Happy Earth Month

It’s April and do you know what that means? It’s Earth month! This month is all about celebrating Mother Nature and the beautiful planet we call home. Here at the Museum, we value environmental friendliness and strive to promote important topics every day such as sustainability, green living and recycling. Several of our installations center around these important topics to help visitors learn about how to protect our planet in fun and exciting ways.

Our Museum

Environmental friendliness is at our core here at the Museum- literally. Our building, built by architect Rob Quigley, was designed with environmental friendliness in mind. Our 360- degree window
panels allow for natural light to fill the Museum and reduces the need for heating or air-conditioning. Our Museum is one of the first green museums in California which signals our commitment to environmental sustainability.

 The Garden Project

Not only is the garden a vibrant space that encourages families to spend more
time outdoors, but it is also an emblem of conservation, sustainability and climate action. The garden contains an amazing assortment of flowers, herbs, drought-tolerant plants and edible trees. In addition, The Garden Project contains a colorful car sculpture designed and created by Museum staff, which advocates environmental responsibility and explains the benefits of green vehicles.

Connect the Drops

The Museum partnered up with The Ecology Center to create an educational experience that informs visitors how to reduce their water footprint – the amount of water needed to produce, transport and process the goods we consume each day. Being conscientious about water usage is of paramount importance to the Museum and the California community. Through Connect the Drops, we hope that visitors take away simple ways to decrease their water usage and make a big impact!

Make/Shift

Make/Shift makes recycling fun! This adventure playground allows creativity and imagination to run wild as children create large-scale forts from miscellaneous materials such as cardboard boxes, fabric, ropes and more. The materials are all recycled materials collected from our Museum’s shipping department. This installation not only allows children to build whatever they want, however they want, but it encourages them to think twice about what is “waste” and what could be reused to be a whole lot of fun!

Curriculum

Our Arts Education Team has developed curriculum surrounding the topics of clean air and sustainability. Throughout the year, the Museum hosts a variety of public programs including Toddler Time, Mass Creativity Day and workshops for visitors to learn about these topics and create art outdoors. We also have curriculum posted on our website for educators and parents to access.

Celebrate Earth Month at The New Children’s Museum! We hope that you join us at the Museum this month to celebrate Planet Earth and check out the many installations we proudly offer that align with our commitment to environmental sustainability. Happy Earth Month!