ASMD

The ASMD 2024 Directors Forum convened in Washington D.C. Our co-hosts were Kirk Johnson, ASMD member and Sant Director of the National Museum of Natural History, and Christofer Nelson, President and CEO of the Association of Science and Technology Centers. We had sessions in the National Museum of Natural History (NMNH), the NMNH’s Museum Support Center in Suitland, Maryland, the American Geophysical Union’s Net Zero building (which now includes the ASTC Headquarters), the National Air and Space Museum, and the National Gallery of Art, with optional post-conference visits to the National Museum of African American History and Culture, and the National Museum of the American Indian. Presentations considered a wide variety of issues in the museum field including repatriation, shared stewardship, and ethical returns; decolonizing museum experiences and providing First Peoples perspectives; moving forward with DEAI and social and environmental justice; protecting threatened cultural heritage sites, making museum data accessible to address critical issues; embedding climate science in popular exhibitions; promoting action and public engagement on climate change and planetary health, advancing equity in STEM, and reimagining museums. For the Final Program, including speakers, click on the link.