The Chicago Academy of Sciences / Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum has a long history of creating thought-provoking, engaging, ground-breaking exhibits.
Our award-winning exhibits entertain and educate visitors of all ages on topics ranging from urban ecology to extinction to climate change.
Select past awards include:
2017 – Weather to Climate: Our Changing World – American Alliance of Museums – Excellence in Exhibition Label Writing
2014 – Nature’s Struggle: Survival & Extinction – Illinois Association of Museums – Award of Merit: Exhibits
2013 – Food: The Nature of Eating – Illinois Association of Museums – Certificate of Excellence Achievement Award: Exhibits
Want to rent one of our exhibits for your museum or science center? Interested in exhibiting your work at the Nature Museum? Click the button below to fill out the inquiry form and our exhibits team will follow up with you.
Weather to Climate: Our Changing World
Weather to Climate presents the fundamentals of weather and climate and explains how the two phenomena are connected through fun interactives and engaging content. The exhibition connects weather to the science behind global climate changes and explores how it affects human and animal communities around the world.
Key Messages:
- Weather is a phenomenon that happens now; climate is phenomenon that happens over long periods of time.
- Weather patterns and climate continuously change, usuall y slowly, in a phenomenon known as “natural variability. ”
- Earthʼs global climate is changing. Itʼs becoming warmer and wetter.
- Some plants and animals can adapt to climate change; others cannot.
- Human actions are causing climate change, but human actions can lessen its impact.
Host Requirements:
- Minimum 4000 sq ft. of gallery space
- Minimum 10 ft. high ceilings
Our House: Rethinking Home in a Changing Climate
Our House: Rethinking Home in a Changing Climate
Our House presents the fundamentals of human-caused climate change and, with interactives and content aimed at multiple age levels, delves into the complicated relationship between the built environment and the natural environment. Our House encourages visitors of all ages to think about how their lifestyle choices impact the environment, empowering them to make a difference.
Key Messages:
- Weather is a phenomenon that happens now; climate is a phenomenon that happens over long periods of time.
- Earthʼs global climate is changing, mainly because of human actions. Extreme weather events are the new normal.
- Carbon dioxide and other gases form a blanket around our planet, trapping the sun’s heat in a phenomenon known as the greenhouse effect.
- Across the country, the impacts of climate change are disrupting human lives and changing how we live.
- The typical American house is not only vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, but also contributes to it.
- There are steps we can take together to protect our communities and reduce our impact.
Host Requirements:
- Minimum 4000 sq ft. of gallery space
- Minimum 10 ft. high ceilings