Advice, assistance and consultation on management and organizational needs.

According to the American Association of Museums nearly 50% of American museums have seen decreases in their budgets. Local and state funding for museums has been severely curtailed since 2007 and continues to fall, giving by foundations is down because their endowments have shrunk and individuals are giving less too. But most museums are seeing an increase in visitation which opens up new opportunities for membership development, program fees and museum shop sales. Many predict that public funding for museums will be permanently impacted, museums that are now struggling will have to make budget adjustments carefully to avoid staff and program cuts that may hamper handling the increases in visitation and the new opportunities for revenue generation.

Are internet or computer games a wave of the future for interpretation in museums? The news on the internet these days is filled with stories about using electronic  gaming technology to help businesses solve problems, to help children and adults explore new areas of interest, to promote healthy eating habits and a myriad of other topics. Children have been extensively exposed to gaming and by the time they become adults gaming has become second nature to them. The old and current thinking about static and even interactive exhibitions in museums may have to quickly adapt to this revolution that uses gaming as a learning and problem solving tool.

Innovative reward based gaming technology certainly will appeal to a broad age range and will allow museums to introduce young people to our history and culture. Many museums use scavenger hunts and other interactive activities to keep young audiences engaged and interested, will they now look toward gaming as a way to introduce new audiences to their collections?