In the Pandemic a New Museum Charter School is Born
Over the past two years, the pandemic has prompted museums to experiment with new products and services to meet the needs of their communities. Some of these experiments have turned out to be, in effect, pilot projects for financially …
Forecasting 2022, Part 3: Build Your Own Adventure
When I sat down to write the third entry in CFM’s scenario set for 2022, I struggled over what kind of story would most usefully round out the collection. Scenario one (A Third Year of Waves) explores a depressing but entirely possible …
The Long-awaited Tail
“With our imagination, the future is a place where anything, or one hundred things, or everything, can be different—even things that seem impossible to change today.” –Dr. Jane McGonigal, futurist and games designer I want to start …
Forecasting 2022, Part 1: Waves Ahead
I’d hoped to be forecasting the post-COVID future by this point, but that apparently wasn’t in the cards. (Forgive me a little futurist Tarot humor.) Instead, it’s entirely possible that 2022 will become Year Three of the COVID-19 …
Museums and Equity: Volunteers
Note: this post is adapted from a post originally published on the CFM blog in 2019. 42% male 22% African American, Asian, or Hispanic/Latino ethnicity 66% under the age of 55 49% with less than a college degree That’s the demographic …
FIRE! Providing Comfort in a Moment of Crisis
Museums make their communities better, stronger, and more resilient in myriad ways. Some of these are directly related to their missions: enriching local education, improving health and well-being via arts engagement, providing context …
An Investment in Our Collective Future: Building for Staff Advancement from the Inside Out
With the worst of pandemic disruptions behind us (we hope) some museums are using this as an opportunity to rethink their operations, rather than simply rebounding to the previous norm. COVID amplified the inequities between stable and …
What Does It Mean to be Trustworthy?
On September 30, the Alliance released Museums and Trust 2021, the latest research to measure public trust in US museums. It was reassuring, though not surprising, that the results confirm museums continue to be highly trusted. However, …
The Mind Behind the Myth: Navigating visitor reactions at Kew Palace
During the pandemic, museums supported the mental health of their communities in creative and generous ways. Some created outdoor art installations to boost the spirits of people in nursing homes and hospitals. Others provided online art …
Museum Staff as Disaster Service Workers
Last month I put out a call on Museum Junction for examples of museums helping their communities plan for and respond to disasters. Among the many exceptional stories submitted by respondents, one stood out by virtue of framing the issue …
