamiliesofprisonerstoAt-Bristol,throughapartnershipwithBarnardo’s.Sofar,wehavehostedthreefamilyvisits.Whileparentscurrentlyinpris-onsadlycannolongerattendthesessions,thefocusisstillonfamilyrelationships.Visitsstartwithapersonalwelcomefrommembersoftheprojectteam,whoarepresentateveryvisit.Visitorsarethengiventimetoexploreindependently.Last,wegiveadultstimeawayfromtheexhibitionfloortoexploresomesimpleactivities.Childrenlaterjointhesessionwiththeexpectationthatadultswillleadactivitieswiththeirchildren.
Duringthesevisits,weplacesocialoutcomesandactiveparticipationfirst;scienceisimplicitinwhatwearedoing.Wechooseactivitiesthatcaneasilybereproducedathome(e.g.,spaghettiandmarshmallowtowers).
Wearecurrentlyanalyzingdataontheprogram’simpact,butanecdotally,wehaveobservedsustainedsharedengage-mentandpositiveemotionalresponsesfromfamilies.Eachfamilyisgivenanannualmembership,andsomefamilieshavevisitedusindependently,whichisexcitingevidenceoflong-term,sustainableimpact.
ASTC’s Board and staff wish to thank our Partners for their leadership and generosity. We are truly grateful for their visionary support.
56 September • October 2014 Dimensions
PRODUCED BY: SPONSORED BY:CREATED BY:
Dimensions September • October 2014 57
The Noyce Foundation has announced seven winners of the Bright Lights Community Engagement Awards, which recognize U.S. science centers, children’s museums, and natural history museums that have done an outstanding job of engaging with their local communities. Five of the winners are ASTC members:• Explora, Albuquerque, New Mexico,
for reaching out to community-based organizations in search of atypical partners and for signifi-cantly increasing engagement with underserved populations
• MOSI, Tampa, Florida, for being engaged in the issues of Tampa and the region, with particular em-phasis on underserved and at-risk populations
• Science Museum of Minnesota, St. Paul, for developing and imple-menting the multivoiced exhibition RACE: Are We So Different?
• The Franklin Institute, Philadelphia, for serving as a catalyst for col-laboration and helping leverage the resources of many organizations in the Philadelphia area
• The Tech Museum of Innovation, San Jose, California, for the Tech Challenge, which has successfully engaged young people ages 11–18, including many youth from low-income communities and girls, in developing solutions to real-life, technology-based challenges.
Additionally, two ASTC members have received Honorable Mention awards from the Noyce Foundation: Great Lakes Science Center, Cleveland, and the University of Montana SpectrUM Discovery Center, Missoula.
Museums Connect, a joint initiative of the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs and the American Alliance of Museums, recently funded nine projects that link U.S. communities with communities around the world through museum-based exchanges that foster mutual understanding. This year, there are six ASTC members among the winners:• The Academy of Natural Sciences
of Drexel University, Philadelphia, is partnering with the National Museum of Mongolia, Ulaanbaatar, to empower high school girls, work-ing in partnership with scientists, to engage in a deeper understanding of climate education through an afterschool program and by serving as Explainers in both museums.
• The Clay Center for the Arts and Sciences of West Virginia, Charleston, is partnering with “Alexandru Ştefulescu” Gorj County Museum, Târgu Jiu, Romania, to enable students to learn about the folk music and cultural traditions of Romania and West Virginia from master musicians, ultimately inspir-ing an online musical mashup.
• The North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences, Raleigh, is part-nering with Museo de Paleontología in Guadalajara, Mexico, and Bombay Natural History Society, Mumbai, India, on e-Mammal International, in which middle school students engage in a comparative citizen science study in Mexico, India, and North Carolina employing camera traps in schools to document animal population sizes, activation patterns, and habitat use.
• The Patricia and Phillip Frost Museum of Science, Miami, is partner-ing with the Natural History Museum
of Jamaica, Kingston, to engage high school students in urban habitat res-toration and conservation practices.
• Corporación Parque Explora, Medellin, Colombia, is partnering with the Bell Museum of Natural History, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, to enable teachers, K–12 students, and their communities to map bilingual planetarium program-ming and develop a curriculum to foster understanding of astronomy and earth sciences principles.
The Museum of Science, Boston, has partnered with Harvard and Howard Universities and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology to win a five-year, $7.7 million award from the National Science Foundation for a new Science-Technology Center for Integrated Quantum Materials (CIQM). The Museum of Science will provide public outreach for CIQM and will train the center’s students in sci-ence communication skills.
The Mid-America Science Museum, Hot Springs, Arkansas, has been awarded a $30,000 grant from the Carl B. & Florence E. King Foundation to implement Science Matters, a new educational outreach program for elementary students and teachers.
Boston Children’s Museum has announced that the Highland Street Foundation has committed $25,000 to support the museum’s Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) Card Discount for one year. Massachusetts residents may show their EBT cards to get a discounted $2 per person admission, for up to four people per card. (The state offers EBT cards to families in need to provide them with basic services.)
grants and awards
58 September • October 2014 Dimensions
Q&A
A decade ago, five-year-old Molly Paul declared that she wanted to be a leader in the science world. Today, the tenth grader is starting her fourth year as a junior curator at the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences (NCMNS) in Raleigh, which will host ASTC’s 2014 Annual Conference (conference.astc.org). Paul is also founder of the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math to Leaders Engaged in Affecting the Future (STEM to LEAF) camp at NCMNS, and of Raleigh Aquatic Turtle Adoption, a local organiza-tion dedicated to saving unwanted pet turtles. She has earned awards for her student leadership and her volunteer service, and earlier this year she accompanied NCMNS Director Emlyn Koster to accept a National Medal for Museum and Library Service at the White House. Recently, Paul took some time to chat with Dimensions about her pas-sion for science and her goals for the future.
How did you first act on your interest in science?The first thing I did was just playing in my backyard. I start-ed taking out a field notebook to see what was around. And in 2006, I started my own turtle rehoming organization.
How many turtles do you care for now?I’m currently caring for 13 in my home, but I’ve rehomed 100 over the years. I fundraise by selling turtle-shaped soaps, and I’ve raised about $11,000 so far. All the pro-ceeds support education and preserving natural habitats for turtles. I’ve also collected about 1,000 signatures on a pledge that I created to not buy baby turtles, to leave nature in nature, and to support nature education.
What is your role at NCMNS?I come in once or twice a week and take care of the pro-gram animals, which we take out to show the public. I have a specific internship with the Fish and Invertebrates Department, so I get to take care of the fish and sharks. It’s very fun and interesting.
How was your trip to the White House?That was so amazing. I have been so inspired by Dr. Koster as a role model, and it was great to go to such a big event with [him]. The First Lady was so kind and warm. It was a joy to speak with her, and it was an honor to get to represent the museum on such a big stage.
Why do you think it’s important to advance STEM education?I’ve always seen it as the way the world keeps moving. This is what advances different cultures and societies. We want our youth to be empowered to live in this kind of world.
What does your career plan look like?I’ve always seen myself running an organization like a museum or an aquarium. I’ve always loved [NCMNS]; I always will. It’s like my second home. There’s nowhere else I’d rather be. I plan to stick with it for at least another two years, till I’m in college, if not longer. I just love everyone there. I’ve really grown up there.
Molly PaulInterviewed by Joelle Seligson
For a podcast and full transcript of this interview, visit www.astc.org/blog/category/astc-dimensions/q-and-a.
Emlyn Koster (left), director of the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences, and Molly Paul (center) accept the National Medal for Museum and Library Service from First Lady Michelle Obama (right) in a White House ceremony. Photo courtesy IMLS
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