In collaboration with TERC and informal learning organizations across the United States, COSI’s Center for Research and Evaluation (CRE) is part of an NSF-funded project, Research to Understand and Inform the Impacts of Ambient and Designed Sound on Informal STEM Learning.
This resource showcases a conference poster that the Wildlife Conservation Society presented at the 2014 Visitor Studies Association Conference and the 2014 Inclusive Museum Conference, outlining the work we undertook to explore the development of a proposed new family exhibit at the Bronx Zoo, "Safari Adventure," paired with selected results and takeaways. In 2011, the Institute of Museum and Library Services awarded WCS a grant to support our investigation and development. We asked ourselves the questions: How can zoo exhibits better connect people to nature? By what methods can we explore
This analysis of visitors’ experience of the "Congo Gorilla Forest" exhibition at the Wildlife Conservation Society’s Bronx Zoo was commissioned to investigate how this 15 year old exhibition is perceived by visitors, and if things have changed since an original summative evaluation in 1999-2000. Questions of particular interest were: 1. Have the characteristics of visitors seeing this exhibition changed? Has awareness or interest in environmental concepts changed? 2. Is the exhibition still appealing to visitors? 3. Are exhibit components such as the film and Conservation Choices Computers
The Bronx Zoo of the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) engaged Randi Korn & Associates, Inc. to conduct formative evaluation and community focus groups related to a proposed exhibit, "Safari Adventure." The aim with this exhibit is to provide better connections to nature for families in our community and foster a life-long sense of environmental stewardship. The exhibit concept was born of the issue that, today, there exists a greater need to connect people to nature than ever before, a topic especially relevant for our community—part of the largest urban population in the United States
In 2011, the Institute of Museum and Library Services awarded the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) a Museums for America – Engaging Communities grant to explore the development of a new family exhibit at the Bronx Zoo, "Safari Adventure." Our aim with this exhibit is to provide better connections to nature for families in our community and foster a life-long sense of environmental stewardship. The exhibit concept was born of the issue that, today, there exists a greater need to connect people to nature than ever before, a topic especially relevant for our community—part of the largest urban population in the United States. The IMLS grant allowed us to take a multi-faceted approach to inform our current thoughts about useful nature exhibit practices and what resonates with our audiences. Through evaluation, prototyping, visits to other institutions, workshops, and community focus groups, we explored themes of child nature play, intergenerational learning, community engagement, and barriers to access. We are disseminating the various reports and products from this process to publicize our findings to the larger professional community. The Wildlife Conservation Society, founded in 1895 as the New York Zoological Society, saves wildlife and wild places worldwide through science, conservation action, education, and inspiring people to value nature. We are the world’s most comprehensive conservation organization, currently managing about 500 conservation projects in more than 60 countries and educating millions of visitors each year at our five living institutions in New York City: the Bronx Zoo, New York Aquarium, Central Park Zoo, Prospect Park Zoo and Queens Zoo. Our conservation programs work directly with animals such as gorillas, elephants, condors, and penguins, and we manage more than 200 million acres of protected lands around the world.
This report presents and analyzes the findings from a front-end evaluation conducted by Randi Korn & Associates (RK&A) regarding the concept for "Safari Adventure," an exhibition being developed at the Bronx Zoo by the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) in Bronx, NY. The aim of Safari Adventure will be to provide better connections to nature for families in our community and foster a life-long sense of environmental stewardship. The exhibit concept was born of the issue that, today, there exists a greater need to connect people to nature than ever before, a topic especially relevant for our
In this paper, Charles A. Lewis, retired from the Morton Arboretum, discusses why and how visitors interact with botanical gardens and arboreta, places that provide natural ambiance as well as learning opportunities. Lewis argues that these types of "green museums" must recognize the psychological and physiological aspects of their landscapes that provide broader experiences for visitors.
In this article, Susan Fisher of the Harn Museum of Art and John J. Koran, Jr. of the Florida Museum of Natural History discuss their study designed to demonstrate the feasibility of conducting evaluations at archeological sites. Specifically, the researchers conducted a summative evaluation of epistemic curiosity and knowledge of Spanish speaking and non-Spanish speaking visitors to the Maya site of Uxmal in the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico.
A NSF EArly-concept Grant for Exploratory Research (EAGER) was awarded to Principal Investigator John Fraser, PhD, AIA, in collaboration with co-Principal Investigators, Mary Miss and William Solecki, PhD, for City as Living Laboratory for Sustainability in Urban Design (CaLL). The CaLL project explored how public art installations can promote public discussion about sustainability. The project examined the emerging role of artists and visual thinkers as people with the skills to encourage conversation between scientists and the public. The grant supported an experimental installation
The article is a summary of the comments and discussions a session at the 2006 AAM conference that addressed what museums in the fields of art, history, and science might learn from each other and how museums might benefit from "cross-pollination." Panel participants were Eric Siegel, Executive Vice President for Programs and Planning at the New York Hall of Science, Benjamin Filene, Director of the Public History Program at the University of North Carolina Greensboro, Deborah Schwartz, President of the Brooklyn Historical Society, and Jennifer MacGregor, Curator of Visual Arts at Wave Hill.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Eric SiegelBenjamin FileneDeborah SchwartzJennifer MacGregor
resourceprojectProfessional Development, Conferences, and Networks
The Museum of Life and Science will use this planning grant to bring together zoo, botanical garden, and science center professionals to a) assess the feasibility of an "interactive zoo," b) identify animals species that exhibit behaviors in a zoo environment that provide natural opportunities for related interactive exhibits, and c) generate a White Paper reviewing relevant exhibits in zoos and science centers and proposing design criteria for the interactive exhibits. The planning activities include: the development of a "White Paper" that will include a review of key research findings in developmental psychology and visitor behavior as they apply to playgrounds, zoos, and interactive exhibit environments, an overview of relevant exhibit techniques and technologies, and case studies of existing exhibits; a 2-day meeting to discuss the issues; and travel to exemplary museums, zoos, aquaria, and botanical gardens. These results will be used in the development of interactive exhibits in an outdoor setting included in the museum's Master Plan 2000. They have proposed the analogy of a field research station in their approach to learning in an outdoor setting. They envision three thematic "field stations": "Down to Earth," "Watery Worlds," and "Catch the Wind." The specific exhibit plans will be finalized after the completion of the planning grant. Although the Museum of Life and Science will be the primary beneficiary of this planning activity, the background information gathered, the issues discussed, and the critical appraisals will be relevant to other museums with and interested in developing exhibits in an out-of-door setting. The results will be broadly disseminated by means of publications and presentations at professional meetings.
In this article, Jane Clark Chermayeff recalls a trip to Angkor, the UNESCO World Heritage site in northwest Cambodia and home to two archaeological sites being conserved by the World Monuments Fund. Chermayeff shares her experience in Angkor as she and a team of conservators attempted to deal with the challenge of dealing with hordes of visitors each day and importance of communication and interpretation as an aid toward site conservation. Included are five recommendations for facing similar challenges in heritage preservation.