Digital media is increasingly present in our daily lives, as well as on the floor of the science center. In this issue, we look at how informal educators and designers are using digital media and gaming to create compelling, interactive learning experiences. Whether by tackling science-based challenges on a mobile device, designing their own digital dome productions, or gaming in the real world or a virtual one, audiences are using the flexibility of new technologies and the power of play to engage deeply with science.

Contents

• Learning Labs: Transforming Youth from Digital Consumers to Creators, by Margaret Glass
• Designing Digital Interactive Experiences that Promote Learning, by Leilah Lyons
• Virtual Worlds: Avatars as Avenues to Advance Science Learning, by Lindsay Bartholomew and Judy Brown
• Reinventing Dome Production for Community Storytelling, by Dave Pentecost
• Legs, Not Fingers: Why Physical Games Are a Better Bet for Museums than Digital Projects, by Margaret Robertson
• Games and STEM Education: Building Knowledge Through Play, by Jodi Asbell-Clarke

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Today’s youth grow up in a digitally networked world. With cell phones, laptops, and tablets, via social media platforms, videos, and podcasts, they connect to each other and to their world like never before. Yet with only a few exceptions, the digital signal gets dropped at the door when teens go to school; youth get most of their exposure to new digital media outside of school.

This reality raises some important questions: How do youth learn to move across the digital landscape, choosing tools and platforms? Who are the adults that help to mediate this experience? What about teens in communities with a persistent digital divide? How do young people transition from being passive consumers of new media to becoming innovative thinkers and doers?

These are some of the questions behind the Learning Labs in Libraries and Museums, a program funded by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation and the (U.S.) Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS). The Urban Libraries Council (ULC) and ASTC collaborate to provide technical assistance to grantees and to help them form a national network.

The goal of the program is to support museums and libraries as vital community institutions where youth can explore their interests while developing 21st-century skills like critical thinking, creativity, and collaboration.

Since the Learning Labs program was announced in 2011, there have been two rounds of grant competitions that have resulted in 24 grants to museums and libraries across the United States. These awards support the planning and design stages for Learning Labs, intended to engage middle and high school–aged teens in youth-centered, interest-based, mentor-led, collaborative learning using digital and traditional media. This article provides an overview of the Learning Labs program to date, including a summary of related research and some snapshots of current projects.

From research to practice

The Learning Labs is a research-to-practice program, drawn from the MacArthur Foundation’s Digital Media and Learning (DML) initiative, which was established in 2006 to study the ways in which digital media are changing how young people learn, play, socialize, and participate in civic life. The research of Mizuko (Mimi) Ito of the University of California, Irvine, is central to the design principles behind the Learning Labs. Interviews and observations derived from a three-year ethnographic investigation of over 700 youth led Ito and her research team to identify three modes of participation that describe how teens engage with each other and with digital media.

“Hanging Out” describes the desire of teens to be with and socialize with their peers. Often when today’s youth get together, this contact involves digital connections—browsing social networks, instant messaging, or texting. “Messing Around” marks the beginning of a more deliberate engagement, perhaps purposefully seeking information on a specific activity, experimenting with something new, or starting to customize digital experiences. “Geeking Out” describes a more intense, focused mode of engagement. Interests become specialized, teens develop expertise in digital skills, and they may join or create social groups around these domains. Geeking out can include equally intense commitment to more traditional, offline pursuits.

These modes of participation, collectively termed HOMAGO, correspond to the kinds of learning contexts anticipated at a Learning Lab. Following the example of YOUMedia at the Harold Washington Public Library in Chicago, Learning Labs try to include physical spaces that accommodate the modes of HOMAGO and are equipped with digital and traditional media to support youth’s self-directed learning.

The programs-in-planning encompass science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM); language, visual, and graphic arts; video and audio production; spoken word projects; maker spaces; and virtual worlds. But while activities may vary, the underlying design principles of these labs should be consistent. They are expected to include active experimentation and production, and be networked with other learning contexts within a community. Programs should be driven by the interests of the youth participants and relevant to them and their peers, yet linked to their intellectual growth and academic success.

Mentors are another key element to supporting learning in these spaces. The core set of characteristics for mentors includes expertise in new media, social/cultural capital as creators in their own right, basic pedagogy skills, and, perhaps most importantly, the ability to connect to and inspire youth while respecting their voices.

This set of design features firmly embeds the Learning Labs in Connected Learning, a broad model of learning emerging from the MacArthur Foundation’s research and related investments in a suite of programs including YOUmedia sites, including in Chicago; at ARTLab+ at the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C.; and at the North Dade Public Library, Miami, Florida); pioneering schools like Quest2Learn; and the Dreamyard Project, a community-based arts education provider in the Bronx in New York City.

Meet the Learning Labs

Distributed across 18 states, the 24 Learning Labs will reach youth in inner cities, suburbia, medium-sized cities, and rural communities. Each site will serve its community’s unique needs while following the basic design principles of the program. (A full list of grantees is available here.)

By the numbers, 15 sites are led by libraries and nine are museum-led. However, this simple summary masks the rich array of partners collaborating in these projects. Museums (13 of which are ASTC members) include science centers and art, natural history, and children’s museums. Other partners represent colleges or universities, public broadcasting affiliates, parks and recreation departments, school districts, afterschool and out-of-school organizations, and youth advocacy groups.

In many ways, this program is an especially good fit for science centers, capitalizing on their strengths as places for visitor-centered, hands-on, social learning in a technology-rich setting. In other ways, participating museums are stretching themselves in new directions. For example, while many science centers engage youth through employment training, dedicated teen spaces, like those presented in a Learning Labs model, are rare in these institutions. In addition, Learning Labs provide new opportunities for museums to work more closely with libraries and community partners, actively include youth in the planning and design of new programs and spaces, and engage adults as mentors in new ways.

What are these projects up to now? Learning Labs grantees have an 18-month period of funding to plan and design their facilities, based on their proposed ideas. Each site is on its own trajectory with respect to piloting and implementing activities, training mentors, and seeking support for post-grant sustainability. Grant funding for the first cohort of sites runs until the end of June; the second cohort of awardees officially began on January 1. Because of this timetable, and the nature of these as planning grants, summary statements made about these sites now would be premature. Nevertheless, it is possible to spotlight a couple of public examples.

A hive pop-up in San Francisco

The Learning Lab project at the San Francisco Public Library involves a team of partners: San Francisco’s California Academy of Sciences, KQED, and the Bay Area Video Coalition. While details of the physical space at the San Francisco Main Library are still in progress, the Learning Labs team held its first collaborative public event—the San Francisco Hive Pop-up, a two-day maker/hacker media jamfest for teens—in October 2012 at the Ortega Branch Library.

The “Hive” label for this event comes from the fact that it involved a range of organizations—including such diverse partners as the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, WritersCorps, and the Children’s Creativity Museum—united by a focus on youth and digital media. This model is similar to the Hive Learning Networks in New York and Chicago, also supported by the MacArthur Foundation. All of the activities were transportable and installed on site for the event—hence the “pop-up” description.

The project’s Youth Advisory Board decided the theme (“Save the Earth”) and directed the kinds of activities to feature. These activities blended traditional creative skills with technology components, unified under an environmental message. Youth had the chance to experiment with video editing, claymation, 3D printing, and webpage development, and many participants uploaded videos of their creations to Tumblr.

The event gave the lab’s core team the chance to try out some new activities with their targeted youth, and helped to build relationships with other cultural organizations serving youth in the San Francisco area. A blog post about the Hive Pop-up by KQED’s Matthew Williams is available here.

A virtual lab in Pennsylvania

The Da Vinci Science Center in Allentown, Pennsylvania, has a unique environment for its Learning Lab. The Virtual Studio lives on an educational island on the NewWorlds grid, a virtual world similar to Second Life, but with content appropriate for youth. The grid is open to Pennsylvania school students and teachers.

A pilot program took place in this virtual space during June and July of 2012, with a group of 15 teens participating in the Healthy YouthPeer Education (HYPE) summer camp at nearby Muhlenberg College. Youth entered the Virtual Studio, created their own avatars, learned how to build architectural structures, and designed their own digital art creations. These installations are three-dimensional constructions that include photos, images, or other digital representations following the theme “The Best Part of Me.” A webinar recorded in December 2012 provides a “flythrough” visit to the Virtual Studio, with closeups and verbal descriptions of some of these digital artifacts (available here.)

Next steps for this site involve drop-in afterschool events hosted at the Allentown Public Library, another project partner. This will provide an opportunity for a broader range of teens to experiment in the Virtual Studio, as well as to participate in additional activities of their own design. The location of the library, on the walking route between a large high school and residential areas, promises a high level of visibility and use by local teens.

How do science museums fit into today’s landscape of digitally mediated experiences for youth? The Learning Labs program allows participating grantees to explore this question, using the partnerships and resources they develop in the course of their planning periods. As they adapt to meet the unique needs of their own communities, Learning Labs in Libraries and Museums may provide new models for teen engagement, recognizing the challenges youth face as they connect to each other, identify and pursue their interests, and seek to become lifelong learners in today’s digital world.

Additional Resources

The DML Research Hub’s DML Central (resources about digital media and learning).

Connectedlearning.tv: an affiliate website of the DML Research Hub, with community resources about Connected Learning.

Ito, M., et al. (2013). Connected learning: An agenda for research and design. Irvine, CA: Digital Media and Learning Research Hub.

The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation Reports on Digital Media and Learning, including:

• Herr-Stephenson, B., et al. (2011). Digital media and technology in afterschool programs, libraries, and museums

• Ito, M., et al. (2009). Living and learning with new media: Summary of findings from the Digital Youth Project

• Ito, M. (2009). Hanging out, messing around, and geeking out.

Margaret Glass is ASTC’s program manager for professional development. David Smith (Da Vinci Science Center), Matthew Williams (KQED), Puja Dasari (California Academy of Sciences), and Jon Worona and Jennifer Collins (San Francisco Public Library) contributed to this article. U.S. science centers and museums are invited to participate in a related project, the National STEM Video Game Challenge.

About the image: The New York Hall of Science Learning Lab in Queens hosts “teen hangouts” in the institution’s new Cognizant Maker Space. Here, Jon Santiago (standing) from HTINK (an educational services cooperative) advises teens on Arduino programming.

In thinking about these historical testimonials, it occurs to me that so many fascinating individuals have passed through the doors of our science centers and museums and experienced so much. If we are judged by the company we keep, then we are no doubt judged favorably for the company of so many curious and inspired folks who have chosen to spend their precious time with us.

Too often and too easily, we refer to these knowledge seekers in generalized numerical terms more associated with revenue streams and statistical trends. Though the numbers are indeed impressive, we should remember that these are individuals who have consciously selected science, however briefly, as their domain of interest. And their visits to our institutions often yield new experiences and lasting memories. For some, science center visits inspire lifetimes of exploration, satisfaction, and even significant contributions to the global good.

ASTC would like to translate these personal experiences of our visitors into a collective expression of the inspirational value of our entire field. To emphasize this point, we are particularly eager to obtain testimonials from the “high achievers” in our society who can trace their interests, and maybe even their successes, back to profound science center and museum experiences.

If you know individuals who would be willing to share such testimonials for our wider communications efforts, please send their names and contact information to yourstory@astc.org, or ask that they do this themselves. We will reach out to them in brief, recorded telephone interviews. It is our hope that you will give some thought to those whose testimonials might carry the most power and weight.

To start us off, here is a quote drawn from a testimonial by actor and writer Kate McGroarty, reflecting on her experience living at Chicago’s Museum of Science and Industry for a month in 2010: “I learned that science is beautiful, engaging, and just about everywhere. It amazes me, intrigues me, and excites me. I’m sure this is the beginning of a lifetime relationship with science and everything that comes along with it.”

This interview appeared in the March/April 2013 issue of Dimensions magazine.

Whether it’s the world’s biggest wardrobe malfunction or MacGyver meets Survivor, Ainissa Ramirez knows that generating interest in science requires a hook. A professor at Yale University, Ramirez prefers the title “science evangelist”—in her words, a person who “takes the call” to ignite curiosity in kids of all ages. She spoke with Dimensions about the importance of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) education—the topic of her TED Talk last year—and how to put science in unexpected places.

Read the full transcript, or listen to the podcast.

Recognizing the need for greater awareness of water-related issues, the UN declared 2013 the International Year of Water Cooperation (IYWC). In this issue of Dimensions, we discuss how science centers can support the goals of the IYWC and efforts to provide water, sanitation, and hygiene to people worldwide. We also take a look at plans in several countries to establish water-themed museums; projects to engage youth in water issues and solutions; and ways to create water exhibits that encourage visitors to think, play, and explore.

Contents

• Building Peace and Sustainable Development Through Water Cooperation, by Lucilla Minelli
• Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene: A Global Crisis with Real Solutions, by Elynn Walter
• A Science Center that Floods, by Ed Grusheski
• Build a Water Exhibit and They Will Come, by Stephen Pizzey
• Making Connections Through an Asia Pacific Water Museum, by Ganigar Chen and Alexander Otte
• Bringing Youth’s Ideas About Water to Rio+20, by Ling Ling Chew
• Exploring Water’s Path on Reunion Island, by Marine Soichot

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Water is critical for sustainable development and indispensable for human health and well-being. With this in mind, and to accelerate the implementation of internationally agreed goals relating to water, the UN General Assembly declared 2013 the International Year of Water Cooperation (IYWC). The United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) was appointed by UN-Water to lead preparations for the IYWC, as well as for World Water Day on March 22, 2013, also dedicated to water cooperation. (UN-Water is the UN’s interagency coordination mechanism for all issues related to fresh water. Currently, it has representatives from 30 UN member states.)                                             

“Water cooperation” refers to the peaceful management and mutually beneficial use of water resources among various players (e.g., governments, international organizations, academic institutions, businesses, and the public) and sectors (e.g., agriculture and industry) at local, national, regional, and international levels. Water cooperation encapsulates cultural, educational, and scientific elements, as well as religious, ethical, social, political, legal, institutional, and economic dimensions. Therefore, a multidisciplinary approach is essential in order to grasp an understanding of the many facets implied by the concept and blend them into one holistic vision.

In this article, I present the objectives for the IYWC, the messages we aim to publicize throughout the year, and some ideas for science centers and museums that are interested in being involved.

Objectives for 2013

We know that our planet abounds in freshwater resources—both on its surface and deep beneath its soil—and that most of these resources lie in transboundary basins and aquifers. Therefore, cooperation among sectors and nations is essential. The IYWC will raise awareness of both the potential for increased cooperation and the challenges facing water management in the context of greater demand for water access, allocation, and services.

The objectives for the IYWC are to
• raise awareness about the importance, benefits, and challenges of water cooperation
• enhance knowledge and build capacity for water cooperation
• spark concrete and innovative action toward water cooperation
• encourage partnerships and dialogue around water cooperation.

Our messages

The key message of both the IYWC and World Water Day is that “water cooperation is a foundation for peace and sustainable development.” Following from this statement are four submessages that we want to emphasize throughout 2013.

1. Water cooperation is key to poverty eradication, social equity, and gender equality. Access to clean water is the foundation for the fulfillment of basic human needs and contributes to the achievement of all eight Millennium Development Goals. Water is also central in the debate for a post-2015 development agenda and the elaboration of a new set of international objectives, the Sustainable Development Goals. The agreement to develop these goals is an outcome of the UN Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20), which was held in Rio de Janeiro in June 2012.

Inclusive and participatory governance of water and cooperation between different user groups can help to overcome inequity in access to water and thus contribute to poverty alleviation and improve living conditions and educational chances, especially of women and children. For example, an international movement to improve access to water, sanitation, and hygiene in schools in over 100 countries is helping to decrease the number of days children are absent from school due to waterborne illnesses and other sanitation and hygiene issues.

2. Water cooperation creates economic benefits. All economic activities depend on water. Cooperation can lead to more efficient and sustainable use of water resources, creating mutual benefits and better living standards. For example, investing in safe wastewater collection and treatment can mean avoiding the costs of pollution and the use of contaminated water by downstream users.

3. Water cooperation helps preserve water resources and protect the environment. Sharing scientific knowledge and data and exchanging information about management strategies and best practices are fundamental to sustainable development. For example, UNESCO’s International Shared Aquifer Resources Management Initiative contributes to implementing a UN resolution that encourages UN member states to agree on how to manage their transboundary aquifers (Resolution A/RES/66/104: The law of transboundary aquifers). The first international agreement inspired by this UN resolution was signed in 2010 by Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, and Paraguay for management of the shared Guarani Aquifer.

4. Water cooperation builds peace. Access to water can be a source of conflict, but it is also a catalyst for cooperation and peace building. Cooperation on such a practical and vital issue as water management can help overcome cultural, political, and social tensions and can build trust between different groups, such as communities, regions, or states. For example, after the collapse of the former Yugoslavia in the early 1990s, the rise of several new sovereign states introduced complex transboundary issues involving water use and water sharing for power generation, agricultural and domestic uses, and other purposes among bordering countries. In 2010, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, and Montenegro began working together in a postconflict context to jointly manage shared groundwater resources in the DIKTAS project (Protection and Sustainable Use of the Dinaric Karst Transboundary Aquifer System).

Conveying the messages

To achieve successful and sustainable water cooperation requires a common understanding of the needs and challenges surrounding the issue of water, and this understanding requires a societal mind-shift in the way we respond to a range of global challenges—including climate change, demographic growth, economic crises, poverty, political instability, and social unrest.

Achieving common understanding is no simple undertaking, but many organizations and groups worldwide are involved in the effort. For example, UNESCO has a network of water-related centers, which promote knowledge sharing and education in their area of expertise, such as a center in Iran dedicated to qanats—an ancient technology that taps into underground water resources.

Among the organizations promoting a wide understanding of water issues and other global challenges are science centers and museums. For example, the planned Asia Pacific Water Museum in Thailand aims to promote a wider understanding of water interactions and foster regional cooperation. Science centers and museums are natural partners in the 2013 campaign for water cooperation. Exhibitions, fairs, school programs, workshops, and other events to share knowledge about water are all concrete contributions to the IYWC. We at UNESCO can help with publicizing water-related events and can also provide information and educational materials for various audiences, like children, youth, and teachers.

We are planning several official UN water events during 2013, kicking off with an event in Paris on February 11. World Water Day, celebrated worldwide on March 22, and World Water Week, held in Stockholm, Sweden, from September 1 to 6, will both be dedicated to water cooperation. We invite science centers and museums to participate in these events or organize other events to mark the IYWC. For those interested in promoting the IYWC, our website has campaign materials available, including our official logo in different patterns and languages, posters, and web banners and buttons.

Achieving sustainable development is not a sectoral effort. If we want to succeed in making the world a better place for today and for the future, we need a coordinated, cooperative, and interdisciplinary effort on a global scale. Such an effort will spring from the realization that a mindshift is possible and that development of fair and inclusive societies begins in the minds of men and women. We believe that water can be the common denominator to spark this revolutionary process. The International Year of Water Cooperation 2013 offers 365 days to come together and shape a peaceful future based on the sustainable management of our freshwater resources.

Lucilla Minelli is a consultant at UNESCO’s International Hydrological Programme, Paris. For further information about the International Year of Water Cooperation 2013, contact Alice Aureli, and for information about World Water Day, contact Léna Salamé. 

About the image: “Groundwater Resources of the World—Transboundary Aquifers Systems” © BGR, Hannover/UNESCO Paris/2008. The World-wide Hydrogeological Mapping and Assessment Programme (WHYMAP) contributes to worldwide efforts to better understand, manage, and protect aquifer resources, providing information on hidden groundwater resources. The collecting, collation, and visualizing Transboundary Aquifers Systems (locations indicated by circles) was possible only because countries and institutions cooperated by providing and processing data. The map demonstrates the benefits of this cooperation as well as the further cooperation needed to manage these many transboundary aquifers systems.  (Click here to see a larger (3.6 MB) image.)

This blend that defines UNESCO is mirrored in the work of science centers and museums all around the world. Recognizing this, ASTC has formed a strong partnership with UNESCO during the past two years that has, in turn, given greater visibility to a wealth of activities within our field to help raise local awareness about sustainable development, youth empowerment, greater access for women to careers in science, and many more topics that are precisely the issues defined as UN global priorities.

It is no surprise, therefore, that we should join with UNESCO in celebrating this new “international year.” It offers another important opportunity to highlight all that we do to educate and inform, in his case about the importance of collaborative action for water management in the face of increasing global water demand. Today, 780 million people lack access to safe drinking water, and 2.5 billion lack access to sanitation.

Few topics impacting humanity today are so deeply rooted in and so critically dependent upon the tools of science and technology. Having spent a considerable portion of my own public service career devoted to the topic of “water diplomacy,” I learned quickly that scientists and engineers often proved to be my most valued colleagues. On one occasion, I recall asking our then–Middle East peace negotiator why a topic as important as water was not included centrally in the highly charged policy exchanges underway at the time. He responded that the water deliberations were far too essential and immediate in their impact to be included in these unpredictable and volatile rounds of policy negotiations. Rather, a critical compromise on water would best be achieved through the dedicated (and objective) efforts of scientists, engineers, and a public that understood the important variables at stake. This, in my view, is another example of science at its highest calling.

While much has already been said, written, and even undertaken to meet the critical challenges of global water access and management, the year ahead is specifically dedicated to fostering greater global cooperation. As we elevate this topic in our own communities, let’s also find ways to be voices for communities of greater need, sometimes far from our own. I hope that we will be able to achieve cooperation through the heightened awareness and collective voice that we bring to this important topic.

This interview appeared in the January/February 2013 issue of Dimensions magazine.

Watt’s Up? is both an exhibition and a question that Denise Amyot, president and CEO of the Canadian Science and Technology Museums Corporation in Ottawa, Ontario, is trying to answer through a cross-Canada initiative. Amyot spearheaded Let’s Talk Energy: Engaging Ideas for Canada’s Future, a six-year public engagement program launched in 2010. Her work earned her ASTC’s Roy L. Shafer Leading Edge Award for New Leadership in the Field, which she accepted at the 2012 ASTC Annual Conference last October. Amyot spoke with Dimensions about how she’s energizing Canada about energy.

Read the full transcript, or listen to the podcast.

This is an extended discussion of the question that appeared in the Viewpoints department of the January/February 2013 issue of

“If they had more special exhibitions, then we’d get a membership and come more often.”
—Science Museum of Minnesota visitor, August 2011

Our most recent audience survey, conducted in 2011 (n=830), suggests that there are factors beyond immediate attendance to blockbuster exhibitions to consider. For instance, 85% of visitors responded that they would be more likely to visit the museum more frequently if they knew something was different or had changed. While visitors’ intentions do not necessarily lead to actions, blockbuster exhibitions may inform visitors’ perceptions of change at the museum and encourage repeat visits and new memberships.

Gayra Ostgaard, museum evaluator 2
Gretchen Haupt, museum evaluator 1
Al Onkka, museum evaluator 2
Science Museum of Minnesota, St. Paul

This is a complex question. I have been responsible for bringing traveling exhibitions into my respective institutions for over 20 years and I have researched both the marketing/product side as well as the financial aspects of this question. I have come to the following conclusions:

• Blockbuster exhibitions may not necessarily be as much of a huge “gate” revenue generator as you may think. After paying all of the costs, both direct and indirect, associated with bringing them in, your net profit may not be any larger than similar profits made from much less costly exhibitions. Careful research and planning are key.
• However, blockbuster exhibitions greatly expand your marketing reach, and we all know that first and foremost, traveling exhibitions are marketing tools. And we can’t forget about their power to generate greater amounts of spin-off revenue. Gate-take versus exhibition fees may yield a less than anticipated net revenue, but all those feet through the door mean higher membership sales and renewals, bigger retail and café sales, fee-based program and school field trip sales, and the like. Advice? The greater the potential of the exhibition to attract new audiences, the farther out you need to plan.
• Blockbuster exhibitions have the potential to backfire on you. Imagine all of those first time visitors now streaming through your door to see this fabulous thing—but what do they see when they leave the exhibition and wander through the rest of your institution? If they don’t like what they see, they won’t be back. And they’ll tell their friends, “Yes, the exhibition was great, but the rest of the place… (insert something unflattering here).” As Marilyn Hood wisely advised many years ago, “Get your current house in order before attempting to attract new audiences.” Considering that many, if not most, of us scrape together the funds needed to bring in a blockbuster at the expense of our core product, this puts us on a dangerous downward spiral. My advice? Make sure your entire institution shines when that blockbuster comes in. Then, those new audiences you caught will be audiences you keep. Yes, that adds a few more costly line items to your budget. But it’s money well spent.

Kim Hunter, senior director, exhibit development, Orlando Science Center, Florida

While visiting exhibitions can provide a short-term boost in public interest, revenue, and forwarding your core education mission, science centers and museums are best served by investing their resources in internal innovation, growth, and human capital. You’re best served by strengthening your institution for year-round attraction, innovation, and education for long-term sustainability.

Ben Cober, director of business development and research, PGAV Destinations, St. Louis, Missouri

There is no single, definitive answer. The variables are numerous—museum location; timing of venue; ability to market, staff, and maintain the exhibition; local competition; topic and presentation style of the exhibition; exhibition lease requirements; availability of sponsors; facility capabilities; expected/required outcomes; relationship to mission; museum personality, etc. Each institution must consider this long list of variables, calculate its willingness to take risks in view of the potential for popular and economic success, and make decisions based on its own circumstances.

Robert (Mac) West, president, Informal Learning Experiences, Denver

The above statements represent the opinions of the individual contributors and not necessarily the views of their institutions or of ASTC.

About the image: Visitors pack the lobby at the Orlando Science Center. Photo courtesy RF Photography

In recent decades science museums have made significant progress in meeting the needs of visitors with a range of disabilities—physical, cognitive, and behavioral. But much more remains to be done for the inclusion of people with disabilities to become the norm. In this issue, we explore what it means to be inclusive and how science museums can adopt universal design practices to make accessibility part of their institutional culture. The articles include personal perspectives from two authors with disabilities as well as guidelines, resources, and specific suggestions that any institution can use to provide a successful experience for every visitor.

Contents

• Changing Practices: Inclusion of People with Disabilities in Science Museums, by Christine Reich
• An Institutional Culture of Inclusion, by Elizabeth Fleming
• Universal Design: Inclusive and Accessible Museum Experiences, by Sina Bahram
• The Adaptive Mindset: Reflections on Accessibility, by Gabrielle Trépanier
• Engaging Students with Disabilities in Accessibility Reviews, by Sheryl Burgstahler and Lyla Crawford
• From Access to Inclusion: Welcoming the Autism Community, by Paula Rais

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