Projects
Explore how museums can promote food literacy, make their food services healthy and sustainable, and use food to build community.
Museums need to innovate in order to successfully navigate the rapidly changing landscape of the 21st Century. to encourage museums to experiment and take risks, we have partnered with EmcArts to offer Innovation Lab for Museums, with generous support from the MetLife Foundation.
The Center for the Future of Museums is conducting a Delphi forecasting exercise in partnership with Seton Hall University’s Institute of Museum Ethics, with funding from the Institute of Museum and Library Services.
Video of the 2009 lecture "Towards a New Mainstream?" by Gregory Rodriguez, founder and executive director of Zócalo Public Square, explores demographic shifts in the Americas, cultural transformation and the future of museums. Accompanied by a resource guide.
Dr. Jane McGonigal, director of game research and development, Institute for the Future, challenges museums to become as engaging as games. Read the accompanying Museum magazine article.
Reports
The first edition of CFM's new annual report, exploring seven emerging trends of great significance to museums.
The U.S. educational system is on the cusp of transformational change. What role can museums play in the next era of learning? CFM's Elizabeth Merritt and Scott Kratz of the National Building Museum explore the innovative educational experiences museums already contribute to the educational landscape.
A museum-forecasting resource guide arising from the working session, "Forecasting the Future of California Museums," held between the California Association of Museums and CFM during the 2010 AAM Annual Meeting.
Commissioned from the Cultural Policy Center at the University of Chicago. This paper explores the majority-minority future of America and issues a call to action for museums to better serve their rapidly diversifying communities.
In 2008, CFM commissioned its first discussion paper, it explores the challenges that society and museums will face in the next quarter-century, especially in the areas of demographic change, globalization, new forms of telecommunication and new expectations about narrative and the consumption of culture. The report was prepared by Reach Advisors, a marketing strategy and research firm with extensive experience in the museum field, in consultation with CFM staff and outside experts.