How Museums are Helping Communities Beat the Heat
Adam Rozan
A 2023 Blooloop Power 10 Museum Influencer. A Civic Season 2024 Advisory Board member. Please note that the views expressed are strictly my own.
A July 7 NPR.com article headline reads, “Temperature records are shattered as extreme heat grips the West and East coasts.” And a July 1 headline from the Washington Post warns: “Heat is the deadliest form of extreme weather.” Heat.gov tracks the “number of people in the U.S. who are currently under active National Weather Service extreme heat advisories, watches, and warnings.” As of July 7, that number is 132 million people and will likely rise throughout the summer.
In New York City, museums have become “Cooling Centers,” organizations that have waived admission fees to provide access to air-conditioning and water to their communities in a funded partnership with the city. Many are members of the Cultural Institutions Group, which comprises organizations in city-owned properties. The list of participating museums includes the Brooklyn Museum, the Museum of the City of New York, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the American Museum of Natural History, MOMA PS1, the Bronx Museum of the Arts, and the Queens Museum.
The website banner for the Museum of the City of New York highlights, “We are an official NYC Cooling Center. Stop by between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. to beat the heat!”
Museums around the country are joining the effort to support their communities. Examples include the Ogden Museum of Southern Art in New Orleans, with a “hydration station,” pitcher of water and disposable placed outside the museum, and Liberty Hall Historic Site in Frankfort, Kentucky, which offers “sprinkler days” to help visitors beat the heat and have some fun too.
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Director at Washington State Historical Society
4 个月The Washington State History Museum serves as a cooling center when temperatures are 95 degrees and higher. We offer free admission, ice water, and tables and chairs who want to work or just hang out from the museum during the day, in addition to free access to our galleries throughout the day.
Founder of MuseoSpace Foundation / Innovation Manager / Architect
4 个月What a great example on how museums are supporting their communities :) Thank you for sharing!
Passionate about Placemaking, Diverse Communities and the Creative City
4 个月You should check Melting Metropolis https://www.meltingmetropolis.com/
Artist, Educator, Organizational Development Specialist, Environmentalist, Cultural Worker, an Artist - Fusing Art, Photography & Technology, [email protected]
4 个月CultureCures…in many different ways!
Gallery and Museum Executive Leadership | Living Kidney Donor | Art Writer | Book Author | Artist | Owner of Delgado Consulting and Appraising
4 个月Insightful!