Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service

Meet the GREEN Team

The Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES) and Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago invite you to GO GREEN!

To celebrate the 40th anniversary of Earth Day, SITES officially launched Green Revolution at the Bob Jones Nature Center & Preserve in Southlake, Texas. Green Revolution is our new venture to license exhibition design files, which will allow multiple host venues to create their own "eco-zibit." Plus, no crates or trucks help to minimize OUR carbon footprint.

At the Bob Jones Nature Center, the action takes place both indoors and outside on their beautiful grounds and will be on view through World Environment Day on June 5. Centered around five of our most critical issues concerning the future health of our planet - Energy, Climate, Water, Food, and Waste, Green Revolution provides a hands-on community project that builds awareness of our fragile Earth and demonstrates everyday solutions to help protect our air, water, soil, and wildlife. Activities and lessons give practical tips on how we can all "Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle" in our everyday lives!

The exhibition design files for Green Revolution are available now for purchase by individual sections or as a complete set for just $5000, which allows you to customize the size of your display. So, in honor of Earth Day, SITES would like to share three easy ways to reduce, reuse and recycle:

1. REDUCE energy consumption by using fluorescent light bulbs.
2. Instead of buying bottled water, REUSE your favorite cup or mug.
3. Book "Green Revolution" and RECYCLE old materials to build a family friendly exhibit that will inspire and excite visitors to join the green revolution!!!

And remember, going green SAVES green!

-- Shavonne Harding and Lindsey Koren

National Geographic-inspired Portraits

Everyone loves a good contest, right?  That’s exactly what Mike Bearrow, curator at the Southern Museum of Civil War and Locomotive History in Kennesaw, GA, was thinking when he began work on programming to accompany their showing of In Focus: National Geographic Portraits. 

Playing off the exhibition’s spotlight on the compelling portraits seen in the iconic magazine, Mike and his staff launched their own photo contest, called “People in Focus.”  They displayed e-mailed photo submissions as a rotating slide show on a flat screen TV in the gallery, and offered up a great prize: the winners in three categories (one subject, two subjects, three or more subjects) would have their photos professionally printed and framed… and hung in the museum!

Congrats to Mike and his colleagues on a great idea.  Here are the winners!

 
Slide show and winning photos on view in the museum.

 
One Person Category Winner: Tracy B. for "Aria"

 
Two Person Category Winner: Courtney E. for "Riderless Horse"

 

 
Three Person Category Winner: Ed E. for "Japan"
 

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Dr. Dorothy Height: A TRUE Freedom Sister

On her 98th birthday, only hours after distinguished members of Congress, celebrities, and dignitaries had gathered to celebrate her birthday, Dr. Dorothy Height was rushed to Howard University Hospital where she still remains in intensive care. I found the news shocking, despite the fact that she is 98 years old.

As a publicist for the Smithsonian Institution, I've had the privilege of working on a most interesting exhibition called Freedom’s Sisters, a nationwide traveling presentation that celebrates 20 African-American women who played pivotal roles in the civil rights movement.

Through my work on this project, I have come to know Dr. Height. But I met her much earlier, in 1999, while participating in the first National Council of Negro Women’s National Oratorical Contest held in Washington, DC. What I remember most about the conference was simply her presence.

Speaking without notes, Dr. Height was able to recall and recount the details of meetings and encounters with Eleanor Roosevelt, Martin Luther King, Jr., and so many other national leaders. This unique historical perspective is what makes her legacy so important. Throughout her lifetime, Dr. Height has worked tirelessly fighting for both civil rights and rights for women in a number of organizations like the National Council of Negro Women and the Young Women’s Christian Association. I feel honored (both then and now) to be a part of anything Dr. Dorothy Height was associated with. Consequently, the day I delivered my speech, I managed to win 1st place.

--Chistin Chism, public relations.

>>Learn about Freedom's Sisters on YouTube!

Image: Dorothy Height at center and Martin Luther King, Jr., at far right. National Park Service; Mary McLeod Bethune Council House National Historic Site