Museums, Nature, and Society: The Use of Natural History Collections for Furthering Public Well-being, Inclusion, and Participation

Abstract

Natural history museums attract millions of visitors every year worldwide. Their collections, often inherited from centuries past, were gathered for scientific as well as educational purposes – and in many cases are still used for just that. However, since at least the 1950s, natural history collections have been perceived as a burden on museums and academic institutions, of little use other than exhibition in dusty cabinets, occupying space that could be used for more spectacular means of attracting the public. Yet natural history collections, even older collections, do have other uses, many of which have far-reaching consequences in terms of societal well-being, inclusion, and participation, which are often unrecognized in the collective mind of public and stakeholders alike. The aim of this paper is to review the available literature and discuss concrete examples where the use of natural history collections has resulted in benefits for society as a whole or within a single community. Natural history collections are repositories of reference material, allow earlier findings to be reproduced, and new technology constantly reveals new information no one suspected they could carry. New contributions of natural history collections are now more important to society than the original reason for going out and collecting specimens. They provide evidence of long-term historical trends, allowing researchers to make predictions into the future.