As The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis celebrates its 100th anniversary, they鈥檙e planning for the next 50 years, both in infrastructure and in programming to include an emphasis on sustainability, and 无码群交 Group is there to help their efforts as sponsors of the Environmental Sustainability Advisory Committee (ESAC). Here鈥檚 how our Sustainability Shared Bet is making a difference for people, planet and community, reaching beyond our own offices to influence future generations of museum visitors.
The 24-member ESAC included perspectives and sources of expertise from across 无码群交 Group 鈥� Chris Ames, Daniella Bianchetti, Kelly Geckler, Ben Woodworth, Anne Smith and Tom Doherty 鈥� along with interested parties from around the state of Indiana, all tasked with making recommendations related to environmental sustainability practices and policy. For two years, the group met quarterly with museum representatives to explore ideas and options for reducing the museum鈥檚 carbon footprint and teaching others to do the same.
鈥淭he committee helped provide insight and information, connections and resources for the museum to better understand where we are and how to make informed decisions going forward,鈥� said Ryan Lewis, who leads the Facilities Operations Department at the museum. 鈥淲hat we learned is there are some really bright people out there who know sustainability and who are willing to share ideas.鈥�
They also learned, through some facility condition assessments with the committee, they have a tremendous amount of work to do. This didn鈥檛 surprise Ryan, given that the building has been through nine expansions over nearly 50 years at this Illinois Street location, but the committee helped him see the site with fresh eyes. This new perspective led to new improvements to infrastructure.
Infrastructure: Now
Some of the steps they鈥檝e taken on the property:
- Converted to LED occupancy lighting in the parking garage
- Started recycling on the staff side, with targets for the visitor side in the future
- Benchmarking current levels of solid waste and recycling so that improvements can be accurately measured
- Working toward standardization of signage around waste and recycling containers, making them easy for museum visitors to recognize
Ryan鈥檚 team is also working to reduce waste in their exhibit builds. When selecting materials for their new exhibits, they鈥檙e choosing those that can be reused or recycled over specific, single-use materials. And they are standardizing the size and shape of exhibits and kiosks using a template so those pieces can be reused or repurposed as one experience closes and another opens.
鈥淲e鈥檙e keeping something in operation by applying new paint or graphics to it rather than breaking it down and putting it into a waste or recycling stream,鈥� Ryan shared. 鈥淲e鈥檇 also like to share with smaller organizations some of our pieces that still have life, but we know we aren鈥檛 going to use again, so we鈥檙e working on developing a kind of network for those elements.鈥�
鈥淚t鈥檚 a slow process with an organization our size operating a building that鈥檚 half a million square feet,鈥� he said, 鈥渂ut we鈥檙e making progress.鈥�
Infrastructure: Future
The timing of the committee鈥檚 work was ideal: As the museum approaches their centennial celebration, there鈥檚 been a lot of reflection on where they鈥檝e been and where they want to be. They鈥檙e currently drawing up an infrastructure renewal plan and can now see that plan through a sustainability lens.
鈥淲ith the committee鈥檚 help, we were able to understand where we are as a building, as a structure and as an infrastructure,鈥� said Ryan. 鈥淲e put together a 10-year infrastructure plan that renews approximately 80% of our mechanical and electrical infrastructure. This brings our 1980s-era building up to date.鈥�
Ideas they鈥檙e investigating include EV charging, rooftop solar power as well as heat and energy recapture opportunities to reduce emissions and overall energy consumption. In the food court, they鈥檙e talking to the food service providers about ways to move away from single-use items and minimize food waste.
On the programming side, Morgan Hoffman, The Children’s Museum’s Sustainability & Youth Programs Manager, recognizes the museum鈥檚 potential influence on visitors. Over 1.3 million children and their families engage with museum learning experiences each year through on-site exhibits, camps and community- or school-based programs like Family Nights.
Programming: Now
A Family Night is an outreach program that brings a hands-on educational experience to a school for an evening. The newest and most popular topic is one developed with ESAC鈥檚 input: STEM City.
鈥淓very activity gets kids to think about different aspects of living in a city,鈥� said Morgan. 鈥淭he kids think, 鈥極K, if I鈥檓 the city planner here, how am I going to construct my city?鈥欌��
In this program, kids turn a crank to generate the energy for the city鈥檚 lights, which helps them think about possible power sources, including solar. They play Grocery Games, which gets them thinking about food and how it is sourced. They build habitats for Indiana wildlife, so they consider environmental impacts humans have on animals and plants.
Sustainability is woven through the curriculum and also influences its implementation. 鈥淲e鈥檙e now being very cognizant of our day-to-day practices,鈥� said Morgan. 鈥淲ith STEM City, we were conscientious, thinking, 鈥楢re these consumable supplies or can we find an alternative we can use repeatedly?鈥� That thinking is bleeding into other programs that aren鈥檛 necessarily about the environment.鈥�
Other programming wins so far:
- Added even more sustainability activities to our own Kids Science Camp plan
- Created a homeschool program called Sustainable Living
- Developed summer camp lessons on farm-to-lunchbox and ecology
- Expanded the Earth Day offerings at the museum
Committee members helped Morgan, who came to the Indy area from a fellowship in Utah in 2022, form a whole new network of local resources so that she can continue to learn about environmental impacts and incorporate them into lesson plans.
Programming: Future
The committee looked at current exhibits and gave ideas on how to weave in some related sustainability topics.
鈥淲hat I’m moving towards now is creating a guiding framework and a plan for the next 鈥� however long 鈥� based on all that we’ve absorbed and started implementing,鈥� said Morgan. 鈥淭his is so that the committee鈥檚 help with getting us started is informing our future work.鈥�
鈥淭he committee was a great starting point for the museum鈥檚 plan,鈥� said Chris Ames of Envita Solutions. 鈥淲e let them know that they were on the right path. And we helped them create a network of our connections too. Now they have a bigger toolbox to draw from.鈥�
鈥淭his collaborative group helped The Children鈥檚 Museum identify actionable opportunities,鈥� said Anne Smith, Senior Director of Sustainability for 无码群交 Group. 鈥淲e believe small steps can make a big impact 鈥� change doesn鈥檛 have to be massive to be meaningful. It鈥檚 about putting one foot forward and beginning the journey.鈥�
