Posts
Financial Sustainability
NHM reveals economic benefits of digitising 80 million objects
The Natural History Museum aims to digitise 80 million objects in its collection, revealing that the economic benefits of digitisation are 'at least ten times greater than the c…
#AAM2021 Elevate Stage Session: Resilient Together, Philanthropy in Museums
Confronted with the global pandemic, individual and institutional philanthropy has been responsive, engaged, and nimble. What role can philanthropy play in helping museums to recover and …
From Preservation to Participation: The Journey of Sandy Spring Museum
Many museums think that serving the needs of more ethnically diverse constituents will lose them “traditional” audience and supporters, but at Sandy Spring Museum (SSM), we’ve found just …
Microclimates: A Greener Future for Collection Care
There are many options available for museums to address climate action and become more sustainable, but recent work at two institutions has highlighted the value in one particular method: …
What’s the Connection Between Financial Capital and Museum Education?
In this series of posts, EdCom’s Trends Committee is taking a deeper look at emerging phenomena identified in the 2020 edition of TrendsWatch from the Center for the Future of Museums. In …
Online and the Bottom Line
This article originally appeared in the May/June 2021 issue of Museum magazine, a benefit of AAM membership. The California Academy of Sciences focused on digital fundraising in the age of …
Forecasting the Future of Financial Sustainability Webinar
As museums navigate the financial crisis precipitated by COVID-19, leaders need to craft short-term strategies for survival, as well as long-term strategies succeeding in the post-COVID …
How museums can ethically invest their money
The top 45 museums in the US hold endowments of more than $40bn in aggregate. Unfortunately, [most] museums are invested in the very same types of companies—tobacco, weapons …
Monthly Subscriptions Make Membership Easy to Say Yes To
As cultural organizations continue to face declining membership and significant lost revenue during the pandemic, many are seeking ways to engage new audiences and retain existing members. …
Running with Scissors (and a Mask!): COVID-19 Responses at Old Salem Museums & Gardens
Just as flexible buildings can withstand hurricane-force winds and earthquakes, flexible institutions can withstand monumental challenges like a global pandemic. Because of our four years …
Cash-Strapped Museums Looking for New Audiences Are Increasingly Doing Exhibits-for-Hire
A growing trend in the museum sector might scandalize traditionalists but is quickly being embraced by cash-strapped institutions: sponsored content. On either side of the Atlantic, …
The Top Ten Alliance Blog Posts of 2020
If 2019 was a “whirlwind year,” 2020 was a full-blown tornado. Forces that had been gathering speed in the museum field—like growing emphases on digital content and diversity, equity, …