Sustainability of Programs and Facilities

The Minnesota Historical Society continues to strive for environmental, economic and social sustainability with its third year of the sustainability program. Continued focus is being placed on educating staff and visitors about sustainability through the project's "More for the Mission" campaign. Sustainability campaigns include a staff alternative commuting event and an upcoming staff stair campaign. The goal of these projects is to engage staff in the significance of sustainability in their daily lives. In addition, recent energy-efficiency projects within our buildings will get MNHS closer to the sustainability audit targets of a 15% reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. New LED lighting in the office and conference spaces will save $90,000 annually and reduce institutional GHG emissions by 9%. Legacy Amendment funding also enabled MNHS to obtain a Fidelity Foundation Grant that helped replace incandescent gallery lights with new high quality LED fixtures and lamp retrofits. These new gallery lights are in place at Mill City Museum, Minnesota History Center and Split Rock Lighthouse. Looking beyond the best practices for energy in our buildings, the sustainability program is also researching new approaches for museum and historic site sustainability, including ways to reduce the energy impact from specialized cold and cool storage areas in museums. MNHS staff have presented in a number of professional conferences, including the American Alliance of Museums, Association for Preservation Technology and the National Council for Public History. MNHS projects that over the next five years, sustainability initiatives will save more than $1.8 million and reduce GHG emissions by 15%. Initiatives to date have achieved 10% institutional GHG emission reductions in the last three years.