Many museums in the united States are in financial trouble. Foundations that traditionally support museums find their incomes crashing, and as budgets crumble, state-supported museums, seldom appreciated by legislators, are easy targets. Cuts already proposed at such institutions as the Nebraska State Museum, Virginia Museum of Natural History, and Museum of Northern Arizona will drastically reduce public and school education programs and vital scientific research.
Cutting of funds or closure of museums indicates more than the
financial straits that so many states find themselves in: It also often indicates
ignorance of the role of museums as major centers of informal education and basic
research, playing critical roles in the attainment and dissemination of knowledge.
Exhibits usually are viewed by the public as the reason for museums, not realizing that
the far larger collections not seen form the basis for new knowledge. Indeed, much of
what we know of the natural history of the Chihuahuan Desert is based firmly on
collections gathered and preserved over a period of more than 150 years.
Contributor: Arthur H. Harris, Laboratory for Environmental Biology, Centennial Museum, University of Texas at El Paso.
Desert Diary is a joint production of the Centennial Museum and KTEP National Public Radio at the University of Texas at El Paso.