Two branches of the Tallinn City Museum: Kalamaja Museum and Miiamilla Children’s Museum received the Green Museum certificate.

The Kalamaja Museum, which recently received the Silletto Award of European Museums as the best community museum, and the Miiamilla Children’s Museum, whose green activities have long won visitors’ trust, have each taken a step towards improving the world and saving our environment. From now on, they are among the first ten who have received the Green Museum recognition in Estonia.

According to Katrin Lagerest, head of the communication and development department at the Tallinn City Museum, who has led the movement towards the Green Museum, the process was multifaceted: “The seven branches of the Tallinn City Museum have all contributed to environmental protection and education for many years. Namely, all our branches have educational programs that raise awareness of environmental protection. In addition, recycling and using existing resources is natural for our employees, not a new pattern of behavior. The biggest challenge of our working group was the mapping of all activities, the creation of basic documents, and the formulation of goals.”

At the beginning of July, the Kalamaja Museum and the Miiamilla Children’s Museum were awarded a green museum certificate in the People’s Museum of Tallinn. Both the Kalamaja Museum and the Miiamilla Children’s Museum see the green museum label as a natural continuation of the already-started activities. Community and visitor involvement is seen as an important part.  Kertu Uiboleht, assistant of SEI Tallinn’s green and circular economy unit and auditor of the green museum, points out that an environmentally conscious city museum working group has also been formed, which includes representatives from each branch, she adds that “cooperation between museums is beneficial when adopting the principles of a green museum, as it offers an opportunity discuss ideas and actions”. Katrin Lagerest sees that the biggest bottleneck is the energy efficiency of old buildings, but still hopes that Kiek in de Kök Fortification Museum and Photo Museum could be awarded the Green Museum certificate next.

The activities of both Kalamaja Museum and Miiamilla Children’s Museum have been very dynamic in recent years and full of innovations both in the museum building and in the surrounding gardens.
If the Kalamaja Museum considers setting an example to be the most important thing in getting the green museum label, then for the Miiamilla Children’s Museum the most important thing in getting the green museum label was seeing the bigger picture of the world and acting according to its words. Kertu Uiboleht believes that the greatest strength of museums is cooperation with affiliated and target groups. Both museums stood out to him for their fascinating use of gardens. It is through the garden that the Kalamaja Museum employees plan to reach the community with green themes. There are plans to involve the community in making the museum green, for example, it is planned to let children plant seeds in the garden and water the plants. As an even more unexpected and better surprise and innovation, the museum got a rainwater collection collector, in which children can safely use the collected water to water the garden in the future. In the Miiamilla Children’s Museum, the educational garden and the activities in it are also important for children, the development of a garden-themed exhibit is still in progress, but in addition to this, they want to emphasize even more the sorting of garbage, which, contrary to expectations, has not gone without bumps.

Kristi Paatsi, director of the Kalamaja Museum, and Jane Meresmaa-Roos, director of the Miiamilla Children’s Museum, talk about their experiences in reaching the recognition of the green museum.
“As a community museum, the Kalamaja Museum is an important part of saving and preserving the environment, for example, we have a learning garden and a greenhouse open to everyone, and in the museum’s kitchen, we use the harvest from our own garden on cooking evenings. In addition, the tea offered in the museum kitchen is always linden blossoms, lemon balm, or mint picked by our community members. The products from our garden go home to the pan, salad, and cupboard with the people of Kalamaja. Big things start with small steps,” says Kristi Paatsi, director of the Kalamaja Museum, proudly.

“As a children’s museum, we desire to create and shape a world where both current and future children can live. As a child’s first museum experience, our task is to guide them to become more aware of their surroundings through play.  In the museum, for example, there is an advertising wall of good messages, which calls for the preservation of our common world, and an environmental globe, where a child’s voice speaks about a planet overflowing with things. It also makes some larger visitors think about their greener choices,” believes Jane Meresmaa-Roos, director of Miiamilla Children’s Museum.

How to go green?

It is a simple environmental management system, introduced by the Estonian Environmental Management Association.
In a single comparable system, it is easier for museums to assess and reduce their environmental impact and operate sustainably. By following certain principles, the museum can prove its environmental awareness and compliance of its activities with these principles.
To prove greenness, it is not enough for museums to just talk about this topic, although the museum has great opportunities to introduce the way of thinking and sharing the principles of environmental awareness and sustainability.
All activities of the museum should comply with these principles, from the management of the museum building and collections, and the involvement of employees and interest groups, to the topics of exhibitions, events, organization of museum education, and social responsibility.
An important place is in the analysis of the entire museum activity: are the buildings and storage and exhibition creations organized economically and are unnecessary expenses on energy, materials, and organizational activities avoided? Are waste management, water use, etc. daily operations under appropriate control? These and many other questions need to be thought through and solved either in the museum independently or with the help of a consultant.
All museums, regardless of size or field, can act as green museums.

The green museum system has been developed by the Tallinn Center of the Stockholm Environmental Institute together with the Estonian National Committee of the International Council of Museums (ICOM). The green museum system is managed and certificates are issued by the Estonian Environmental Management Association.

Rohelise muuseumi tunnistused andis üle Eesti Keskkonnajuhtimise Assotsiatsiooni juhatuse liige Ellen Kaasik. Miiamilla Lastemuuseumi nimel võttis sertifikaadi vastu Tallinna Linnamuuseumi direktor Heli Nurger.

Ellen Kaasikult võttis Rohelise muuseumi tunnistuse vastu Kalamaja muuseumi õppedisainer Tuuli Silber.

Kalamaja

When applying for the Green Museum what did you feel was …

… most important? To lead by example and be a role model.

… most difficult? Binding tenders that are not flexible.

… easiest, most self-explanatory? Green garden.

… most unexpected? Rainwater collection collector.

… seemed impossible? Nothing at all – if you want, everything is possible! In Kalamaja, we have seen it when we became the best in Europe.

What is still in progress? The green museum label is only the first step, we will continue and develop our green activities.

How do you go about this experience, how do you share the knowledge with your visitors/community? The community itself contributes to the greenness of the museum, for example, children water the garden, in spring, children sow seeds and grow plants, etc.

Miiamilla

When applying for the Green Museum what did you feel was …

… most important? To see the big picture of the world and act on your words.

… most difficult? The assumption is that everyone else is doing the same as you and that convenience or time-critical choices outweigh cost-saving choices.

… easiest, most self-explanatory? Sorting, Miiamilla mini garden.

… most unexpected? Over-sorting other people’s garbage.

… seemed impossible? Solar panels on the roof.

What is still in progress? Involvement of children in the creation of new environmental programs, involvement of seniors’ skills in the development of a garden exhibit.

How do you go about this experience, how do you share the knowledge with your visitors/community? For Miiamilla, environmentally friendly choices are completely natural and primary choices that we want to share and raise awareness through simple practical activities, e.g. drinking tap water, sorting garbage, and recycling objects and materials.