Renewing, reinventing and reopening the right way

1. Renewing, reinventing and reopening the right way ECSITE 2012 – Toulouse France Saturday June 2, 2012 12:00 – 1:15 Green Room Kua Patten – Director Exhibit Services Exploratorium

2. Renewing, reinventing and reopening the right way (for us) Pier 15 in 2013

3. 45 years in one place and 1600 exhibits later

4. Move to where most of the people go

6. Big Moves • Place based – build on the Pier and tell the local story. • Outdoor Exhibits – not a physics playground, but uncover stories about the place.

8. Big Moves • Place based – build on the Pier and tell the local story. • Outdoor Exhibits – not a physics playground, but uncover stories about the place. • Science of Sharing – addition of social sciences to the program

10. Big Moves • Place based – build on the Pier and tell the local story. • Shift from temporary shows to a collaborative showcase model. • Outdoor Exhibits – not a physics playground, but uncover stories about the place. • Science of Sharing – addition of social sciences to the program • Participatory Art

12. Big Moves • Place based – build on the Pier and tell the local story. • Shift from temporary shows to a collaborative showcase model. • Outdoor Exhibits – not a physics playground, but uncover stories about the place. • Science of Sharing – addition of social sciences to the program • Participatory Art • Build upon Make and the Maker Movement

14. Big Moves • Place based – build on the Pier and tell the local story. • Shift from temporary shows to a collaborative showcase model. • Outdoor Exhibits – not a physics playground, but uncover stories about the place. • Science of Sharing – addition of social sciences to the program • Participatory Art • Build upon Make and the Maker Movement • Adult, evening and temporal programming

16. Big Moves • Place based – build on the Pier and tell the local story. • Shift from temporary shows to a collaborative showcase model. • Outdoor Exhibits – not a physics playground, but uncover stories about the place. • Science of Sharing – addition of social sciences to the program • Participatory Art • Build upon Make and the Maker Movement • Adult, evening and temporal programming • We won’t ever be “done”. We are just setting up platforms and launch pads for new initiatives

17. Opportunities & Risks • Most generative period since our founding • $ 300 million is very large amount of money to raise. • Opportunity to reach new audiences and re-engaged with former audience • Navigation of many different interests is a delicate art • What are people’s expectations and can we meet them? • Meeting the challenges of new systems and technologies • A new platform to better serve our constituents and opportunity to tell our story of and deepen our impact • Meeting and coping with change, evolution and expansion

18. Recommendations • Know thy self – play to your strengths • Change is scary – recognize and respect it. Support your staff through the process. Some will come along with you, some won’t. • You won’t really know the depth of your capabilities until you challenge yourself. Accept that growth opportunities come with failure and setbacks. • Try things – if it doesn’t work, try something else. Be ready, willing and able to cut your losses • A good decision today is far more valuable than a better decision tomorrow. • Every minute of every day costs the project money, whether you get something done or not. • Don’t use the words “we’re done” when you open.