Imagine a day when we can have immediate access to comprehensive and reliable data on all the Earth’s organisms, and can model present or ancient ecosystems. Or a day when we can gather rock samples from every part of the solar system, analyze them in our labs, and determine what makes our planet uniquely capable of supporting life. Imagine using Museum collections to recreate entire environments, or a time when we can fully understand what language tells us about how our minds work and how we think about the world.
This future is on the horizon, thanks to the contributions made by our staff, volunteers and collaborators for more than a century. Our new Centennial Website tells this story, offering a window into key milestones in our history, and introducing the key participants who have made the National Museum of Natural History one of the great museums and research institutions in the world.
Since the Museum first opened its doors to the public on March 17, 1910, the world has changed dramatically, and the future holds even greater promise for natural history science. New technologies let us ask new questions from our existing collections, and share our science and education programs with millions of people around the world to inspire them to understand and preserve nature and culture. But we also face significant challenges. Globalization and environmental change threaten the existence of countless species and speed the disappearance of indigenous languages, knowledge, and practices. Finite resources limit our ability to carry out an agenda that will both advance science and address some of society’s greatest challenges.
Designed to contribute to the Smithsonian Institution’s vision and goals, our new strategic plan, Knowledge for a Sustainable World, will help us sustain our leadership role and become a museum and research institution that:
- Expands the world’s most comprehensive natural history collections, preserves them for future generations, and makes them available globally;
- Uses these collections to make fundamental contributions to our understanding of nature and culture;
- Reaches global audiences and inspires them to learn about the natural world;
- Increasingly integrates its research and collections with education and outreach;
- Builds strong collaborations with all parts of the Smithsonian, federal agencies, and national and international institutions;
- Fosters an adaptive, accountable, and entrepreneurial culture.
We invite you to join us as we build on the legacy of our first century of work, envision a Museum for the 21st century, and contribute to a deeper appreciation for and better understanding of nature and culture. It promises to be an exciting journey.
Cristián Samper, Director