Alliance Blog

The Alliance blog provides the museum community with a place to share stories and insights, in their own voice, reaching thousands of people across the global museum field.

Explore all Publications from the Alliance.

Explore the AAM Resource Library by topic, and further filter by subtopic or resource types to find what matters most to you!

How Museums Can Mitigate Damage to Collections

By Spacesaver

This post is an advertorial written by an organization that serves the museum field. The views, opinions, and positions expressed by the authors and those providing comments are theirs alone and do not necessarily reflect the views, …
Museums for Midlife: A Q&A with Chip Conley

By Adam Rozan

If you’ve ever seen my library or chatted with me about what I’m reading, you’ll know that I have a soft spot for TED Talk–style books. If Adam Grant or Simon Sinek has a new book, I’ve likely already bought it, read it, or I’m waiting for …
Gen Z Has Entered the Chat: What We Want from Museums

By Adamali De La Cruz

One hundred members of the Youth250 Bureau offer free advice to museums seeking to reach young adults. When it comes to engaging Gen Z in museums, I know it’s not always easy. My generation spends more time online than in person, often …
Making membership easy at the Houston Museum of Natural Science

By Tessitura

This post is an advertorial written by an organization that serves the museum field. The views, opinions, and positions expressed by the authors and those providing comments are theirs alone and do not necessarily reflect the views, …
Better Than Imagined: How a Holocaust Museum Builds Trust and Community

By Rahim Thompson

There is a certain kind of experience people think they will have at a Holocaust museum. We understand. Most expectations stem from a narrow view of what is possible. But when you widen the lens and expand the imagination, you see: Imagine …
The Gen Z Guide to Civic Season

By Nia Mosby, Brooke Tran, and Camille Serrano

You may have heard of Civic Season, the annual civics-and-history learning sprint held between Juneteenth and the Fourth of July every summer. The program was created by, and is activated by, Made By Us, a network of more than four hundred …
Strategies for Building Community: Lessons from the “Gallery Guide Guide”

By Sydney Skelton Simon & Molleen Theodore

Hi! We are Sydney Skelton Simon, the Bradley Associate Curator of Academic Affairs, and Molleen Theodore, the Jane and Gerald Katcher Curator of Programs, at the Yale University Art Gallery in New Haven, CT. We are colleagues in the …
The Path to Director: A Q&A with Jay Xu of Asian Art Museum

By Adam Rozan

I lived in San Francisco for almost six years while working at the Oakland Museum of California, and during that time, I came to know and love the city’s Asian Art Museum. When I heard the recent news that its longtime director, Jay …
Demystifying Accreditation: Perspective from Peer Reviewers

By American Alliance of Museums

AAM accreditation comes with significant benefits, including national credibility, enhanced relationships with peers and supporters, and institutional sustainability. But what does the process of obtaining these benefits entail, and how do …
Breaking Down Visitation by Museum Type: A 2024 Annual Survey of Museum-Goers Data Story

By Susie Wilkening

This visual Data Story is based on findings from the 2024 Annual Survey of Museum-Goers, a national survey of American museum visitors from AAM and Wilkening Consulting. Every year, the survey partners with individual museums to research …