Exhibits Case Studies

Madison Children's Museum

100 State Street
Madison, WI 53703

608.251.6097 (p)
608.268.1398 (f)
John Robinson (contact)
jrobinson@madisonchildrensmuseum.org (e)

http://www.madisonchildrensmuseum.org

• Institutional Sustainability Mission
• Sustainability Guidelines for Contractors
• Learning from Leopold and Seuss, (pdf) Brenda Baker (Madison Children’s Museum), Guest Editor, Hand to Hand, volume 20, Spring 2006
• Seeing Green, (pdf) Jeremy Schoolfield, Fun World, The International Association of Amusement Parks & Attractions, June 2005
• "The Sustainable Museum: It's Not Easy Being Green," (pdf) Brenda Baker and John Robinson, Hand to Hand, volume 14, Winter 2000

Possible-opolis

Project Size: 2,400 ft

Project Budget:  $130/sq. ft

Exhibit/Project Description:
Possible-opolis, is an open-ended, exploratory play space aimed at promoting curiosity, creativity and self-expression in a reuse-intensive, post-consumer society. MCM’s goals for Possible-opolis include the promotion of creativity, among both patrons and staff, in a gallery built using a 100% reclaimed/repurposed materials strategy. This sustainability commitment will encourage children to explore new possibilities by looking at everyday objects in a new way, display staff ingenuity and reduce the cost of material procurement. Materials for this exhibit will include salvage, repurposed exhibit components from the old museum, recycled materials, and various other local resources.

Factors Affecting Decision to "Go Green":
For this exhibit, MCM staff members were inspired by the idea of increased efficiency and waste reduction through creative reuse. Several exhibits across the country have achieved impressive results with this idea, but none to date have attained the goal of 100% material reuse. Budget factors and the challenges of our national economy further galvanized staff around this exciting new challenge.

Distinguishing green features:
The Power Station in Possible-opolis will provide children opportunity to experiment with human-generated energy with bicycle-powered devices, pulleys, hand-cranked machines and a giant gerbil wheel. Other sections of this exhibit, such as the Found Sound Garage and Odditorium, will display material reuse by turning found objects into musical contraptions and showing off unique collections of hands-on retro technology.

Green products used:

• Non-toxic and zero VOC sealants and paints
• Salvaged counter tops obtained from Beloit College
• Old cisterns
• Reclaimed Great Lakes buoy
• Satellite dishes
• Two repurposed 1958 BMW Isettas
• Reclaimed basketball court flooring, construction wood and cabinetry throughout
• Reclaimed musical instruments
• Cast-away technology components (A/V/digital/media/medical etc)
• Numerous repurposed exhibit components, furnishings and fixtures from the old museum

Piece of advice for others regarding project:
Among the more stimulating considerations in developing new exhibits is the setting of new, more challenging goals. For us, being green doesn’t necessarily mean using new materials that have been developed and created to be “green”. Consuming less and reusing what we already have is more important than using sustainably created materials. True sustainability requires us to think of ways to use less while also producing and consuming less.

New or Upcoming Green Projects:
Each of the three ‘green exhibits’ featured in MCM’s new building will explore a different aspect of sustainability: Local goods, material re-use and renewable energy, along with cultural sustainability throughout.