Creating A Sustainable Tomorrow Through Play: Brenda Baker and the Madison Children’s Museum

How can small steps spark significant changes for a healthier planet? Brenda Baker, Vice President of Exhibits, Facilities, and Strategic Initiatives at the Madison Children's Museum, walks us through the newly published (AND FREE) Climate Action Playbook designed to inspire and empower the next generation of environmental stewards. Highlighting the Caretakers of Wonder collaboration and addressing the impacts of federal budget cuts, we delve into the museum's commitment to positive change.

Key Points:

• Introduction to Caretakers of Wonder, a collaborative initiative aimed at promoting sustainability and love of nature for children and families.
• The newly published Climate Action Playbook, designed to guide caregivers and museum professionals in fostering nature connection, empathy, resilience, and hope in young people.
• Challenges faced by museums due to federal funding cuts and the importance of private support for innovative family services.
• The role of museums as community equalizers and spaces for joy, empathy, learning through play, and mental well-being.

Chapters:

(0:00:00) - Caretakers of Wonder Climate Action Playbook 

• Overview of the Madison Children's Museum's commitment to sustainability and climate action.
• Brenda Baker discusses Caretakers of Wonder and the Climate Action Playbook.

(0:08:34) - Impacts of Empathy and Learning Through Play for Kids AND Adults

• Emphasis on fostering hope and collective action among young children through simple activities.
• Discussion on the impact of federal funding cuts and the role of museums as community equalizers.

(0:19:24) - Youth Hope in Climate Action 

• Urgent need for support at the Madison Children's Museum.
• Brenda Baker shares her sources of hope and the inspiring creativity of young people.

Links:

Madison Children's Museum

Climate Action Playbook: [Download for FREE]

Caretakers of Wonder

Donate to Madison Children's Museum

Contact Brenda Baker: bbaker@madisonchildrensmuseum.org

Tune in to be inspired by the museum's dedication to creating a brighter, more sustainable future for our children and our planet!

Transcript

00:10 - Dr Diane Jackson Schnoor (Host)
Welcome to today's adventures and learning podcast. A year ago, I was fortunate enough to go and hang out at the Madison Children's Museum and I fell in love with this museum. It is one of the most innovative and creative places in the United States, and even more so I fell in love with their commitment to climate, and particularly the work they were doing on a project called Caretakers of Wonder, and we are so fortunate today to be able to talk to the Vice President of Exhibits, Facilities, and Strategic Initiatives, Brenda Baker. Brenda, welcome to the show. 

00:45 - Brenda Baker (Guest)
Thank you so much, Dr Diane, for having me, for having this opportunity to talk about the museum. 

00:54 - Dr Diane Jackson Schnoor (Host)
You know, I was so impressed with everything that you all did when I was there last year and I had the opportunity to sort of get a sneak peek at your Caretakers of Wonder playbook and that project. I'm wondering for those who don't know can you sort of tell us what that's about and how that came about? 

01:08 - Brenda Baker (Guest)
Sure, well, our museum has been working in the sustainable design sort of climate change realm for more than three decades and we sort of we came about that decision to move and to start doing sustainable design, because we really make every decision at the museum by putting children first. And so when we sort of unearth the fact that children's immune systems don't develop until they're five, they put toxins in their mouth. They're lower to the ground, their respiration rates are twice that of adults. Anyway, they're more susceptible to the impacts of poisons in our environment, of which there are many. And so we decided at that point that we would start taking action in our own museum to try to make a cleaner, you know, a safer environment for kids. So we started eliminating all sorts of toxins, so we started working with natural, sustainable, locally harvested materials. At that time, and I think when we started that, of course it wasn't necessarily because we were thinking specifically about climate change 30 years ago. But we know that when we solve the world for children, when we design the world for children first, we're also designing for a healthy planet, because everything that young children need is what the planet needs. We all need clean air, clean water, no toxins, you know so. So anyway, the commitment started back then 30 years ago with the first with an exhibit, with a commitment to sustainability in our own organization, starting with exhibits first, and then we've then moved toward how can we be a bigger role model in our own community for young children and then in our larger museum ecosystem. So Caretakers of Wonder, basically, is an extension of that commitment. 

03:06
We joined together with nine museums, children's museums and science centers, and also the Association of Children's Museums, environment and Culture Partners, a consulting firm that really helps museums think about and change their practices to be more sustainable. And then we worked with a host of other scholars and experts in early childhood nature education, climate change specifically, I would say, and then, of course, equity issues. We're specifically coming together to try to make new resources for caregivers and museum professionals so that they can become more sustainable. And that's not only thinking about how we create safer spaces, but, you know, how we practice more empathy, building experiences for young people, how we connect young people to nature, how we build in opportunities for hope and collective action. So our museums have come together to create this Climate Action Playbook, which was just published during the ACM conference this year. 

04:13
It's like 153 pages, two parts. The first part is really geared for caregivers and helps you think about three different areas of again, nature and well-being, empathy and resilience, and hope and collective action, and really sets the stage for the fact that climate change is something that we can prepare young people for Long before they learn the words climate change. We can start making an impact on them, you know, before they're born. So so anyway, the consortium this is long winded, I know, but the consortium has come together to create this climate action playbook and also to think about and take actions in our own museums to reduce carbon emissions. So the project had to put two parts and so far, the making the resources for the field, and then also that now we're we've been working with an environmental consulting firm, veritas Group, to work on plans to lower and reduce our carbon emissions. 

05:14 - Dr Diane Jackson Schnoor (Host)
That's awesome and I know that a couple of things you were saying really struck me. The first is sort of that ripple effect. You all started 30 years ago and you started with sort of one idea in mind working from the child and that's had this ripple effect out and I think often people get overwhelmed and they think the issues are so big. Taking that first step you can have these long lasting impacts that you don't even know you're going to have. But you've changed the course of the museum by doing this and have then impacted museums across the country. 

05:57 - Brenda Baker (Guest)
I think that's really an important thing for people to remember is that it doesn't matter where you start. We all have to start where we are, and every museum in the country, every early learning center, every pediatrician's office, any space for children, any home, you can start with little things and build up from that. It gives you confidence that you're making some kind of a change. But again, I think the most important thing when we're talking about climate change and sustainability is to start where you are and don't think you have to. You can start with something small. You can start with, you know figuring out a composting program, or figuring out a recycling program, or figuring out a new way to purchase, you know, using secondhand. So there's there's lots of ways, but the more important thing is to not be overwhelmed and start with something small. 

06:45 - Dr Diane Jackson Schnoor (Host)
And I think the playbook gives you lots of examples on how to do that and that was something I had been really impressed with as an early child educator and as a museum girl is you really straddled both of my worlds and you did it in a way that it was practical and fun and you've sort of laid out ideas for how to do it but left room for creativity and for being able to make it your own. I'm wondering can you give us a specific example just so if somebody's listening of an idea from the playbook that they might wanna try? 

07:17 - Brenda Baker (Guest)
So I mean, for example, there's lots of the playbook is broken down into, as I mentioned, two sections one for caregivers and one for museum professionals, but then within each section there are activities for zero to three, three to six and six to eight. And of course we know in early childhood that climate change is dealt with. You would deal with it very differently depending on the age of the audience and then within that it's all broken down into the three. The section on for caregivers would be about, you know about. These are some of the things are so simple, like take your child outside and you know, during during playtime, and spread out a blanket for for a young child and just look up at the trees and talk about the talk about the leaves, look at the sky, imagine the clouds, those kinds of things, and those are such simple things that that sometimes we just forget. And then there would there would be other examples, of course. 

08:33
I'm thinking about the six to eight year olds, about hope and collective action. It's as simple as planting, making a, planting something in your you know, in a, in a cup, and watching it grow, putting it on your windowsill or doing something kind for a neighbor Again, the whole empathy and resilience thing. I think is one thing that makes this Climate Action Playbook really different is that it is rooted in how do we build empathy and care for all species and all that. So these are simple things that people can do, but by planting a seed and delivering it to a neighbor, you're covering, you're helping connect kids to nature and you're practicing gratitude and thankfulness and reaching out and care for your community. So the playbook has lots and lots of ideas for kids of all ages, under, you know, eight and under. 

09:29 - Dr Diane Jackson Schnoor (Host)
And I will drop the link to the playbook in the notes so that everybody can access it, because one of the things that's special about this is you've made it free to use, and that's a rare gift these days. Yes, it is yeah, and I want to talk a little bit more about empathy. But before we do empathy, I want to get to sort of that whole free to use thing, because this project was funded by IMLS. Is that correct? 

09:55 - Brenda Baker (Guest)
Yes, yeah, the Institute of Museum and Library Services Right. 

09:57 - Dr Diane Jackson Schnoor (Host)
And you all ran into a whole lot of chaos in the last month in terms of funding being pulled and just great uncertainty with all this nonsense going on in Washington right now. 

10:09 - Brenda Baker (Guest)
Yeah, it's been a really challenging. Well, since January. It's been very challenging because at our museum we've actually had three federal grants pulled, which has been really detrimental to the organization and to the forward momentum. I think that we've, you know, gained from this project and so, and also for the you know gained from this project and so, and also for the you know uncertainty for the future. So, yeah, we we had this project. 

10:33
The first round of Caretakers of Wonder was funded by the Institute of Museum and Library Services. We did get our full funding because that project more or less ended. The second phase was funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities, climate Smart Grant and that we have received zero funding, even though the work was 80% completed at the time that it was rescinded, percent completed at the time that it was rescinded. So it's been very detrimental to our organization and to the field at large and ultimately to children and families. You know who won't get the, you know the services. We're all going to do the best we can in our museums across the country. But to say that it isn't a big blow to our field would be, you know. But to say that it isn't a big blow to our field would be, you know, would be wrong. 

11:19 - Dr Diane Jackson Schnoor (Host)
And for somebody who's listening, who thinks, oh, I go to a museum, I pay my admission, that covers everything. Can you help them understand, because I know that that doesn't even remotely cover everything. Can you help them understand why it's so important to have these other funding sources? 

11:35 - Brenda Baker (Guest)
It's well in terms of the federal funding. 

11:38
This really helps raise a bar for us in terms of getting matching funding. 

11:43
So once we get one of these federal grants and they're really competitive, very hard to get Once we get one of these, it really helps us use that as a match, because all of them require a match so we can go out into our community and tell people that we've gotten this great recognition and this opportunity and then they feel more compelled. 

12:01
So it's one thing is about the recognition, but it also the grants are also really designed so that they support innovation, and I think one of the things that you're seeing at our museum is innovation and we're really proud of that. So much of it has been related to innovation that we've been able to explore based on federal funding and because of federal funding. So I think in the coming years, we know we're going to really need to be relying on individuals more than ever and on private foundations, private family foundations and corporations to help fill those gaps, because we you know we do a big service for our communities by creating a joyful you know gathering place for families of all kinds to come together. It's like it's kind of that's kind of a rarity in our culture these days. 

12:52 - Dr Diane Jackson Schnoor (Host)
No, absolutely, and I think that's something that people don't always think about when they think about children's museums and really any museum. But children's museums are super special for this is they are crossroads where you bring together people from all walks of life, and they're one of the rare places where families who are under-resourced have an opportunity to interact on an equal basis, in large parts because of things like museums for all, which again rely on that federal match and on being able to support families who are on assistance, allowing you to reduce your prices, and I don't think people appreciate sort of that amazing capacity of a museum to serve as an equalizer, as an educator and as a place that really supports mental health and well-being in the community, because we need joyful play, we need empathy, we need places where we can engage and be at peace, and I think a museum provides that in ways that other places don't. 

13:57 - Brenda Baker (Guest)
It certainly does, and I think what you mentioned. At our museum, for example, 30% of our audience is coming on our access programs and we are so grateful to have everybody in our community feel welcome and like they can participate equally, with no stigma. You know, we do not ask for forms of proof of need or anything. We really welcome everyone and think the diverse group that we are able to gather in our museum is what makes it so wonderful in terms of that sort of cross-pollination of ideas and people and, you know, and children. It's remarkable. 

14:38 - Dr Diane Jackson Schnoor (Host)
Absolutely, and it sort of connects to what you were saying about empathy earlier in terms of caretakers of wonder. Right, you know, empathy is clearly under attack in this country right now. It's become a bad word, which I truly don't understand, because it means caring for one another, which in my mind, is kind of what the golden rule has always been about. But it feels like maybe we have to go back to the basics in terms of teaching people how to be empathetic to one another, how to spark that wonder and curiosity about each other, build those connections, and that certainly is something that I think museums do, and I'm wondering if you can speak a little bit more to how you all build in empathy in the work that you do. 

15:23 - Brenda Baker (Guest)
Yeah, that's a really good point and I think that empathy is really learning. Empathy is just a very natural part of play. I mean, when you think about young children first learning how to, you know, play house, they're negotiating who's going to be the mom, who's going to be the dog, who's going to be the pet, you know they're setting up rules for how the family is going to function. These are all ways that children are learning social emotional skills about collaboration. They're learning about different points of view and different perspectives. They're learning about different points of view and different perspectives. They're learning how to negotiate. 

16:06
I mean, all the precursor skills that we need as adults are learned naturally through play. And you know children I mean this is what the work of childhood is is play and children's museums really provide avenues for that to happen? And again, this whole notion of social emotional learning, it's you know what good is learning math facts or scientific facts if you don't know how to speak kindly to someone or hear another person's perspective and learn about respect. So these are all things that are really important to children's growth and development and they're equally as important and I would say, even more important than some of the hard skills that we think that kids need to learn. 

16:50 - Dr Diane Jackson Schnoor (Host)
I agree, and you've sort of hit on one of my big things, which is the idea of learning and leading through play, and that so much of what we need to know as adults starts in those early years, with kids, and I think that we lose our ability to play and to consider the world from that playful, empathetic point of view as we grow older. So can you give us an example of how the museum supports the idea of learning through play in the exhibits that you design, of how the museum supports the idea of learning through play in the exhibits that you design. 

17:20 - Brenda Baker (Guest)
Sure, I mean, you know so. For example, we have one one exhibit, right when you first walk in. That's like that's kind of a. It's a magnetic ball run, musical ball run, and it's it's probably 15 to 20 feet long. The whole idea is that, you know, kids can move these pieces around to make different musical sounds as the ball runs down the ball run. But it's designed in such a way that it can work with one child, it can work with two kids in collaboration, it can work with a whole group of kids. So, again, so they're collaborating, they're problem solving as they go, they're, you know, having conversations with one another, making up what the rules are. 

18:04
So pretty much every exhibit that we design, every component in every exhibit, is very thoughtfully designed. So some of them are for solo play, some are for, you know, some exhibit areas might spark more imaginative play. One of the things that I love is we put GoPros on some kids a couple of years ago when we opened our new Wonderground exhibit, and I was shell-shocked at the kinds of imaginative play that was happening that I never would have known about had I not heard the conversation. One kid was being an astronaut and another one was being a cat. They were making up some tales and making up new rules for themselves about how they might get to outer space. The environment sparked that creativity. It helped, you know it helped spark that imaginative play. But again, in all of the conversations that they were having, they were making up rules, figuring out. You know how to listen to one another and I don't know it's so. 

19:06 - Dr Diane Jackson Schnoor (Host)
Play is really the most important work of childhood, and children's museums are ideally situated to support that Absolutely, and if people would like to support the work that you all are doing and sort of help step into the breach created by the void in IMLS, how do they do that? 

19:23 - Brenda Baker (Guest)
Oh my gosh. We need help and we need support more than ever right now. So you can reach out to me. My email is bbaker at madisonchildrensmuseumorg. You can go to our website, madisonchildrensmuseumorg. We have a donate button there. You could reach out in those ways. 

19:43 - Dr Diane Jackson Schnoor (Host)
Excellent. And then last question I wanted to ask you today and it's one I like to ask all of my guests is what brings you hope? 

19:52 - Brenda Baker (Guest)
Oh my gosh. I would have to say I'm filled with hope every single day by just being around young people and seeing the imaginations and the creativity and the possibility that they hold in their hearts and also the great work that there are so many people working on climate change issues around the country. Working on climate change issues around the country, there are so many people who really, really care about museums and young children and supporting informal education. So I would have to say the ecosystem of people in my network, the other children's museums and caretakers at Wonder, the larger field, there are so many compassionate people who are working for the right things right now that that really gives me hope. And again, seeing young children who are being raised in museums and who are being raised to have hope and joy and a sense of curiosity is what gives me hope. 

20:49 - Dr Diane Jackson Schnoor (Host)
Well, brenda, the work that you all do at Madison Children's Museum, and certainly the Climate Playbook and the Caretakers of Wonder program, also give me hope. So thank you for that, and I look forward to seeing where you all take this in the future. 

21:05 - Brenda Baker (Guest)
Great. Thank you so much. It was really a pleasure talking with you. 

21:07 - Dr Diane Jackson Schnoor (Host)
Thank you.