Why Museums? Museums as Conveners on Climate Change

Informal learning leading to collective action around climate change continues to be controversial and piecemeal. Given the positionality of museums as public-facing institutions that address topics of social, scientific, and historical significance, we argue that the museum should be a key convener of discussions around climate change. Utilizing a framework proposed by the National Academies of the Sciences concerning community scientific literacy, as well as our own data from public convenings, we suggest a model for engagement between museums and their public(s) to advance both communication of the emergent climate data, and advocacy for collective action around climate change.