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Smithsonian InstitutionFive-Vfear Prospectus Fiscal Years 1992 - 1996

Choosingthe Future
Smithsonian InstitutionFive -Year Prospectus Fiscal Years 1992 - 1996
Board of Regents
The Secretary
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Honorable William H. RehnquistThe Chief Justice of the United States, Chancellor, ex officioHonorable J. Danforth QuayleThe Vice President of the United States, ex officioHonorable E. J. (Jake) Gam Senator from UtahHonorable Daniel P. Moynihan, Senator from New YorkHonorable James R. Sasser, Senator from TennesseeHonorable Silvio O. Conte, Representative from MassachusettsHonorable Norman Y. Mineta, Representative from CaliforniaHonorable Jamie L. Whitten, Representative from MississippiHonorable David C. Acheson, Citizen of the District of ColumbiaHonorable Anne L. Armstrong, Citizen of TexasDr. William G. Bowen, Citizen of New JerseyMrs. Jeannine Smith Clark, Citizen of the District of ColumbiaMr. I. Michael Heyman, Citizen of CaliforniaMr. Samuel C. Johnson, Citizen of WisconsinMr. Barnabas McHenry, Citizen of New YorkDr. Homer A. Neal, Citizen of MichiganHonorable R. James Woolsey, Citizen of Maryland
Robert McCormick AdamsCarmen E. Turner, Under SecretaryAlice Green Burnette, Assistant Secretaryfor Institutional InitiativesJames C. Early, Acting Assistant Secretary for Public ServiceTom L. Freudenheim, Assistant Secretary for MuseumsRobert S. Hoffmann, Assistant Secretary for ResearchThomas E. Lovejoy, Assistant Secretary for External AffairsPeter G. Powers, General CounselNancy D. Suttenfield, Assistant Secretaryfor Finance and Administration
January 1991
Table of Contents
Choosing the Future? Message from the Secretary v
Introduction 1Smithsonian Institution Statement of Purpose 3Goals of the Insitution 5Areas of Emphasis 7
Stewardship of the Public Trust 12State of Smithsonian Collections 21
Understanding the Global Environment and Our Place inthe Universe 23State of Smithsonian Research 32
Exemplifying the Nation's Pluralism 34State of Smithsonian? Workforce Profile 39
National Museum of the American Indian 40Quincentenary Programs 44
Bringing Synergism to Contemporary Public Education 55State of Smithsonian Public Programs 60
Institutional Funding Goals? Operations 61
Institutional Funding Goals? Capital Outlays 68Repair and Restoration of Buildings 68State of Smithsonian Facilities 73Construction 74
List of TablesGrowth in Operating Requirements 62
Repair and Restoration of Buildings 69
Long Range Construction Plan 75
National Zoological Park Construction and Improvements 82
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For additional information or copies contact:
Smithsonian InstitutionOffice of Planning & BudgetArts & Industries Room 2467900 Jefferson Drive, S.W.Washington, D.C. 20560Tel no. (202)357-2917Fax no. (202)786-2229
Choosing the FutureMessage from the Secretary
As this is written, war has just succeeded long diplomatic effortsto end Iraq's occupation of Kuwait. This is the first but surely notthe last regional eruption to occur in a world no longer dominatedby Great Power rivalries. It provides a foretaste of further impactson the U.S. economy and federal budget, of a character andmagnitude for which prior planning can never fully prepare us.Having personally surveyed much of the Iraqi countryside duringmany years of fieldwork there and having some acquaintancewith its present institutions as well as its history, I can only flatlyconfess that this crisis is one that I, too, find plausible only inhindsight.But from the viewpoint of the Smithsonian, what is
still more important is that challenges like this one oftencome not singly and conveniently but unpredictablycombined. What may well become a quasi-permanentU.S. Middle Eastern commitment only intensifiesproblems of a federal budgetary deficit that were alreadycritical even before the possibility of any suchcommitment was more than a remote contingency plan insome Pentagon filecase.The threat of a fiscal year 1991 budget sequestrationwas almost as demoralizing and disruptive assequestration would have been. The abruptness andrigidity of across-the-board cuts would have frustratedthe orderly development of programs directed towardnew needs and priorities.A newly formed Planning Advisory Group hasresponded to this and other planning challenges. Drawnfrom a cross section of the Institution's best minds andtalent, this group has conducted a searching internalreview of our unfilled responsibilities as a national institution andof areas in which our work falls short of what we believe it couldand should be. Our role in education, anticipated in our charteredresponsibility for "the increase and diffusion of knowledge" butremaining reflexive and fragmentary in most aspects of ourperformance, is only one example of the latter.Of course, the challenge of meeting enlarged or newlyrecognized responsibilities when resources are uncertain andthreatened with serious, possibly prolonged shrinkage isformidable. It would be easier, but fundamentally erroneous, ifwe were to conclude that our only obligation was to sustain withminimal loss those activities that we happen to be conductingalready. Some responsibilities do indeed remain fixed andprimary?to protect and conserve our collections and facilities, to
Robert McC. AdamsSecretary
CHOOSING THE FUTURE
sustain critical areas of research, and to incorporate new researchfindings and interpretive techniques in exhibits that facilitatevisitor education. But the Smithsonian's program has always beenan evolving and never a static one. Beyond these corecommitments (which must themselves be met in different wayswith advancing knowledge), the proper place for the Institution isat the very forefront of service to the American people in theinterests of "the increase and diffusion of knowledge."With our broad array of museums devoted to natural history,history, science and technology, and the arts, we can perhapsprovide some of the new thinking, new technologies, and newleadership that the President and the governors of all the stateshave determined that primary and secondary education need.Similarly, our research scientists studying biodiversity, especiallyin the tropics, are a group of unparalleled strength working onaspects of the challenge of global change whose urgency andimportance are steadily looming larger. Can we responsiblyignore the changing scope and shape of this challenge and merelycontinue with activities designed to meet earlier appraisals thatare now obsolete?Or, finally, there is the Smithsonian's unparalleled capabilityto interpret and represent the nation's cultural, racial, and ethnicpluralism. Long central to our annual Folklife Festival, suchpluralism richly proliferates new forms, including mostprominently (but not exclusively) the Hispanic orientation of ourplanned commemoration of the Quincentenary of Columbus, thewell-organized study currently under way of how to expand andimprove African-American programming on the Mall, and theaccelerating progress of our planning following the enactment oflegislation mandating a new National Museum of the AmericanIndian. All of these developments, it should be pointed out,involve the Smithsonian in unprecedented networkingrelationships with organizations and institutions across thiscountry, increasing the scope and complexity, but even moresignificantly the potential, of our outreach programs. Could wereasonably turn our backs on any of these developments justbecause they represent growing demands rather thanlong-established, now relatively static ones? Not if we are toremain faithful to the best traditions of the Smithsonian.A distinguishing and vital feature of Smithsonian operationsis the mixed and complementary basis of its financing. As a trustentity under, rather than formal agency of, the federalgovernment, it relies substantially on its own business activitiesand private philanthropy to supplement Congressionalappropriations. That sometimes can present additional problems.Thus we happen to be currently affected by declining Washington
VI
Message from the Secretary
tourism and a slight downturn in general sales and magazineadvertising income, unfortunately coinciding with the federalbudgetary deficit and the Middle Eastern crisis.But in the long run this balance of private with federal supportcan only be a crucial source of greater certainty for budgetary(and therefore programmatic) planning. More, it offerspossibilities for sustained future growth, well beyond thatpossible on tax revenues alone. Mandated responses to new needsor opportunities, do not necessarily come with full appropriationsto match. The new Indian Museum, for example, anticipatesmatching private donations that will require the dedicated effortsof a substantial professional and volunteer staff. Many of ourmost original and path-breaking new initiatives only could havebeen launched with the greater freedom that private sources ofsupport more readily accept as necessary.As this Prospectus reflects, in short, these are somewhatdifficult and uncertain times for the Smithsonian. There could befew clearer anticipations than our recent experience of theharsher, and certainly more unpredictable, climate within whichthe Institution needs to chart a consistent and productive coursethat adequately discharges old responsibilities while alsorecognizing new ones. We will need the understanding andsupport of the Administration and the Congress, of the privatesector, and of the whole American people if the exciting plansoutlined here are to be realized.
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Robert McC. Adams, Secretary
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Introduction
In 1977, the Board of Regents of the Smithsonian and the Secretaryestablished a five-year planning process. Each successive five-yearplan articulates the ways in which the Institution seeks to fulfill itsmandate "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge." Thisprocess continues to evolve. It now includes a Planning AdvisoryGroup consisting of managers and staff at all levels, andincorporates views from various important interest groups withinthe Institution. Through this continually evolving planningprocess, the Institution can more effectively allocate its human,financial, and physical resources toaccomplish its goals.Containing the long-term planmanagers and staff have developed, theFive-Year Prospectus broadly describesthe programs the Institution intends toundertake and the resources theInstitution expects. Senior managementuses the Institution's Statement ofPurpose, the Goals of the Institution,and the Areas of Emphasis, allreproduced here as introductorymaterial, to develop the Institution'sfederal budget request, the budget fornonappropriated funds, and theProspectus. In addition to providingformal guidance to managers and staffwho carry out the Institution's mission,this Prospectus articulates theInstitution's operating program plansfor fiscal years 1992 through 1996, anddescribes long-term plans forconstruction and facility repair throughfiscal year 2000.In the Prospectus, the Institution emphasizes initiatives thataddress basic programs as well as facilities infrastructure andinitiatives, such as global environmental change, culturalpluralism, and education programs that respond to national orpublic imperatives through research and public activities. Thedevelopment of the National Museum of the American Indian andthe forthcoming commemorations of the quincentenary ofChristopher Columbus's voyage each merit a separate chapterbecause these efforts to promote cultural diversity are especiallyimportant to the Institution.The Prospectus reflects senior managers' organizationalplanning that focuses upon select program goals, requires the
"It was not ... the intention of Mr. Smithson tocommit a trust for the increase and diffusion ofknowledge among men in the United Statesbecause they wanted learning. The object . .
.
was to promote not learning but knowledge.The persons for whose ultimate benefit hebequeathed his whole estate were not thechildren of the American people but the wholerace of mankind. In selecting the United Statesof America as the agents for carrying intopractical execution this blessing to the wholehuman family, he paid them a silent voluntarytribute of respect."
? John Quincy Adams, 1839Former Member of the House ofRepresentatives, and Sixth President ofthe United States
In the Smithsonian Institution, 1 980.
Institution to survey its current assets, and prompts the Institution
CHOOSING THE FUTURE
to develop resources in pursuit of its objectives. The Prospectuscontains a flexible plan that senior managers will subject tocontinual reevaluation and modification depending upon thecircumstances the Institution encounters. In adjusting operationsto evolving circumstances, senior managers may eliminateactivities that are no longer central to the Institution's mission,they may redirect resources to programs of higher priority, orthey may develop new resources through the appropriationsprocess, fund-raising, auxiliary activities, and market investments.The Institution will incorporate the results of these adjustmentsand reviews into the Prospectus.In short, the Prospectus articulates the Institution's broadpurpose, its immediate and general course of long-term direction,and its resource requirements. An appendix, available uponrequest, provides additional information including brief missionand program statements, projections of resource requirements bymajor organization, and more detail about planned facility repairsand restoration.
"The All-Seeing 'Eye'Doghouse" from "TheDoghouse" exhibition atthe Cooper-HewittMuseum, the NationalMuseum of Design, June8 to October 14, 1990.(Photo by JenniferWeisbord)
Introduction
Smithsonian Institution Statement of Purpose
The Smithsonian Institution was created by Act of Congress in1846 to carry out the terms of the will of James Smithson ofEngland, who bequeathed his entire estate in 1826 to the UnitedStates of America "to found at Washington, under the name ofSmithsonian Institution, an establishment for the increase anddiffusion of knowledge among men."Joseph Henry, the first Secretary, in his efforts to givedirection to activities of the fledgling Institution, commented onSmithson's will in his annual report for 1864:He evidently did not intend by these precise terms tofound a library or a mere museum for the diffusion ofpopular information to a limited community, but acosmopolitan establishment, to Increase the Sum ofhuman knowledge and to diffuse this to every part ofthe civilized world. No other interpretation of the will iseither in accordance with the terms employed or withthe character and habits of the founder. The Increase ofhuman knowledge, by which we must understandadditions to its sum, would be of little value without itsdiffusion, and to limit the latter to one city, or even toone country, would be an invidious restriction of theterm Men.
Over the course of its 144-year history, and under the directionof succeeding Secretaries, the Institution has evolved into aneminent research center and the world's largest museum complex.In service to all mankind, its activities span the globe and aredevoted to research, museology, and public education in the arts,sciences, and history.The Smithsonian is a unique establishment which is bothpublicly supported and privately endowed, and whosegovernance is vested in an independent Board of Regentscomposed of federal officials, members of Congress, and privatecitizens. Donations from both the public and private sectorsincrease its collections, and continuing additions to its trust fundsexpand and nourish the Institution's usefulness. Appropriationsby Congress provide federal support for the Smithsonian'sfar-reaching services to the public. Annually, dedicated volunteersprovide hundreds of thousands of service hours to the Institution.The Smithsonian conducts a wide range of programs incarrying out its broad goal of increasing and diffusing knowledge.
CHOOSING THE FUTURE
One of its basic commitments is the conduct of original research inmany fields. Another is the selective acquisition, management,care, exhibition, and security of collections that are also among theprimary objects of its research. The Institution's holdings are atrust responsibility and serve as important assets for futuregenerations. Related responsibilities include the maintenance ofits buildings, facilities, and natural areas in Washington and otherlocations around the world.In seeking to study and understand subjects of worldimportance, the Smithsonian participates in joint ventures withother organizations in the United States and on every continent.Staff assembles fundamental data for use by planners andresearch workers in other organizations, both government andprivate, national and international in scope. Scientific, historicaland art studies, which enhance human knowledge of the naturaland cultural worlds and contribute to societal growth, are majorendeavors. The Institution shares the results of its varied activitiesto racially, ethnically, culturally, and economically diverseaudiences through exhibitions, education programs, publications,and other public media programs.Most important to fulfilling the basic purpose of its foundingbenefactor, the Institution places the highest priority on achievingquality in the conduct of its activities while making the mosteffective use of available resources.
In the Great Hall of theSmithsonian InstitutionBuilding, frequentlycalled the Castle, eightinteractive videoterminals allow visitors toaccess information aboutthe Smithsonian in sevenlanguages. (Photo byEric Long)
Introduction
Goals of the Institution
The Institution's purpose, staff, and resources are dedicated toincreased understanding of the physical, biological, and culturalworlds in which people live and hope to thrive. The Smithsonianis further dedicated to creatingopportunities for people to discover,master, and understand newknowledge through seeking, collecting,and preserving evidence of the past andpresent; through observation, researchand analysis; and through educational
activities. Thus the Institution seeks toachieve its basic mission for the
"increase and diffusion of knowledge"among its many publics in thefollowing ways:
By pursuing original research,exhibitions, collectionsmanagement, public programs,publications, and other activitiesdevoted to explaining thepresent state of understandingof the diverse fields of the arts,humanities, and sciences andrelated issues of contemporaryimportance.By giving special emphasis toexhibitions and other educational programs that willincrease participation by the broadest possible audience,including culturally and socio-economically diversecommunities, the disabled, and senior citizens.By devoting careful attention to the acquisition, care andpreservation of collections and institutional facilities thathouse them.By dedicating research and educational efforts to thelong-term need for conservation and improvement of ournatural and human resources, and by drawing attention tothe special responsibility each generation has to itssuccessors.By striving for professional leadership and staff excellence,with particular emphasis on expertise from diverse
"There are many through the years who havereferred to the Smithsonian as our nation's
attic. This, I think, is a clear and patentmisunderstanding of what the result of JamesSmithson's magnificent bequest really is: theSmithsonian is the nation's heartbeat. TheSmithsonian Institution is peculiarly ournational center for disinterested research in allforms of knowledge and learning. It not onlycomprises a group of museums but alsocomprises a circle of truly distinguishedscholars from whose minds and activitiesspread a multitude of great works."
C.C. CunninghamDirector of the Art Institute of Chicago
Salute to the Smithsonian on its 125thAnniversary, September 26, 1971
CHOOSING THE FUTURE
cultural backgrounds, access to solid technical supportsystems, and vigorous fellowship programs.By promoting collegial exchange with and services toother research, museum and educational institutionsworldwide.By maintaining management, administrative, and otherservices to meet program needs, by assuring stronginternal financial and other management systems, byperiodically assessing the effectiveness and efficiency ofprograms and support activities, and by orderly planningfor new and renovated facilities.
The ExperimentalGallery, a model ofwhich appears here, willfocus on audience andaccess, exhibitioncontext, developmentand style. (Photo byLaurie Minor)
Introduction
Areas of Emphasis
Reinvest in the "infrastructure" of existing programs to ensurethat they fulfill the Institution's trust responsibilities and willadvance its contemporary goals, especially in the following ways:
Replacing outdated exhibitionswith new ones, temporary aswell as permanent,incorporating recent intellectualdevelopments and interpretivetechniques that facilitate visitoreducation.Refurbishing existing facilitiesand acquire new facilities, bothto ensure a safe and healthyenvironment and toaccommodate existing andexpanding research, collections,and other program and publicneeds.Improving access to archival,library, and museum collectionsand forestall their deteriorationand loss to ensure theircontinued availability to presentand future generations ofscholars and the public.Strengthening technical support
-Stewardship of the Public Trust
"For all the generalized gloom in Washingtonover the programmatic impacts of the [federal]deficit, for all the confusing signals overlong-term trends, both the core of theSmithsonian's work and our important andexciting new initiatives continue to meet withsolid encouragement. The difficult course wemust follow . . . involves not brushing aside asunthinkable the possibility of futureretrenchment in some of our programs, whilealso not concluding that this is a time to retreatinto a diminished but more defensible citadel.As open as ever before us is an opportunity to
re-vitalize the core of our activities while stillseeking to develop new realms of popular aswell as scholarly significance."
? Robert McCormick Adams, SecretaryState of the Smithsonian Report,December 19, 1989.
to and acquire advancedresearch instrumentation for scholars to facilitate theirresearch efforts.Expanding and coordinating the use of informationresource management and related services to meetInstitutional needs.Pursuing initiatives that permit growth in endowmentsand operating funds.Ensuring that administrative and other service functionshave the capacity to keep pace with recent and projectedgrowth of Institutional programs.
CHOOSING THE FUTURE
Understanding the Global Environment and Our Place in the UniverseAdvance public understanding of biological, physical, andhuman societal processes influencing and resulting from globalenvironmental change and our place in the universe, especially inthe following ways:
Expanding biodiversity and other conservation relatedresearch on: the human as well as natural dimensions ofenvironmental change; the dynamics of tropical,temperate, and boreal ecosystems, including thegreenhouse effect; and the ecological and evolutionaryhistory of all life forms.Increasing our understanding of the origins and nature ofthe universe, its stars, and planets, including the Earth.
Exemplifying the Nation's Pluralism
Interpret the many facets of the nation's social, ethnic, andcultural composition, especially in the following ways:
Establishing a National Museum of the American Indianby: Developing, together with the Indian community, afull range of museum programs and public services.Planning for and constructing a new museum on theMall; renovating space in the Old United StatesCustom House in New York City; and planning and
Earth Day 1 990 presenteda time for environmentalinitiatives. The Smith-sonian's new Office ofEnvironmental Awarenesswill work to disseminateenvironmental conser-vation information.(Photo by Eric Long)
8
Introduction
constructing a facility for research, storage, andcuration of collections at Suitland, Maryland.Conducting a national campaign to raise one-third ofthe cost in private matching funds for the constructionof the Mall facility.
This figure of womanand child is from theexhibition "Icons: Idealsand Power in the Art ofAfrica" at the NationalMuseum of African Art.
CHOOSING THE FUTURE
Integrating cultural pluralism into all aspects of theInstitution's governance, planning, staffing, andprogramming.Commemorating the five hundredth anniversary of thevoyage of Christopher Columbus and the ensuing growthof new civilizations throughout the Western Hemispherefrom multidisciplinary, multicultural perspectives.Expanding and improving African-Americanprogramming on the Mall.Collaborating with disciplinary and professionalcolleagues from diverse communities nationally andinternationally.
Bringing Synergism to Contemporary Public Education
Celebrate and build upon the ability of the Smithsonian, as aunique educational institution, as a major research center, and as anational trust for collections in the arts, humanities, and sciences,to address national needs; to serve broad and diverse publicaudiences; and to provide life-long and informal learningexperiences beyond the classroom environment, especially in thefollowing ways:
Articulating a contemporary educational philosophy forthe Smithsonian.Strengthening offerings to the broadest possible visitingpublic through exhibitions and attendant interpretative
A student in the summerhigh school internshipprogram?conducted bythe Office of Elementaryand SecondaryEducation?helps prepareartifacts for display.(Photo by Jonathon Barth)
10
Introduction
programs that coincide with the Smithsonian'scomparative advantages as a national public forum.Adopting model educational strategies and techniques forinformal, formal, and alternative education activities.Improving dissemination of new knowledge gleaned fromSmithsonian research to the general public and stimulategreater appreciation and understanding of the arts,humanities, and science via means that reach beyond theMall, including electronic media, teaching aids, courses,and publications.Communicating the availability of the Smithsonian'seducational resources through targeted marketingactivities directed toward the Institution's various anddiverse public audiences.Promoting linkages between the Institution's educationalresources and the nation's colleges, universities, andschool systems.
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Stewardship of the Public Trust
The Smithsonian Institution is proud of its history. Today itsprecious collections, numerous buildings, beautiful gardens,exhibit halls, theaters and lecture halls, and public cafeteriasconsistently impress visitors. The Institution's managersconstantly maintain, renovate, and improve these facilities toreverse the ravages of time and heavy use. However, theInstitution recognizes its responsibilityto reinvest not only in the infrastructureof bricks and mortar but also in theinfrastructure of services andadministrative activities that supportprograms conducted within thesebuildings, halls, and theaters for thepublic benefit.The Institution's management sees aclear imperative over the next severalyears to address resource deficienciesfor program and administrative servicesthrough combined federal and privatesupport. The Institution's Areas ofEmphasis specifically cite these needs toeliminate the structural andprogrammatic deficiencies that wouldprevent the Institution from meeting its
At the ceremony to lay the cornerstone of theSmithsonian Institution Building in May, 1847,the chaplain invoked:
"May the building here to be erected as adepository of the curious works of art andnature, and emblems of national distinction, bemore than sufficient for this worthy andhonorable purpose. May it become amonument of usefulness to us as a nation, anda matter of admiration to the nations of theworld."
? Bessie Zaban Jones, Lighthouse of theSkies (Smithsonian Institution, 1965).
public responsibilities as envisioned by the founding benefactorand those early supporters who advanced the interests of theJames Smithson trust.
Exhibiting, Managing, and Safeguarding the Collections
South view of the Castlewith the Enid A. HauptGarden, the SacklerGallery, and the NationalMuseum of African Art.(Photo by Jeff Tinsley)
The Smithsonian is not as much the nation's attic as it is thenation's treasure chest. Collections management, including theexhibition and security of works of art, artifacts, and specimens, is
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Stewardship of the Public Trust
a primary responsibility the Institutionbears under trust to the Americanpublic now and for future generations.Sustained investment of Smithsonianresources devoted to maintaining thecollections is essential to meet thisresponsibility. The Institution hasdedicated and continues to seekresources for improving the registration,storage, preservation, exhibition, andsecurity of collections.The Institution plans to reinterpretpermanent exhibitions of the nation'smost unique and vital collections so thatthey appeal to, enfranchise, and inspirethe broadest possible audiences. At best,permanent exhibitions become staleover time; at worst, they becomeobsolete and inaccurate. Smithsonianmuseums must integrate changingperceptions of our world and advancesin exhibition design and interpretivestrategies, such as laser disc andcomputers, as exhibit installations areplanned. Regrettably, the Institution hashad to allow some exhibitions to outlivetheir timeliness because funding forupgrading or replacement was notavailable.The Institution's plan forreplacement of permanent exhibitionsincludes federal support and gifts frompublic-spirited individuals andcorporations. For example:
The National Museum ofNatural History/Museum ofMan will redesign the Geology,Gems, and Mineral Hall by 1995.The innovative newarrangement will integratespecimens and scientificprocesses into a single, dynamic,and highly educationalexperience.
"The presence here of deeply rooted biologicalconcerns is surely no surprise. There is anenduring national need?prominentlyrecognized during the early era of explorationbut no less urgent today?for great,systematically studied collections of biologicalresources drawn from all over the world. Thetask of assembling, analyzing, and publishingthese collections is enormous, and open-endedin the sense that it will demand continuingreinterpretation and refinement. It cannot easilybe dispersed among many institutions orprivatized. Moreover, much of the direct use ofthe collection is of a federalized character.Many scientists from such federal agencies asthe Department of Agriculture and the NationalInstitutes of Health regularly work side by sidewith our own curators, investigating questionsof practical importance for which thecollections are an indispensable tool."
In the Smithsonian Year, 1 986
"Their [Collections] custody, study, exhibition,and publication thus are always a primaryresponsibility. That applies as well to closelyrelated support activities that may be virtuallyinvisible to most of the public but that areessential for the collections to be made fullyaccessible and serviceable: comprehensive,machine-readable cataloging; object andspecimen conservation; archiving of relevantdocuments ... all those involved withcollections are aware that collections continueto grow, that standards can only move forward,and that new demands on them endlesslymultiply. It takes a grueling struggle merely notto fall further behind."
5fafe of the Smithsonian Report,December 19, 1989
? Robert McCormick Adams, Secretary
13
CHOOSING THE FUTURE
The National Museum of American History will install amajor permanent exhibition, "Science in American Life,"exploring the meaning and history of science. Theexhibition will include a learning center where visitors willpersonally discover scientific concepts and issues throughexperiments and problem-solving exercises.The Smithsonian's National Museum of American Historyand the U.S. Postal Service will provide and operate a newhome for the nation's stamp collection. A recent agreementbetween the Institution and the Postal Service establishes aportion of the General Post Office Building for the displayof the valuable collection and interpretation of postalhistory.The Freer Gallery of Art is renovating James McNeillWhistler's Peacock Room in time for the reopening of theGallery in 1992. The conservation effort will restore theroom to its original appearance.
Perhaps most importantly, the Institution provides for thesecurity of its ever-expanding collections of artifacts andspecimens which are held in trust. In addition to the intrinsicvalue of objects such as gems and coins, most of the objects areirreplaceable examples of human experience and achievement aswell as indices of global development.Although the Congress provides the operating support formanaging, exhibiting, and safeguarding Smithsonian collections,the continuing government-wide struggle to reduce federalspending and achieve a balanced federal budget has greatlycurtailed the amount of funds available to public sectororganizations. Over time, this effort has eroded federal resourcesthat support these programs, and private donations have assumeda critical role in the increasing demands to preserve the collectionsand replace outdated exhibits. The Institution will seek increasedfederal and private support so that the Institution may continue toserve the audiences of today and collect and preserve our heritagefor tomorrow.
Conserving Library and Archival CollectionsThe Smithsonian's growing collections of archival and librarymaterials, including books, documents, films, photographs, andrecordings, are valuable national resources. These materialsunderpin the Institution's mission to advance knowledge byproviding the intellectual, social, and historical context forunderstanding the national collections. Many of these materialscan be replaced; many unique ones cannot. The Institution plans
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Stewardship of the Public Trust
Conservator WendySamet removes a paintsample from one of theshutters in the PeacockRoom of the Freer Galleryof Art. (Photo byJohn TsantesJ
to continue to acquire, care for, and preserve library and archivalcollections for the sake of future generations of scholars.Recent surveys revealed that deterioration of librarycollections exceeds the Institution's capacity to preserve themproperly. Due to budgetary deficiencies, the relative neglect ofand inadequate Institutional investment in conservation andrehousing have resulted in an increasingly urgent need forexpanded resources dedicated to a comprehensive preservationeffort. While older parts of the collections have deteriorated badlyover the last several decades, the Institution must make accessiblethe information that they contain by replacing these materialswith reprints, photocopies, or microfilm and must retire uniqueoriginals to security storage.
CHOOSING THE FUTURE
Initiatives of the Smithsonian Institution Libraries andArchives exemplify ongoing preservation activities. TheSmithsonian Institution Libraries has for many years owned asizable collection (over two thousand volumes) of publicationsand archival materials emanating from internationalexpositions, or world's fairs as they are now popularly known.These early publications, often printed on the poorest kind ofpaper, have deteriorated badly. The Smithsonian Libraries isworking to convert these materials to microfilm in compliancewith current archival standards. The Smithsonian InstitutionArchives has targeted original and historically valuablearchitectural drawings of Smithsonian buildings for conservation.The Institution uses these drawings frequently for currentbuilding repair work.A cooperative program with a publisher assisted in theconservation work on the world's fairs collection in the Libraries.Efforts to raise support from private and government fundingsources for these basic activities will continue in the future.
Caring for Smithsonian FacilitiesThe Smithsonian maintains over five million square feet ofspace in more than two hundred buildings. Buildings range in agefrom new to over 135 years old, and many appear on the Registerof Historic Landmarks. Many are, in fact, the most preciousartifacts the Smithsonian holds in trust for the nation. TheSmithsonian must operate and maintain these buildings to ensurethe continued functioning of its many diverse programs and alsoto preserve them for use by future generations.The Institution continues to emphasize refurbishing presentfacilities and acquiring new facilities to accommodate existing andexpanding research, public programs, and support activities. Byincreasing staff and equipment for facilities maintenance, theInstitution seeks to slow the rate of deterioration of its buildingsand thus slow the rate of new repairs. Additional staff for facilitiesmaintenance will also ensure the timely completion of repair andrestoration projects and enhance the appearance of all museums,galleries, and grounds.Museums must continue to collect works of art, artifacts, andspecimens to remain vital recorders of human and natural history.With the growth of collections, related research, and publicprograms, however, space in museums has gradually diminished.The Institution increasingly has grown to rely on leased space inbuildings convenient to the Mall to quarter administrative andprogram support functions. The Institution anticipates additionalneed for leased space. Of immediate concern is the need for a
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Stewardship of the Public Trust
larger service center that would relocate related administrativeand program support activities to one site.
Enhancing Professional SupportAmong the Institution's major concerns is to remedy certainshortcomings in its staff and programs through recruiting newprofessional staff. The Institution faces a parallel need to improvethe research and clerical assistance offered to its existingprofessional staff. For too long, many of the Institution's scholarsand other management, diverted from their primary pursuit?theadvancement of scholarship and public programming
?
performed functions best suited to technicians and clerical staff.Quality research and public programs impose simultaneousdemands for support staff. Additional clerical support forscientists, curators, and other museum specialists would improvethe productivity of many programs. The Institution must alsoadequately staff and support newly constructed (or recentlyrenovated) facilities.For example, the Smithsonian Institution Archives is the
official repository of Institutional records and related historicaldocumentation in all forms and media. The addition of technicalsupport staff to process and manage the increasing volume ofInstitutional records will ensure systematic, comprehensivehistorical accountability of its national public trust. At theSmithsonian Tropical Research Institute (STRI), the opening of anew laboratory on Barro Colorado Island, with its researchprograms on global change, requires new technical andadministrative assistance. For the past two decades, the TropicalResearch Institute's scholarly community has had virtually notechnical support staff. The Institution must correct thisdeficiency.Professional support needs also include improving researchfacilities and equipment. The Smithsonian is not exempt from thedifficulties faced by other research institutions in overhauling thisaspect of an obsolete research infrastructure. It is not sufficient toprovide scholars with new or renovated space without alsosupplying them with the attendant tools of their trade: researchequipment. Up-to-date research equipment is a basic necessity inensuring that scholars remain competitive with their peersworldwide. The Institution's research centers and research supportorganizations prepared equipment acquisition and replacementplans for the next five years. In the process the Institution came torealize that, in an era where technological advancement rapidlyalters standards of sophisticated research equipment, much of theSmithsonian's equipment is obsolete. The Institution has begun to
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CHOOSING THE FUTURE
rebuild systematically the critical infrastructure of laboratory andscientific equipment in selected areas.As examples of equipment needs, the Institution requiresremedies to the following shortfalls:
Barro Colorado Island Laboratory where existingequipment is over twenty years old;National Zoological Park, as a leading international centerfor animal exhibition, biological and veterinary research,conservation, and public education, must renew andincrease its infrastructure equipment base;Conservation Analytical Laboratory must replaceequipment purchased or obtained over a decade ago; andMuseum Support Center where new equipment willcomplete the furnishing of a laboratory in support ofmolecular biology research.
Strengthening Administrative ServicesThe Smithsonian has experienced extraordinary growth overthe last twenty years. To achieve efficiency and effectiveness inday-to-day operations, the Institution recognizes a compellingneed to bring its administrative services in balance with the needsof programmatic activities. The teaming of scholars withproficient administrators is essential for the Institution to meet themany challenges facing the Institution over the next few years.
Barro Colorado IslandLaboratory (Photo by CarlC. Hansen)
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Stewardship of the Puhlic Trust
An important component of administrative services isinformation management. The computer is an indispensable toolfor administrators who manage institutional resources andproperty, scholars who analyze and disseminate research results,and researchers who depend on the availability of publishedresults from colleagues working in related fields. The Smithsonianis developing a comprehensive plan for information resourcemanagement requirements across the Institution. In the comingyears, the Institution will focus information resource managementefforts on systems development and centralized computerservices. Current financial systems capabilities do not begin tomeet the burgeoning demands of tracking current financialactivity, combining federal appropriations, and trust funds. Sinceautomated financial services are integral to every phase ofInstitutional life, the Smithsonian has developed a payroll costprojection system as a first step in forming a new, comprehensivefinancial system. Over the next several years, administrators willconvert the Institution's accounting general ledger and automatethe accounts payable and procurement systems.The work of scholars is supported by the SmithsonianInstitution Bibliographic Information System (SIBIS). Thisautomated data base provides researchers with online access tolibrary collections and enables library staff to acquire, catalog, andcontrol library collections, manage library acquisitions funds, andprovide management information. However, since SIBIS is now inits sixth year of operation, the Institution must plan to upgrade orreplace this system. The quality of the information system willdirectly affect the ability of the Smithsonian Institution Librariesto deliver services, build and maintain the collections, andprovide appropriate support for the research, exhibition,education, and publication programs throughout the Smithsonian.The Institution has identified a total need of $56 millionannually to ensure an adequate resource base to reinvest in theinfrastructure of programs. Failure to obtain increased federal andprivate donor support will seriously impair the Institution'sability to meet the crucial objectives and goals of cultural diversityand global change.
Improving the Health and Safety Measures for Staff and VisitorsThe Institution is improving safety and health programs for itspersonnel and visitors. In recent years Congress has appropriatedresources to establish a basis for an environmental managementand safety program. Staff are now available to assessenvironmental and safety hazards in the physical plant, identifynecessary changes in the building or work practices, recognize fire
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CHOOSING THE FUTURE
or safety risks in the work place and public areas of the buildings,and, thereby, ensure a safe and healthy environment.An important component of health education, medicalscreening, and the prevention of illness and injury for employeesrests in the context of an occupational health program at theworksite. The Smithsonian has long-standing employee programsin occupational health, wellness, and substance abuse. Theseprograms will expand to allow more physical examinations,counseling services, and medical activities essential to suchprograms. These programs are a proven benefit to employer andemployee alike by reducing health insurance premiums,promoting worker productivity and increasing employee jobsatisfaction.
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Stewardship of the Public Trust
State of Smithsonian Collections
Despite the Smithsonian's best efforts, currentand projected budgets inadequately fundcollections programs and do not allow theInstitution to comply with its recently revisedcollections management criteria. Highly visible,momentarily fashionable, short durationprograms more easily attract financialendorsement than long-term, routinemaintenance programs. The Institution's curatorsface the challenges of reconciling competingneeds: to be selective in acquiring the diversityand abundance of the current collections whilebalancing accessibility and conservation.A sampling of the new acquisitions reflectsthe extraordinary diversity of the SmithsonianInstitution's collections, some 137 millionobjects of art and culture, and specimens of lifeand physical sciences. These recent acquisitionsinclude: a 396.3 carat kunzite and South Seapearl necklace, a daguerreotype of Henry Clay,a pair of red wolves, a Punu okuyi mask, aSS-20 intermediate range ballistic missile, andtheatrical costumes from "Chorus Line." Thechallenges and dilemmas faced by collectionsmanagement staff are as diverse and abundantas the collections themselves.The Smithsonian has never played the roleof submissive collector acting solely as thecaretaker of a cabinet of curiosities. Instead theSmithsonian actively assesses the degree towhich the collections enrich understanding ofthe global changes endangering all species andare accessible to the public as an educationalresource. This active assessment is even morerigorous now that curators apply the generalacquisition criteria of the Institution's collectionmanagement policy. Only a tiny fraction of thematerial offered to the national collections isjudged by the curators and scientists to meritinclusion.In balancing accessibility with conservationthroughout the Institution's fifteen museums andgalleries and the National Zoo, the Institutionhas made its collections management policiesmore stringent. This policy document guiding
collections management?development, care,and use?reemphasizes internal controls,collecting plans, managing collectionsinformation, and representing cultural andbiological diversity. This policy statement callsupon Smithsonian museums and otherInstitutional collecting organizations toformalize their collecting plans, because suchcodification is vital to an informed andresponsible program of collections resourcemanagement.Nowhere in the Institution is the dilemma ofaccessibility verses conservation more apparentthan in the Smithsonian's chronic shortage ofcollections storage space. For many years, theNational Air and Space Museum has maintainedthe Paul E. Garber Facility in Suitland,Maryland, a combination storage and studycenter regularly open to the public. Recently,sections of the Garber aviation facility wereclosed to the public because more space isneeded to store aircraft. The Institution alsolacks centrally managed art storage space.Museums barely satisfy art storage needs bycobbling together spaces in existing buildings. Afacility to lodge the newly acquired collectionsof the National Museum of the American Indianis non-existent, but it is in the planning stages.Storage for the Institution's voluminous archivesbarely meets national standards.The Institution's 1990 Master Plan forSuitland, Maryland documents all constructionand major renovations, and projects spacerequirements into the twenty-first century.Without the expanded facility that the MasterPlan proposes, the collections will be subjectedto adverse and unstable environmentalconditions, exposing them to potentialdeterioration, in addition to making them lessaccessible.Beyond physical care, the Institution has aresponsibility for management and accessibilitvof information about collections. Automatedinformation systems serve to balance the goalsof accessibility to and accountability of
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CHOOSING THE FUTURE
State of Smithsonian Collections (Continued)
collections. Technologies streamline the dailyworkloads of collections management staff andimprove record-keeping by connectingcollections, research, and administrative
activities.The Institution has made great inroads withautomation through its Collections InformationSystem (CIS) and museum-specific data basesystems. Standardization of data and functionalmodels, jointly developed by Smithsonianmuseum and automation experts, have laid thegroundwork that will enable information sharingthroughout the Smithsonian and with outside
organizations. Resources needed to perpetuateprogress in automation are substantial.The Smithsonian's immense historical andscientific collections hold possible solutions topresent and future national and internationaldilemmas. The Institution has a highly skilledand dedicated staff to register, catalog, study,
store, and preserve collections; these effortscreate opportunities to share derived knowledgeand to display human and natural artifacts. TheSmithsonian will be able to fully provide thisknowledge and this opportunity only if theInstitution first meets the challenges ofacquisition, abundance, and accessibility.
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Understanding the Global Environmentand Our Place in the Universe
The current environmental situation demonstrates the enormousdeficiencies in human understanding of biological and physicalprocesses. Smithsonian scientificresearch interests are cogent to today'sgrowing environmental concerns.Because of its collections, interests,and qualifications in biological,geological, and astrophysical research,the Smithsonian possesses rarescientific research capabilities that canredress some of the inadequacies inenvironmental understanding. Bydedicating resources to the pursuit ofimproved cumulative environmentalunderstanding the Institution fulfills itsfundamental mission of increasing anddiffusing knowledge among all peoples.Our species has come to dominatethe earth in a relatively short time. Withour rapid and acceleratingtechnological evolution, we areincreasingly in danger of experiencingenvironmental catastrophes?perhapseven ones that could subvert theplanet's environmental balance. Areasin which Smithsonian scientific researchaddresses some of these challengesinclude preventing the deterioration ofour natural environment and theattendant loss of biological diversity,searching for new foods and medicines,and attempting to understand what liesbeyond our own planet.The entirety of these activities spansthe scientific, cultural, and the artisticcontributions of the human species tothe world's diverse civilizations. TheInstitution plans to continue tostrengthen research activities andrespond to the many challenges byexpanding its research in globalenvironmental issues and byextrapolating research results into
"Timber harvesting, land clearance forcommercial cattle grazing, and encroachmentsfor subsistence farming on thin, easily depletedtropical soils by burgeoning rural populationsin many underdeveloped countries all play apart in the destructive processes that arewidely at work in the tropics. These processesgo forward not only in many smallencroachments on forest margins butsometimes in massive clearings in the veryheart of the largest, still mainly undisturbed,areas like the Amazon basin. Accounting toronly some seven percent of the earth's landsurface, these immense reservoirs ofdifferentiated life almost certainly harbor wellover half of all living species. By one estimate,as many as thirty million insect species alone
?the overwhelming proportion of them neverstudied or represented in collections?aremostly confined to rain forest canopies.There are cogent, practical arguments fortaking urgent steps to preserve tropicalecosystems where we can and for getting onmuch more rapidly with the daunting task ofinventorying the resources that could beirretrievably lost before their existence haseven been recognized. The presence amongthem of potentially important plants andpharmaceuticals can be predicted withcertainty. Included in the gene pool that willotherwise vanish are vital future contributionsto the overall range of genetic variability. Butno less important is the potential loss toscience of a substantial part of its data infundamental biology."
? Robert McCormick Adams, Secretary
In the Smithsonian Year, 1986
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CHOOSING THE FUTURE
Robert Redford narrateda Smithsonian publicservice announcementthat focused onprotecting the earth'sdelicate systems ofnature. (Photo byRichard Hofmeister)
public education and exhibition programs. This expansioninvolves three areas of research emphasis:
Biodiversity and the environment;Wildlife conservation and preservation; andMajor scientific instrumentation.
The Smithsonian will intensify energies to raise support fromprivate and government sources of funding for all aspects ofInstitutional research and especially invites donor patronage thatadvances global environmental studies.
Biodiversity and the Environment
The Dynamics ofTropical Forests andEcosystems The study of tropical environments is vital to understandingglobal change. Containing most of the world's animal and plantspecies, the tropics represent important, though mostly untapped,sources of medicine and food. For example, many of the world'smigratory landbirds that are not native to the tropics still winterthere; the destruction of tropical habitats would disrupt theirmigratory patterns and breeding groups and decrease the birdpopulation. Tropical environments are in a constant and rapidstate of change. Deforestation proceeds at an unprecedented rate,threatening the extinction of many species before science has achance to understand species interdependence, their ecologicalroles, and potential medical or applied benefits.The Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in Panama is theonly U.S. affiliated field laboratory of its kind in the American
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Understanding the Global Environment and Our Place in the Universe
tropics. The Isthmus of Panama is a key region for examiningglobal change from both biological and geological perspectives.The Institute's research encompasses all aspects of terrestrial andmarine ecology and behavior. STRI plans to enhance its programsin three areas of global change research: the biological andgeological mechanisms of change; long-term physical andbiological monitoring; and conservation and management studies.Scientists at the National Museum of NaturalHistory/Museum of Man are intensifying research and trainingprograms in tropical biodiversity by focusing on biologicalinventory and by monitoring effects of deforestation on speciesdiversity. Major efforts in Brazil will join existing programs inAndean countries and the Guianas to document and describe theextraordinary diversity of plants and animals threatened by theaccelerating loss of forest. The findings will strengthen ourunderstanding of the diversity and dynamics of tropical forests,reveal the effects of such deforestation, and lead torecommendations for minimizing the fragmentation and loss offorest and biota.North America is home to over 120 species of breedinglandbirds that annually migrate to the tropics over winter. Thesebirds not only have immense cultural and recreational value, butthey protect temperate forests from damage by reducingpopulations of defoliating insects. Scientists believe that themassive clearing of forest in Central and South America hasdirectly contributed to the population decline of migratorylandbirds. Researchers at the National Zoological Park plan tostudy the effects of habitat destruction on migratory birdpopulations. This research will provide important data onmethods for mitigating the effect of ecological alterations.
The rising level of carbon dioxide in the earth's atmosphere is The Greenhouse Effectnow widely recognized to elevate prevailing temperaturesworldwide and alter climate patterns, a phenomenon otherwiseknown as the greenhouse effect. Many scientists expect thattemperatures worldwide will increase over the next severaldecades, creating as yet unknown consequences for coastal areas,agricultural production, and discrete global climate patterns.Another aspect of the rising carbon dioxide levels is anincrease in rates of plant growth. At the SmithsonianEnvironmental Research Center (SERC), located on the RhodeRiver watershed system of the Chesapeake Bay, scientists aretesting the effects of increased carbon dioxide upon wild plantsand associated ecosystems. Preliminary findings corroborateprevious laboratory determinations that plants respond to
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CHOOSING THE FUTURE
elevated carbon dioxide levels by absorbing more carbon from the
air and less water. SERC currently controls 2,600 acres of thewatershed and plans to access an additional 2,000 acres. Thisacquisition will prevent urbanization on the enlarged site andallow SERC to conduct research on both forested and agriculturallands.Biological activity and diversity on earth are concentrated inthe uppermost layers of forest canopies and ocean waters.Techniques are readily available for safe and rapid access tomarine habitats, permitting rigorous research and improvedmanagement practices, but comparable techniques are not
SERC is developing andtesting larger chambersfor measuring theimpact of increasedconcentrations ofcarbon dioxide.
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Understanding the Global Environment and Our Place in the Universe
available for the forest canopy. As a result, the forest canopyremains one of the last frontiers for biological research. The uppercanopy is a primary site of interaction between the atmosphereand the plant community. The nature of heat, water, and gasexchange in this region is poorly understood, as are many of thespecies of animal and insect life that live there. Expandedknowledge of these processes is critical for an understanding ofglobal climatic change. The Smithsonian proposes an innovativeuse of existing technology that would offer extensive, safe accessto canopies in two forests: the tropical lowland forest of theSmithsonian Tropical Research Institute at Barro Colorado Island,Panama and the temperate broadleaf forest of the SmithsonianEnvironmental Research Center in Maryland. The Smithsonian
Currently, SERC uses a160-foot tall walk-upinstrument tower thatsoars above the forest.
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CHOOSING THE FUTURE
plans to redesign construction tower cranes to provide reliable,rapid access to large areas of forest canopy at both sites.
Ecological andEvolutionary Histories Complementing research on environmental change at STRIand SERC, the National Museum of Natural History/Museum ofMan (NMNH) plans to establish a permanent laboratory foranalyzing its collections of archaeological plant and animalremains. Human groups have manipulated and changed plantand animal communities over thousands of years. Research onthese long histories of human alteration of ecosystems wouldprovide a rich context for understanding the consequences ofmodern manipulation of ecosystems. This program's objective isto document and understand major historical turning points inmankind's ability to change the earth's environment.NMNH scientists plan to research island ecosystems in theAtlantic, Pacific, and Indian oceans to isolate the causes ofextinctions of birds and other animals. These extinctions swept theworld's isolated islands well after the last ice age and apparentlywere caused by prehistoric human activities. Expanded,collaborative investigations with research organizations in Kenya,Ethiopia, China, India, and South America will concentrate on thelong-term dynamics of human adaption to the varyingenvironments and the effects of human activity on progressiveenvironmental change?from the age of the hunter and gatherer,through the development of agriculture and industry, to today'sdistressed terrestrial and marine ecosystems.
Wildlife Conservationand Preservation The National Zoological Park (NZP) has achieved greatsuccess in recent years in gamete research and embryotechnologies. The Zoo's research is important for wildlifeconservation and preservation efforts around the world. Newlaboratory techniques for in vitro or test tube fertilization areuseful for reproduction in rare and endangered species.Researchers at NZP have joined forces with scientists from twoother U.S. zoos to achieve a major milestone in the fight to saveendangered species. The birth in the spring of 1990 of the world'sfirst tiger cubs from in vitro fertilization dramatically highlightsthe prospect of reproductive physiologists playing an ever morecrucial role in saving animals from extinction.The Zoo plans to establish an endocrine research laboratory.The laboratory will respond to current concerns about globalbiodiversity by providing unique approaches to the mysteries ofwhy some wildlife species thrive and others do not. Suchinformation is vital to our abilities to propagate and genetically
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Understanding the Global Environment and Our Place in the Universe
The first tiger cub bred byin vitro fertilization and adomestic kitten bred bylaparoscopic in vitrofertilization, the next stepin breeding exotic speciesthat reproduce poorly.(Photo by Jeff Tinsley)
manage rare species in captivity and in the wild. The program willhave three functions:Understanding reproductive processes in diverse wildlifespecies;identifying the reproductive status of captive andfree-living populations in diagnosing and combatinginfertility; andUsing endocrine monitoring techniques to facilitate theeffectiveness of advanced reproductive technologiesincluding artificial insemination using fresh or frozensperm plasm, embryo transfer, and in vitro fertilization.
Major Scientific Instrumentation
The development and acquisition of state-of-the-artinstruments are essential to modern, basic scientific research. TheSmithsonian consistently has pioneered the research anddevelopment of new instruments pertinent to its areas ofinvestigation. The Smithsonian developed the Baker-Nunncamera to facilitate astrophysical research in the late 1950s andearly 1960s and to track the orbits of interplanetary material and
satellites. The Institution developed increasingly sophisticatedinstruments for measuring solar phenomena and the changes inchemical processes related to photosynthesis. The Institution wasat the forefront of developing new technologies andinstrumentation used in the first multiple-mirror telescope,dedicated May 9, 1979.
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CHOOSING THE FUTURE
Over the planning period, The Smithsonian AstrophysicalObservatory (SAO) will continue development of two majorscientific instruments: a submillimeter wavelength telescopearray; and a 6.5-meter diameter mirror to convert themultiple-mirror telescope, atop Mount Hopkins, Arizona, into alarge single mirror telescope.The submillimeter telescope represents a bold new step in theexploration of space through ground astronomy. For decades theSmithsonian Astrophysical Observatory has led the world inground-based astronomy. By studying the universe withground-based instruments of high resolving power atsubmillimeter wavelengths, scientists can observe the birth of
stars, research the cores of quasars and galaxies, and study theatmospheres and surfaces of planets. The submillimeter telescopewould enable astronomers to observe the largely unexplored partof the electromagnetic spectrum that lies between radio andinfrared waves. Astronomical sources which emit mostlysubmillimeter radiation are "cool objects," having averagetemperatures near absolute zero (^59.673 degrees Fahrenheit).This band is important because it covers the invisible emissions ofthe ice halos of comets, emissions from molecular clouds whichcan become stars, and emissions from the swirling disks of dustand gas that can form planetary systems.SAO's submillimeter telescope would consist of six movablesix-meter-diameter telescopes. Together the instruments wouldcomprise an interferometer in which the separate instrumentswork together to create the equivalent of a single telescope with aresolution one hundred or more times better than any one of theindividual instruments.The Institution, working in conjunction with scientists at theUniversity of Arizona, is using new technology to spin cast ahoneycomb 6.5-meter diameter mirror. SAO has selected aconsulting engineering firm and completed the conceptual design.The University of Arizona's Mirror Laboratory enlarged thecasting furnace to accommodate this mirror. In fiscal year 1991,casting of the 6.5-meter diameter mirror will take place. Thismirror will be the first truly large mirror of its kind and will helpkeep the nation at the forefront of astronomy. The conversion ofthe multiple-mirror telescope will more than double thelight-gathering power of the telescope and increase its field ofview more than one hundredfold. The increased collecting area ofthe converted telescope will allow astronomers to gather datawith equal precision on objects 2.5 times fainter. Thisimprovement will allow the use of the converted telescope inmany new areas of research where the extreme faintness of theobjects involved precludes the use of the present telescope.
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Understanding the Global Environment and Our Place in the Universe
Further, the added light-gathering power means that astronomerswill be able to study more than twice as much of the universe.Over the course of its history, the Smithsonian hasdistinguished itself in various aspects of research on the naturalworld. The activities mentioned here are but a part of a largernumber of ways the Institution is addressing concerns aboutgrowing environmental problems.The concentration of the U.S. government over the past fewyears on eliminating the national debt and achieving a balancedfederal budget has restricted the government's capacity to fundglobal environmental research. Eventual elimination of thenational debt is essential for the continued economic health of thecountry; meanwhile the Institution will continue to seek increasedappropriations support for its basic research programs, especiallyin areas dealing with global environmental problems. Since,however, the Smithsonian cannot predict with any certainty theamount of federal support of Institutional research, it willincreasingly look to private donors for the support of newresearch initiatives in the environmental sciences.
Smithsonian scientistsuse a balloon-bornespectrometer in an effortto understand thecomplex interactionbetween the sun'sradiation and particles inthe atmosphere and theeffect of this interactionon global change.
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State of Smithsonian Research
Research at the Smithsonian Institution?theincrease of knowledge?has always held afundamental place in the life of the Institution,undergirding many of its other activities andenabling it to stand today as one of the greatcultural institutions in the world. Knowledgeconnotes an almost infinite range of possibleintellectual activities. However, over the nearlyone and one-half centuries of its existence, theSmithsonian has developed particular strengthsin certain interrelated areas. These specialtiesfocus on the past history and present state of theuniverse, our planet earth with its complexliving systems, and human cultures, past andpresent. Much of this focus has grown from theInstitution's responsibility for the nationalcollections, the majority of which are in naturalhistory and anthropology and comprise some ofthe Institution's greatest scholarly assets. Inaddition to collections based research, theSmithsonian conducts experimental research insuch areas as microbiology and astrophysics.The Institution supports research projects on theuniverse, the earth, endangered species, andother ecological subjects.Smithsonian researchers examining theuniverse have focused on whether or not there isdetectable structure in the cosmos, or whetherthe distribution of celestial objects is random. Asa result of years of painstaking survey,Smithsonian scientists have established recentlythat the universe is not organized randomly, andthat galaxies are arrayed in thin sheetsseparating large apparent voids. Discoveriessuch as these help explain the origin andevolution of the universe and the solar system.As part of the Institution's global research
efforts, scientists are employing earth-orbiting
satellite images taken of desert and semidesertregions of Africa to monitor and attempt tounderstand the process of desertification, or theconversion of landscapes from vegetated todesert ones. Institutional scientists also arestudying phenomena in the upper atmosphere,such as mechanisms that cause ozone depletion,
thereby permitting an increase in detrimental
ultraviolet radiation at the earth's surface.Global degradation also results in biologicaldegradation among individual species and, thus,may result in the decline and eventualextinction of vulnerable life forms. Criticalresearch includes captive breeding ofendangered species and the development oftechniques that permit the successfulreintroduction of captive-bred individuals intopreserved or restored habitats. Other zoologicalresearch is devoted to highly experimentalmethods employing new technologies such asfrozen preservation of eggs and sperm and testtube fertilization of embryos, as well as studiesof molecular and population genetics.Within the solar system, the earth is the onlyknown planet that supports life. The origin andevolution of living systems is another focus ofresearch at the Institution. Smithsonian scientistsstudy human impact upon the planet; humanpopulations and their genealogical relationships;how early humans lived within their ownecological communities; and the nature of theirecological impact. By examining extensivecollections of fossils of plants and animalsrepresenting a period of nearly a half billionyears, scientists are beginning to reconstruct theevolutionary lineages of organisms and thenature of the ecosystems that they co-inhabited.Research indicates an emerging pattern in whichthere are intervals of great stability for longperiods of time, followed by rapid collapse ofthe communities within the ecosystem,followed, in turn, by the emergence of areorganized set of communities withnewly-evolved organisms. Understanding thefactors that lead to both stability and change areof great importance in interpreting ecosystem
stability and sensitivity to change on earth today.Ecosystems such as tropical rain forests andcoral reefs with their associated coastalmangrove swamps are presently under greatpressure as a result of human activity. Thesedelicate environments are deteriorating rapidly.
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Understanding the Global Environment and Our Place in the Universe
State of Smithsonian Research (Continued)
Although inventories of the species compositionof these ecosystems are far from complete,preliminary data indicate that these are by farthe richest ecosystems in terms of theirbiological diversity and consequently of greatimportance to the earth as a whole.The world is now less than a decade fromthe dawning of a new millennium. The issues
that confront its citizens are ever more complexyet, at the same time, interdependent. TheSmithsonian research agenda increasinglyfocuses on the linkages between culture andscience and the need to present our researchfindings in a holistic manner to our diverseaudiences.
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Exemplifying the Nation's Pluralism
"The Smithsonian is to be included amongnational institutions, to be sure, but it is like noother. It is here to serve all segments of ourpopulation, and to address a world audience. Itcannot escape the responsibility to speak toand for that entire population and audience.This requires that we be at pains neither toidealize and reify the purported "mainstream"of global as well as our national culture, whenso many are still denied access to it, nor toplace "non-mainstream" cultures under anidealized bell-jar that freezes them in time."
? Robert McCormick Adams, Secretary
State of the Smithsonian Report,December 19, 1989.
Cultural diversity always has been a strength of the nation.Diverse cultural contributions and perspectives are an integralpart of the development and evolution of not only this but everynation.If one were to look at an evolutionary cultural map of theworld, it would reveal very little about today's administrative orgeopolitical borders. Such a map isnever static. Ideally it should showmassive, continuing flows and growinginterdependencies. Today more thanever before, changes in such a map andchanges in any given nation's culturaldiversity are occurring rapidly. Thesechanges are not always constructive.With the homogenizing influence ofmass media and the built-in authoritiesof national institutions and elites,change can also bring eroding anddestructive aspects to cultural values.An historical example would benegative stereotyping for thosedesignated as minorities, with resultingalienation or exclusion from theprocesses of governance and socialinteraction, as well as educational andeconomic deprivation.Global changes in cultural valuespresent numerous opportunities for theSmithsonian. Cultural appreciation offers opportunities toimplement the Smithsonian's mission?to increase and diffuseknowledge?at the same time it places many new public demandsand expectations upon the Smithsonian. The Institution iscommitted to changing its exhibitions and educational programsto provide the public with meaningful and comprehensiveinterpretations of all cultures. It is also committed to internalInstitutional changes affecting the current profile of its workforceand the representation of cultures on its administrative andadvisory boards and commissions.Management Initiatives
The Institution is developing processes that will result inwider recruitment and hiring of women and minorityprofessionals; foster retention of new hires by promoting a
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Exemplifying the Nation's Pluralism
"Legend of Mount Oe"Japan, Edo Period, ca.1625-1650 (Photo byJohn Tsantes)
receptive work environment; provide career development andtraining opportunities for all staff; and generally provide forgreater investment in the human capital potential of theInstitution.As part of new efforts, the Institutional management supportsfurther targeting of the programming of the SmithsonianInstitution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES) to reach widerand more culturally diverse audiences and organizations withlimited budgets and resources. In addition, the Office of WiderAudience Development will coordinate such efforts as workingwith staff advocacy organizations and participating in variouscultural committees and commemorative activities.
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CHOOSING THE FUTURE
African-American Programs
Central to the Institution's plans is a determination to increaseAfrican-American programming on the Mall. The Institution'smanagement encourages closer working relationships withpredominantly minority organizations, such as the AfricanAmerican Museums Association and its members. It supports theefforts of the Smithsonian African American Association, which isa membership organization of the employees of the Institutionwho share the goal of securing equal opportunities and programtreatment for culturally diverse communities.
"Father and Children"from the exhibition "ToColor America: Portraitsby Winold Reiss," at theNational Portrait Gallery
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Exemplifying the Nation's Pluralism
The Institution recently selected a twenty-two-memberadvisory committee to assist with the examination of the form andcontent of an African-American presence on the Mall. Thiscommittee, known as the African-American Institutional StudyAdvisory Board, is exploring such issues as the type ofAfrican-American entity that the Smithsonian could incorporate;the concerns and responsibilities of museums of ethnic heritage;and the outstanding models of Smithsonian and otherorganizations' cultural initiatives. The Board will complete itsreport in early 1991. The Institution currently seeks funding toachieve even broader initiatives for cultural pluralism.
The Institution's museums and galleries have planned for andare developing activities that will realize the Smithsonian'sintentions for more cultural programming. The ColumbusQuincentenary commemorations will reflect many of theseactivities, designed to intensify our common awareness of thecultural and hemispheric contexts that framed the developingforces of this nation, forces which national preoccupations andstereotypes obscure.The development of programs for the National Museum of theAmerican Indian provides another opportunity for the Institutionto evaluate and redouble its effort to strive for increasedsensitivity to the conditions, needs, and aspirations of multipleand growing audiences.
Other Initiatives
The American IndianTheatre Companyperformed at NaturalHistory's BairdAuditorium. (Photo byRick Vargas)
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CHOOSING THE FUTURE
In addition, the Smithsonian will seek to use media moreeffectively as a key tool to reach new audiences and distributeeducational materials. Smithsonian World, the top-rated prime timepublic documentary program, will produce five one-hour specialsannually. These programs will explore the scope of moderncultures using as a link the Institution's wide-ranging culturalagenda. The Office of Telecommunications will develop severalprojects to reach more culturally diverse audiences. Among theseare a proposed series of short features for Spanish-languagetelevision, a variety of radio programs offering a wide range oftraditional music, and documentaries looking at aspects ofAfrican-American and Latino culture. The Smithsonian Press,through its publication and recording programs, will exploreways to increase and improve its material to reach broadercultural audiences.
Pendant with Europeanand horse from the BeninKingdom, Edo peoples,Nigeria eighteenth andnineteenth Centurydisplayed at the "Icons:Ideals and Power in theArt of Africa" Exhibitionat the National Museumof African Art. (Photo byJeffrey Ploskonka)
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Exemplifying the Nation's Pluralism
State of Smithsonian ? Workforce Profile
The Smithsonian's most important asset is itshuman resources. Dedicated staff perform amultitude of functions from cutting-edge
scientific research to facilities maintenance. TheInstitution's workforce has grown steadily sincethe early 1960s. Recently, the Smithsonian hasstrongly pushed to ensure that the overallworkforce adequately and appropriatelyrepresents the cultural diversity inherent in ournation. An integral part of meeting its mandate
"for the increase and diffusion of knowledge"requires that the Smithsonian have at itsintellectual core a variety of culturalperspectives. As preservers and presenters ofthose things we as a people hold most dear, it isincumbent upon the professional staff of theInstitution to not only safeguard its treasures, butalso to faithfully exhibit and interpret them forits visitors.With support from Congress, the Institutionhas undertaken several special employmentinitiatives over the past few years geared toimprove the Institution's minority profile amongthe research and professional ranks. One such
effort allowed the Institution to make permanenta number of positions for minority professionalswhich the Institution had filled on a temporarybasis as funds became available. Other effortsunderway include an expanded upwardmobility program that allows current minorityemployees to apply for certain professionalpositions with the guarantee of necessarytraining and advancement through an approvedcareer ladder. Such efforts have resulted in amarked increase in minority representation inthe professional ranks. Minority women inparticular have experienced the largestemployment growth both in this category and inthe overall workforce.
At the senior levels, women compose aboutone-third of the workforce, a sharp increase overonly five years ago when the workforce wasabout 1 6 percent women. Minorityrepresentation at the senior level has alsoincreased but at a slower rate. The Secretary andhis management staff have made a commitmentto improving the Institution's minority profile atthe most senior levels.Although the Institution has made someprogress in attracting more women andminorities to its senior and professional ranks, itis also losing some of its best people because ofan inability to pay salaries that are competitivewith other cultural and academic institutions.Therefore, the Smithsonian is exploring thepossibility of legislative relief throughdevelopment of a Smithsonian Institution SeniorService for civil service employees and a SeniorExecutive Compensation System for trust fundedemployees.The Smithsonian initiated on-site child carein 1 988, with an infant facility scheduled toopen in January 1 991 . These facilities haveproven a boon to reducing absenteeism andturnover as well as an attractive inducement fornew employees. Given the upward trend inwomen employees this is a timely development.For the future the Institution will exploreother innovative ways of optimizing its mostimportant asset? its employees. Other benefitsthat might attract both present and potentialemployees include cafeteria plans and incentiveprograms. The present Office of PersonnelAdministration will become the Office ofHuman Resources with a corresponding changein its philosophical mission.
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National Museum of the American Indian
On June 18, 1990 the Supreme Court of New York approved theagreement between the Smithsonian and the Museum of theAmerican Indian, Heye Foundation, to transfer the Foundation'sextraordinary assemblage of more than a million Indian objectsand artifacts from all parts of the Western Hemisphere to theInstitution. The Heye Foundation collection forms the basis of theNational Museum of the AmericanIndian. The agreement also calls for thetransfer of the Foundation'sendowment and most of its otherproperty, including a 40,000-volumelibrary and 86,000-item archive.Previously, on January 29, 1990, theSmithsonian Board of Regentsapproved the selection of theMuseum's trustees. On May 21, 1990,Secretary Adams announced theappointment of W. Richard West Jr., anAlbuquerque, New Mexico attorneyand a member of theCheyenne-Arapaho tribes ofOklahoma, as Director of the Museum.The agreement and the courtapproval culminate lengthynegotiations involving the Foundation,the City of New York, the State of NewYork, and the Institution. When themuseum building on the Mall iscompleted in the late 1990s, it willstand as a tribute to the heritage andthe contributions of the native culturesof this Hemisphere. The directorenvisions a living museum that will
"Nothing could be more appropriate, I believe,than for the first Americans to be at the headand heart ofthe effort to research, interpret,and celebrate the diverse cultural experiencesthat go to make up this nation?for theirmuseum to become a flagship of hemisphericcultural diversity. I emphasize that this will be,to an unprecedented extent, f/7e/r museum:under Native American leadership, devotednot to the timeless past of Hollywood (and, toooften, also school textbook) myth-making butto the full range of intellectual, artistic, andcultural achievements of a living people,pulsing with the diversity of belief and materialexpression within their own number, andspeaking to the world in their own voices oftheir hopes and tragedies and permanent placein the family of humanity."
? Robert McCormick Adams, Secretary
Sfafe of the Smithsonian Report,December 19, 1989
depict "part history, part sociology?a slice of Indian life, past andpresent." The museum will showcase the philosophical andintellectual continuity of Native American cultures, emphasizingvalues that are inherently Indian and that merit renewedappreciation in today's world.Native American communities which might not be able toview the Museum's rich collections on the Mall will have theopportunity to do so through unprecedented outreach andtraveling exhibitions. Training opportunities built into theMuseum's programs will provide Indian people with access to thecollections and previously limited career developmentopportunities to Native Americans in the museum field. Indiansworking with the collections will enhance our knowledge through
40
National Museum of the American Indian
Some members of theboard of the NationalMuseum of the AmericanIndian, seated from left:Barber Conable Jr., JulieJohnson Kidd, CurtMuser, Helen Sheirbeck,Jennie Joe; standing, fromleft: Arturo Warman,Janine Pease-Windy Boy,Alvin Josephy Jr.,Waldemar Nielson, RogerBuffalohead, Fred Hoxie,Rosita Worl, ErnestBoyer, David HurstThomas, Norbert Hill,Secretary Adams. (Photoby Dane Penland)
their identification and interpretation of the materials of theircultures.Public Law 101-185, which established the Museum,authorizes facilities in three separate locations:A building to be constructed on the Mall in Washington,D.C., on land Congress reserved for the Smithsonian in1975, just east of the National Air and Space Museum;A portion of the Old United States Custom House at thetip of lower Manhattan in New York City; andA conservation, storage and research facility adjacent tothe Institution's Museum Support Center (MSC) inSuitland, Maryland.The Institution anticipates four major sources of funding forthese facilities: the City of New York; the State of New York;federal appropriations; and private donor contributions. The Museum on the Mall
The museum building on the Mall will house majorexhibitions, reference and collection areas, an auditorium, amuseum shop, and other public and administrative programs.The Museum's enabling legislation requires that one-third of thecost of construction of the Mall building will derive fromnonappropriated resources. To meet this requirement, theInstitution has initiated a national fund-raising campaign. TheInstitution anticipates occupying the building in fiscal year 1997and opening it to the public by the year 2000.
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CHOOSING THE FUTURE
The Old United States Custom House, New York CityThe first and second floors of the Old United States CustomHouse in lower Manhattan will house an extension of theNational Museum of the American Indian. Under the terms of theSmithsonian's agreement with the Heye Foundation, this facilitywill bear the name of George Gustav Heye, who established theFoundation to preserve and exhibit his extensive collection. TheHeye Center will contain space for exhibitions, educationalprograms, and other public services. The Smithsonian is planningan opening exhibition in 1992 at the Heye Center and anticipatesthe full opening of the facility to the public in fiscal year 1993.
Ghost dance buckskindress from the NationalMuseum of the AmericanIndian collection. (Photoby Carmelo Guadagno) itmSI r iAk m>N? i>\
%\ ^Jp"I
rt%
42
National Museum of the American Indian
Collection Conservation, Storage, and Research FacilityThe Institution plans to construct the conservation, storage,and research facility adjacent to its Museum Support Center inSuitland, Maryland. The National Museum of the AmericanIndian will use this facility to provide a stable, secureenvironment for most of its collection transferred from New York.This facility will enable the Museum to conduct conservation,preservation, and research activities on the collection whileoffering important training programs for Native Americans inmuseum disciplines. The Institution anticipates completing andoccupying the support center facility in fiscal year 1995.
An Aztec stone carvingrepresenting Xipe Totec,the Flayed God, from theNational Museum of theAmerican Indiancollection. (Photo byCarmelo Guadagno)
43
Quincentenary Programs
Christopher Columbus's voyage of 1492 marked the beginning ofa new era?five hundred years of encounter and exchangebetween the Americas, Africa, Asia, and Europe. The ensuinginteractions between two hemispheres of the globe profoundlychanged the history of the world. The Smithsonian Institution willcommemorate Columbus's voyage, focusing on cultural,historical, and scientific repercussions from the confluence of twohemispheres. The Smithsonian's Quincentenary commemorationwill serve as the basis for a permanent program that will focus onthe environment, history, and cultures of the Americas.The cultural diversity of the United States is in large part aconsequence of the encounter between indigenous New Worldcultures and peoples and those of the Old World initiated by thevoyages of Columbus. The native peoples of theAmericas?American Indians?were the true discoverers of theNew World. The events initiated by the Columbian encounter led,however, to a series of exchanges of peoples, plants, and animals,including diseases. The complex interplay of these societies andcultures from both sides of the Atlantic gave rise over half amillennium to the rich cultural diversity that is both this nation'sstrength and the source of many of its challenges. The history ofnot only Native-Americans but also African-Americans andHispanic-Americans is or will be, the principal emphasis ofscholarly research and public programs at the new Museum of theAmerican Indian. The planned institute of the Americas as well asthe existing Museum of American History and Anacostia Museumwill equally concentrate on these historic and contemporarycultures. Also important is the artistic heritage of the many otherindigenous peoples who have contributed to the cultural richnessof the Americas.The pan-Institutional Quincentenary commemoration willreflect the diversity of Smithsonian research interests and providethe public with a broader perspective on the significance ofColumbus's voyage. Twenty bureaus and offices are planningactivities in collaboration with scholars from the Smithsonian andother institutions in the United States and Latin America. Theevents described here are only a partial listing of the diverse andemerging array of planned activities. The international andinterdisciplinary dimensions of the commemoration will highlightthe experiences and contributions of all peoples affected byColumbus's voyage.The Institution is seeking federal support to invest in theseQuincentenary activities. However, since the level of federalsupport remains uncertain, the Smithsonian will continue to lookfor private donor contributions to ensure the completion of thisspecial initiative.
44
Quincentenary Programs
ExhibitionsColumbus's voyages of discovery were in reality a collision oftwo worlds; the impact of the collision continues to be felt today.The voyages unleashed forces of encounter and exchange,dramatically altering the flora and fauna of both the Old and NewWorlds. Those forces also re-ordered the ethnic composition ofevery corner of the globe and transformed the diet and health ofpeoples everywhere.Plant, animal, and disease exchanges between the Old andNew Worlds sowed these "seeds of change," and transformed thecultural and ecological landscape of the Americas, causingprofound changes, some deliberate, others accidental. Sugardespoiled the landscape and contributed to the ethnic changes inthe Caribbean. When there were no longer enough Indians tomaintain the plantations, Europeans turned to Africa for slavelabor. Maize and potato, cultivated by Native Americanshundreds of years before contact, now feed the world and are anenergy source for the future. Disease, traveling as uninvited cargowith Europeans, decimated Native American populations. Thehorse, once indigenous to the Americas, disappeared during theIce Age but was brought back by Europeans. Indians, at firststartled by the strange creatures, eventually became some of thefinest horsemen the world has known.The exhibition will open at the National Museum of NaturalHistory in the fall of 1991 and remain on view until April 1993.The Museum plans to offer a wide range of programs, travelingexhibits, publications, lectures, and symposia. A companion bookis planned for publication in March 1991; a panel showco-sponsored by the American Library Association will begintraveling to sixty cities in January 1992; collaborative exhibits willopen at seven major museums during 1992; and, adding to thecelebration in Washington, D.C., is the Festival of the AmericanHorse in May 1992.
Seeds of Change
Various groups in the Upper Rio Grande Valley of thesouthwestern United States?American Indian, Hispanic,African-American, and Anglo-American?strive to maintain theircultural identities amid the demands of competing ideas,technologies, and resources. The National Museum of AmericanHistory will install "American Encounters" as a permanentexhibition about the continuing encounters between cultures afterColumbus. The goal is to help visitors understand the value ofcultural diversity both as a lesson from the past and as a necessityfor the future.
American Encounters
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CHOOSING THE FUTURE
Visitors will encounter different perspectives and variousvoices, drawn from oral, performance traditions and graphic arts.Visitors will examine objects and, through interactive videostations, interview the makers/users of these objects. For example,from an Hispanic New Mexican who has customized hisautomobile into a low rider, a visitor will learn what the carsymbolizes to its maker and to his community; a simulated courtcase in New Mexico will explore the conflicts between human andnatural law as they relate to settlement, land, and water rights.In conjunction with the exhibition a full schedule ofsymposia,workshops, demonstrations, performances and filmswill address specific topics and issues introduced in the exhibition.The exhibition will open in October 1992 at the NationalMuseum of American History.
Where Next, Columbus? "Where Next, Columbus?" will examine prospects forexploration in space during the next five hundred years. Theexhibition will focus on possibilities and realities of exploringspace. It will consider the broad context of politics, economics,science, and technology surrounding Columbus's exploration ofthe New World, twentieth century exploration of space, andfuture voyages through the solar system and beyond.The main exhibition will remain on view for three to fiveyears. It will feature interactive computer video programs formission-planning and decision-making activities, such as: optionsfor space travel; Mars mission-planning; the Greenbank formulafor estimating the probability of extant civilizations; and a publicopinion survey on space exploration.The exhibition will also feature two films. The film Spacefaringreviews science fiction classics about space travel with specialcommentary to correct common misconceptions about the laws ofphysics that govern space flight. Another film will mingle clipsfrom science fiction classics with commentary on socialpsychology, historical events, and other factors that give rise toimages of meeting or communicating with extraterrestrials. Thefilm also will include experiences of first contacts on our ownplanet among peoples, such as Columbus and the Indians, andtwentieth century explorers and aborigines in New Guinea.The exhibition will open in the spring of 1992 at the NationalAir and Space Museum.
The West as America:1820-1920 An art exhibition, "The West as America: 1820-1920," will linkthe opening of the western frontier during the middle and latenineteenth century with the first explorations of the Americas. Theexhibition will include major paintings by Frederic Church, Albert
46
Quincentenary Programs
Bierstadt, Emanuel Leutze, George Catlin, George Caleb Bingham,Frederic Remington and their contemporaries. The subjects ofthese paintings range from the vision of Columbus tomonumental views of the Rockies and Sierra Nevada mountains.The exhibition will explore the dual nature of the settlement ofthe American West. New research presents both the positiveaspects of development and the problems and dislocations,physical and cultural, that will attend this intrusion into nature'swilderness and encounters with native inhabitants. Westernscenes are often skillful combinations of myth, symbol, and factthat present a highly edited version of the events they appear todocument. The exhibition will explore the role of imagery inpromoting a national bias for expansion during the nineteenthcentury.The exhibition will open in March 1991 at the NationalMuseum of American Art.
The World's Columbian Exposition, held in Chicago in 1893,celebrated the four hundredth anniversary of Columbus's arrivalin America. The quality of American art shown at the fair was acentral factor in redefining both the American and Europeanattitudes toward American artists. As one critic of the periodnoted, the exhibition was "an event of the epoch-making kind inthe history of American art." The National Portrait Gallery andthe National Museum of American Art will present a jointexhibition of approximately two hundred important paintingsand sculptures from the more than twelve hundred Americanworks originally exhibited in the Fine Arts Building at the World'sColumbian Exposition.The original exhibition established for the first time the parityof American artists with their European counterparts. Itannounced unequivocally the role of American art and artists asmajor figures in the international cultural scene and it alsorevealed the wide-ranging attitudes of late nineteenth centuryAmerican artists toward contemporary life, the past, nature,religion, and portraiture.The exhibition will open in April 1993 at the NationalMuseum of American Art/National Portrait Gallery.
American Painting andSculpture at the World'sColumbian Exposition,1893
This art exhibition will present one hundred works by fourartists who were among the first Latin Americans to makesignificant contributions to international modernism during thefirst half of the twentieth century. Although many Latin Americanartists attained recognition after 1950, this exhibition focuses onfour who pioneered this trend and introduced an unprecedented
Four Latin AmericanPioneers of Modernism
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CHOOSING THE FUTURE
biculturalism: Diego Rivera (Mexican, 1886-1957), JoaquinTorres-Garcia (Uruguayan, 1874-1949), Wifredo Lam (Cuban,1902-82), and Roberto Matta (Chilean-French, b. 1911). Theexhibition also will include the free bilingual brochure, anillustrated catalogue with historical essays, education programs, asymposium, and a film series.Not content merely to emulate European modernism, theseartists were among the first to explore possibilities for integratingthat avant-gardism with aspects of Latino culture. This exhibitionhighlights the diversity of their styles and imagery. Rivera isrepresented by his Cubist phase and his later figurative scenesfrom modern Mexican life. Torres-Garica's UniversalConstructivist works will demonstrate how he integratedpre-Columbian symbols into abstract grids. Lam blendedSurrealist dream imagery with metamorphic creatures from theAfro-Cuban santeria religion. Matta insisted on theinternationalism of art yet found inspiration in Mexico's volcanosand Spain's literary heritage.The exhibition will open in June 1992 at the HirshhornMuseum and Sculpture Garden.
Science in the Age ofColumbus The exhibition "Science in the Age of Columbus" will displaya facsimile of Columbus's 1493 letter to the Regents of Spain,along with books and manuscripts produced between 1450 and1550. The exhibition will examine European scientific knowledgeduring Columbus's century.The exhibition will include a Boethius manuscript,Regionmontanus's Ephemerides, a 1483 calendar, and booksstudied by Columbus, including incunabula editions (earlyprinted books) of Strabo, Pliny, Aristotle, and Ptolemy. Theexhibition also will display navigational tools available toColumbus. A section of the exhibition pertaining to the timeperiod after the voyages, from 1505 through 1550, willdemonstrate the explosion of knowledge resulting from thetravels and from the interaction of scientists using both theprinted word and observations of their own world.The Libraries' Exhibition Gallery outside of the Dibner Libraryin the National Museum of American History will display thisexhibition, organized by the Smithsonian Institution Libraries.
Global Image: TheProcess of Mapping The voyages of Columbus have come to symbolize thebeginning of a dramatically different perception of the earth. Fivehundred years later, a new age of exploration has introduced anequally radical shift in perspective: seeing the planet from space.Maps are still a primary means of documenting new world views.
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Quincentenary Programs
This Silver Globe Clockshows the five continents.Eric Fleming, from AtelierBorgila, Stockholm,Sweden, designed thistable clock in 1930. TheCooper-Hewitt NationalMuseum of Designreceived this gift from theTrustees of the Estate ofJames Hazen Hyde.
Changing perspectives?physical, cultural, and conceptual?arerecorded and reinforced in maps.In commemoration of the Quincentenary, the Institution willpresent "Global Image: The Process of Mapping" an exhibition,publication, and short film dealing with maps as documents ofvisual communication. Organized by the Cooper-Hewitt NationalMuseum of Design, the exhibition will include about threehundred objects from the collections of the Cooper-Hewitt andother Smithsonian museums, with additional loans from publicand private sources. The maps and atlases shown will appear inmanuscript, engraved, and printed form, together with globes anda selection of related material. The exhibition will present maps as
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CHOOSING THE FUTURE
records of prevailing world views; as expressions of a sense ofplace; and as tools of description and discovery. The thematic,cross-cultural survey will consider the vantage point of themapmakers, their cultural context, and the technology available tothem.Staff will develop educational programs for all ages, especiallyschool children, with the aim of demonstrating how maps are ameans of understanding the world, and our place in it.The exhibition will open in the fall of 1992 at theCooper-Hewitt National Museum of Design, in New York City.
American Folklife The Festival of American Folklife features live traditionalperformers, dancers, musicians, artisans, and other culturalspecialists. The Office of Folklife Programs (OFP) produces thisliving exhibition annually on the Mall during the last week of Juneand the first week of July. To commemorate the five hundredthanniversary of Columbus's voyage, a series of programs at theFestival will demonstrate living cultural expressions associatedwith New World societies.In 1991, OFP will mount an exhibition on the Mall focusing onthe indigenous populations of the Americas. Up to approximatelyone hundred fifty Native Americans will demonstrate the arts and
skills that developed with the use of native crops and resources.In 1992, exhibitions will concentrate on the interplay of NativeAmerican, African, European and Asian populations in theAmericas; new crops introduced; new social systems; and thedevelopment of New World traditions. Performers willdemonstrate and re-enact music, craft, culinary, and performancetraditions associated with plantations, peasant societies, andfamily farming.
Traveling Exhibitions
In commemoration of the Columbus Quincentenary, theSmithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service willdistribute to communities around the United States originalexhibitions that SITES and Smithsonian museums have generated.
SITES will cooperate with the National Museum ofNatural History to produce traveling versions of its majorexhibition.
"Portraits of Contemporary Mexican Artists" will profileMexico's most influential creative personalties,showcasing several generations of living artists.
50
"Borderlands" is a photographic exhibition that will lookat the environment and ecology of the desert states thatborder Mexico through the lens of renowned naturalistphotographer Tupper Ansel Blake.
"Fred E. Miller: Photographer of the Crows" willdocument the Native American Indian tribe at a turningpoint in its history, 1898 to 1912, when Miller lived on theCrow reservation.SITES will present a supplemental exhibition based on
"Where Next, Columbus?" in Seville, Spain, at the WorldExpo 1992. Accompanying the exhibition will be a ten- tofifteen-minute IMAX film combining footage from recentexploratory missions?such as Galileo, Magellan, and theHubble Space Telescope?with the Columbus theme.
Quincentenary Programs
A painting from thetraveling exhibition
"Paintbrush Diplomacy:Children's Art from theAmericas."
Smithsonian National Associate Program
Lectures, workshops, and performances acquaint Americanswho live outside Washington, D.C., with the research andcollections of the Smithsonian. Each year the SmithsonianNational Associate Program (SNAP) sponsors events intwenty-five host cities.As other Smithsonian bureaus develop ColumbusQuincentenary activities, the National Associate Program willwork closely with curators to produce complementary programs
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CHOOSING THE FUTURE
geared to the needs and interests of host communities. Alreadyplanned are lectures and workshops focusing onQuincentenary-related public programs and exhibitions of theHirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, National Museum ofAmerican Art, and the National Museum of Natural History.SNAP also will cooperate with SITES to offer special programs incommunities scheduled to display traveling Quincentenaryexhibitions.The Program is offering events co-sponsored by universitiesand museums in commemoration of the Quincentenary in bothSpain and Latin America. This program has offered five series incollaboration with Catholic University in Santiago, Chile. Plansare under way to continue the series through 1991.
Media Events
The Buried Mirror Scheduled to premiere in the fall of 1991, "The Buried Mirror:Reflections on Spain and the New World by Carlos Fuentes" is aSmithsonian television series that will explore Latin America, pastand present, focusing on themes, institutions, beliefs, and symbolsthat have endured or changed. "The Buried Mirror" is a bilingual,multi-part series of one-hour television programs written andnarrated by Carlos Fuentes. The documentaries seek to capturethe many ways in which Latin Americans have seen themselves inthe past and see themselves today.With a format and style of epic sweep, the series will focus onrelationships among countries and peoples of the Americas aswell as with other cultures worldwide before and after 1492. Somehighlights include:
The one-hour program "The Virgin and the Bull" willexamine the Spanish and Portuguese connection to theAmericas and the Iberian and African roots of LatinAmerican societies.
"The Moving Frontier" will study pre-Columbian peoplesin Latin America and their encounter with Europeans in1492. This program specifically examines the Spanishconflicts with the Aztecs and the Incas.
"The Conquerors Conquered" will look at Europeandomination during the colonial period, the resistance ofnative peoples, and the evolution of a new Latin Americanidentity.
"The Other Side of Liberty" will focus on stories fromMexico, Chile, Brazil, and Argentina, and the rich culturalheritage of their peoples.
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Quincentenary Programs
"Five Hundred Years After" will profile the nineteenthand twentieth centuries in the Americas and the legacies of1492.
"The Buried Mirror" also will portray the Hispanic presencein the United States providing a framework for understanding thenation's growing Hispanic population in terms of economic,political, and cultural changes.
The Office of Telecommunications has joined with the NativeAmerican Public Broadcasting Consortium to develop a majorradio series titled "Spirits of the Present: The Legacy from NativeAmerica." Consisting of thirteen half-hour programs, the serieswill explore the Columbus encounter and its aftermath from theAmerican Indian perspective.
"Spirits of the Present" will highlight contemporary issues aswell as the historical record. Inherent in each program is thephilosophy and vision of Native people today. Throughinterviews and cultural celebrations listeners will hear the voicesof leaders, artists and writers, along with educators, politicians,anthropologists and community leaders. Ranging from Alaska toBrazil, the series will celebrate the diversity of Native Americancultures.Creating the series is a team of award-winning radioproducers, led by a distinguished coordinating producer who is aNative American. "Spirits of the Present" will air on public radionationwide in 1992. Plans also include creation of an educationalpacket for schools and universities.
Spirits of the Present
After 1992
Leading to the commemorations in 1992, the Institution hassponsored a variety of events and symposia involving scholars,government officials, and visitors from the United States andabroad. The purpose of such people-to-people exchanges is toestablish relationships which serve to exchange information,create useful and good relationships among constituencies, andadd to the Institution's knowledge of cultural and environmentalconcerns of our hemispheric neighbors. Once thecommemorations are over, the task of compiling resultantinformation remains.The Institution projects an important and growing need for aninstitute of the Americas to continue to focus on museum training,exchange of staff, and the cross-fertilization of research effortsamong the nation's hemispheric neighbors and the Smithsonian.
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CHOOSING THE FUTURE
The institute will continue to invite scholars and policy makersfrom various nations in Latin America, Central America, and theCaribbean to the Institution to share their ideas and researchperspectives on future options regarding cultural and ecologicalissues facing the hemisphere. The institute will provide a forumfor communication of important information dealing withtechnical and quasi-governmental solutions to regional andhemispheric problems. The institute also will identify highpriority issues of hemispheric concern and will organize projectteams of an interdisciplinary and multi-cultural nature to studyand recommend solutions for discrete issues.The Smithsonian is committed to long term cultivation of adeeper public understanding of our neighbors and will dedicatethe institute of the Americas to this purpose. The Institution willseek funding from a variety of sources to fulfill the mission of theinstitute. Only an ongoing concern, such as the institute, cansustain the living rapport created through commemorativeprograms, exhibits, and events, once the ColumbusQuincentenary commemoration has come and gone.
54
Bringing Synergism to ContemporaryPublic Education
An important part of the overall mission of the Smithsonian is theobligation to offer educational opportunities through which thepublic can learn about the natural and civilizing processes of theworld. Throughout its history, the Institution has pursued thiseducational objective through itsscholarship, exhibitions, publications,seminars, lectures, and other programs.In the early years of the Institution,the Smithsonian captured the public'simagination by sponsoring expeditionsthat mapped the West and by its effortsto study and understand the cultures ofthe North American Indian. Theopening of the Castle (1855) and theArts and Industries Building (1881)provided early visitors with their firstvisual experiences associated with thebeginnings of the Institution'santhropological, botanical, fossilizedand living animal collections,technological products, and historicalartifacts of this country and others.Over the years Institutionalcollections and research interests havediversified and grown to include thearts and humanities. Exhibitions andthe facilities to house them havemultiplied. The Institution createdexplicit education programs in themid-1970s, and these programs havesince embellished exhibitions and otherpublic outreach activities.Today, visitors of all ages, allcultures and countries, and all walks oflife annually crowd the Mall and otherSmithsonian buildings by the tens ofmillions for the opportunity to see andgain knowledge from varied exhibitionsand complementary public programs.Researchers, students, collectors, andhobbyists glean information from thefiles, archives, and libraries, and fromthe collections themselves. On any day
"Why then does conventional, organizededucation pay so little attention to our kinds ofresearch, to museum research, and above allto museum exhibits and education? . .
.
Today's education has degenerated into atemporary transfer of training and information.Much of the best of it is disguised astrade-learning, but trades themselves arethought to be demeaning. Professionalism ineducation is largely a fanciful conceit forofficialism. Much teaching today is timeserving and produces anomie rather thanendowing the student with any sense ofpurpose. ... Let us relive the Americanexperience to remind us of our hard wonbirthright and to point the way to theenjoyment of our rights as citizens of theworld, in that world's only environment, ourtemporary home, our sole stopping place shortof the stars. Let us also join with others inpioneering studies on the creation andcapturing of interest, on studies in cognition,on the ability to learn effectively, so that all of
us, men and women of a country in which \\ ebelieve truth still resides, can eventuallyachieve the age-old dream of our land, to bequalified through education for the enjoymentof our rights and for the performance of ourduties throughout life."
? S. Dillon RipleySecretary of the Smithsonian,1964-1984On Museum Objects, Truth, andEducation, 1971
.
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in the fall, winter, or spring, one can see dozens of buses of eagerschool children unloading, arriving with their books, bags andlunches in hand, ready for special tours and classes. At night, inbuilding corridors adjacent to numerous rooms, one can hear thechatter of adults gathered during break-time to compare notesabout the evening's lecture or course discussion. Itinerant eventsand exhibits around the nation draw upon Smithsoniancollections, experiences, and expertise and attract capacityaudiences. Exceeding two million, the circulation of Smithsonianmagazine attests to its continued popularity among its generalreadership as an educational arm of the Institution. TheSmithsonian also extends its educational mission throughout theUnited States and the world with programs for radio andtelevision as well as books, sound recordings, and video discs.These and numerous other signs provide ample evidence thatthe Institution continues to pursue its public education mission ina serious and responsible fashion. A certain educational synergyexists among the many parts of the Smithsonian that, while notalways formally coordinated or centrally planned as parts of acoherent whole, works to the benefit of the citizens of the worldand to the Institution.How should Institutional management further harness thissynergy? What lies ahead for the Smithsonian in the way ofstrengthening and honing established public educational pursuitsand incorporating new approaches? The Institution is beginningto address those questions in several ways:
Early Enrichment Centerpre-scholars learn abouttrees and plants in theirplayground along with asafety tip?DON'T EATHOLLY BERRIES. (Photoby Rick Vargas)
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Bringing Synergism to Contemporary Public Education
Children from El Chorillo,part of Panama City, getthe feel of a live seastarduring a field trip to theSmithsonian TropicalResearch Institute's NaosMarine Laboratory.(Photo by Marcos Guerraj
First, this year Secretary Adams emphasized the role ofpublic education in Smithsonian activities. He adopted anadditional Area of Emphasis highlighting education at theInstitution in order to help Smithsonian organizationsfocus upon the constituencies and challenges facing thenation's educational systems. The adoption of this Area ofEmphasis resulted directly from several months ofdeliberation by an internal staff committee appointed bythe Secretary in the fall of 1989. This committee, known asthe Planning Advisory Group, recommended that theInstitution not only place greater emphasis on educationbut undertake an investigation that would lead to theeventual articulation and implementation of acontemporary educational philosophy for theSmithsonian. An enunciated policy is a key ingredient inthe process of choosing among future educationalendeavors and channeling resources.Second, the Institution's Council of Museum EducationDirectors and the Council of Information and EducationDirectors developed independent reports. After reviewinghistorical and current educational ventures, these councilsendorsed initiating efforts to clarify the Institution's futureeducational role and to seek new resources in the area ofeducation. These recommendations dovetail with the
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CHOOSING THE FUTURE
SAO participates inProject STAR, acurriculum developmentprogram designed toimprove the teaching ofsecondary school scienceand mathematics throughexamples fromastronomy. (Photo bySteve Seron)
Secretary's emphasis on policy for planning and guidancein this area.Third, the Smithsonian is requesting increased federalsupport to begin to enhance educational departments andprograms of the Institution. Included in the request are avariety of activities meant to strengthen federaleducational resources sorely needed by some Institutionaloperations, such as the National Museum of American Art,the Cooper-Hewitt National Museum of Design, theNational Museum of American History, and SITES. Inparticular, SITES, one of the Institution's most successfulpublic outreach programs, plans to make Smithsonianexhibitions accessible to a wider audience of viewers.
Efforts to raise support from private and government fundingsources for basic activities will continue in the future. Changes,such as developing new relationships with communityinstitutions, especially school systems, depend on the availabilityof additional resources. Over the next several years, Institutionalmanagement will select from and seek funding for a number ofproject proposals from various Smithsonian museums anddepartments to advance the objectives contained in the Areas ofEmphasis.Institutional management is deliberating now on the nextpractical steps to take to further the Institution's educationalcontributions to the nation and to refine and redefine theSmithsonian's future educational role. Regardless of the specific
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Bringing Synergism to Contemporary Public Education
results of the ensuing investigation, the management steps chosenwill most assuredly reinforce the emerging international characterof the Institution, the traditional importance of collections andresearch, the growing diversity of Smithsonian audiences, and thedemands of changing exhibitions with their associated technologyand interpretive techniques.
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State of Smithsonian Public Programs
Exhibitions, objects, tours, seminars,publications, catalogues, and other toolsconstitute the means by which the Smithsonianreaches its diverse audiences. They form thebasis for the Institution's public programs, andprovide the context for the general public tolearn about historical and contemporarysubjects vital to understanding major issues atwork in today's world. These issues span suchtopics as: the research needed to solvingenvironmental degradation; the importance offurther advances in technology; and thecontributions of many cultures to science, art,and the humanities.The Smithsonian directs its public programsto individual learning interests, allowing forvisual and tactile experiences, and frequentlyinvolving families, friends and classroomcompanions. The Smithsonian improves itspublic educational programs by incorporatingnew media, publication, exhibition, and othertechniques. Changing public interests sustain theprocess of improvement.The Institution is working more closely withcommunities to identify their educational needs,and to interest them in Smithsonian offerings.The Smithsonian collaborates with teachers andelementary and secondary school systems acrossthe country to develop hands-on scienceprograms for students. The Smithsonian
Institution Traveling Exhibition Service willreorganize and reformulate products to assistsmaller organizations in reaching under-servedaudiences.The Institution has established a newexperimental gallery that provides a showcasefor innovative exhibition formats and a forum forstudying audience reaction. The Institution triesout portions of exhibitions on the public inspecial viewing areas using the latesttechnologies. The Institution will experimentwith theatrical and visual presentations bringingto life important ideas and epochal events.In spite of efforts to improve publicprograms, there remain obstacles. The Institutionneeds to improve and strengthen outreach
efforts to handicapped persons, senior citizens,minorities, and other cultural groups. Educationdepartments throughout the Institution areunderstaffed and inadequately funded relative tothe work that must be done to improve thequality and quantity of educational activitiesthroughout the Institution.The Institution will continue to applycurrent resources to public educational
activities. In addition, the Smithsonian willpersevere in efforts to strengthen its educationand other public services and urges publicspirited individuals to join the quest.
60
Institutional Funding Goals?Operations
When James Smithson, the English scholar and scientist, died in1829, his will stipulated that the whole of his property?anamount equivalent to $508,318.46 at the time?would be left "tothe United States of America, to found at Washington, under thename of the Smithsonian Institution, an Establishment for theincrease and the diffusion of knowledge among men." In sodoing, Smithson created a charitable trust, under the terms ofwhich the United States would serve astrustee for the benefit of all mankind. Byan Act in 1836, Congress acceptedSmithson's bequest and pledged the
"faith of the United States" to carry outits purposes. In 1838, the funds from theSmithsonian estate, consisting of 105bags of gold sovereigns, reached theport of Philadelphia. This was a fortuneat the time, equal to one and one-halftimes the federal budget of the youngnation.Today, the total operating budget ofthe Smithsonian is $559 million, withapproximately 54 percent emanatingfrom the Institution's trust activities.Congress provides operatingappropriations for many of the coresecurity, building and facilitymaintenance, exhibition production,and research and collectionsmanagement programs. Appropriations fund major newconstruction and, to a large extent, building refurbishment andalteration. The Institution's trust auxiliary enterprises, gifts andgrants from public-spirited donors, and government grants andcontracts enhance these core activities. Trust funds provide theseed capital for innovative ventures, especially in research,experimentation with new ideas and approaches to publiceducation, exhibition techniques and methods, and collectionsacquisitions.The Smithsonian faces uncertainty regarding future funding.As the nation continues to struggle with balancing the federalbudget, competition for donor funds increases and the generaleconomic climate undulates. The Institution, however, is lookingahead with optimism. There is merit in doing so and incommunicating to the executive and legislative branches ofgovernment, potential donors, and others the Smithsonian's basicdesire to grow. Indeed, if it is to continue to be successful in
"The Smithsonian has now come to a timewhen, without the support of the Nation, it canno longer continue to be what [Joseph] Henrymade it. And yet the need for just such anInstitution as it has been is no less than theneed was 80 years ago. In some respects theunique opportunities are even greater. ThisInstitution is not the product of the moment; 80years of the toil of great men have gone into itsmaking. There is that about it which cannot bereplaced."
? William Howard Taft, Chief Justice ofthe Supreme Court
In the Smithsonian Annual Report,1927.
meeting its responsibilities to the public, the museum and
61
Smithsonian InstitutionGrowth in Operating Requirements
Fiscal years 1981 - 2000 in millions of dollars
UnrestrictedFederal & Special GovernmentSalary & Purpose Restricted Grants &Expenses Funds Funds Contracts TOTAL1981 $122 $98 $6 $14 $2401982 131 107 7 13 2581983 147 115 9 13 2841984 157 129 10 15 3111985 164 155 10 16 3451988 169 170 13 16 3681987 189 188 17 16 4101988 201 209 26 17 4531989 211 220 30 21 4821998 225 228 28 29 5101991 258 245 31 40 5741992 292 250 24 36 6021993 370 264 30 36 7001994 388 277 31 37 7331995 407 290 32 37 7661996 428 302 33 38 8011997 455 316 34 38 8431998 481 333 34 39 8871999 509 347 35 40 9312989 538 362 36 41 977
200
100
Smithsonian InstitutionGrowth in Operating Requirements
1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000
CHOOSING THE FUTURE
Appropriated Funds
scholarly communities, and the nation, the Smithsonian must lookahead.The Institution's aggregate funding projection, illustrated inthe preceding chart, builds on current budget expectations,historical results, and the plans of each museum director andprogram manager. The forecast presents a reasonable federalappropriations trend consistent with past experience andincorporates successful results from expanded fund-raisingendeavors and continued good performance by revenueproducing enterprises. The Institution revises the projections asnew information becomes available.This chapter describes the major sources of operating fundsfor the Smithsonian. Projections of federal funds for capitalimprovement appear in a separate chapter.
The federal government appropriates funds to theSmithsonian in separate accounts that correspond to specificbudget categories within the Institution:
Salaries and Expenses (S&E);Repair and Restoration of Buildings (R&R);Construction and Improvements, National ZoologicalPark; andSmithsonian Construction.
The Salaries and Expenses (S&E) appropriation, theSmithsonian's core operating budget, meets the basic costsassociated with: research in the fields of art, science, and history;preservation and documentation of the national collections;production and presentation of public exhibitions andperformances; collection, preparation, and exchange of scholarlyinformation and publications; conducting education, training, andmuseum assistance programs; administration; and maintenance,alteration, operation, leasing, and protection of buildings andfacilities.In fiscal year 1981, salaries and expenses appropriationscovered operating expenses of $122 million. By 1990,appropriations were $225 million, including operations in the newQuadrangle facility housing the National Museum of African Art,the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, and the S. Dillon RipleyInternational Center. At the turn of the century the expenses areprojected to be $538 million. This forecast includes preliminaryprojections for the National Museum of the American Indian,resources for acquisition and operation of an Administrative
64
Institutional Funding Goals?Operations
Support Facility, the effects of expected Congressional federal payactions, and inflationary factors.
Nonappropriated FundsThe Institution is ever mindful of its traditions but must alsorespond to contemporary needs and opportunities. TheSecretary's Areas of Emphasis specifically include the pursuit of
"initiatives that permit growth in endowment and operatingfunds." Nonappropriated funds from various sources are vital toSmithsonian activities.The Institution derives nonappropriated trust funds fromseveral sources including:
Earned revenue from auxiliary and other business
activities;Investment income earned on balances of the various typesof nonappropriated funds;Gifts and grants received from individuals, corporations,and foundations; andFederal grants and contracts supporting specific researchor other projects.
Trust funds were approximately $104 million in fiscal year1981 and by the turn of the century, these funds are projected tototal approximately $398 million. Government grants andcontracts supporting specific research projects were $14 million infiscal year 1981 and are forecast to total $41 million by the year2000. The anticipated awards primarily will support high-energyastrophysics and solar physics research.
To help meet the need for increased private funds in future Membership andyears, the Institution encourages individual museums and offices Development Activitiesto pursue direct support for their programs. The Office ofMembership and Development will solicit funding for existingpan-Institutional projects such as the many fellowship programs,Scholarly Studies, Collections Acquisition, Special Exhibition andEducational Outreach funds and the Columbus Quincentenarycommemoration. The Office has planned a series of programs inmajor cities across the country, in Europe, and Japan to introducethe Institution to a larger pool of possible supporters.The Smithsonian National Associate Program (SNAP)provides the Associate members and the general public with highquality, educational experiences in subjects relating to theSmithsonian and encourages support for the Institution's work.
CHOOSING THE FUTURE
The enthusiastic participation of its national constituency enablesSNAP to meet its outreach goals and raise monies for unrestrictedtrust funds through surpluses generated from educational tours,research expedition programs, lectures, workshops, and seminarsas well as through corporate and individual giving programs,including the Contributing Membership Program, JamesSmithson Society, and the Corporate Associate Program. By 1992,SNAP's Contributing Membership Program anticipates over66,000 members and the Corporate Associate Program over 140members.The Resident Associate Program (RAP) is a membership andactivity supported continuing education, cultural, and outreacharm of the Smithsonian Institution for metropolitan Washington.RAP's educational and cultural curriculum deals with all facets ofthe arts, humanities, and sciences, drawing upon andcomplementing the Institution's permanent collections, research,and exhibitions activities. RAP is committed to the communityand provides many and varied programs to serve it: scholarshipsfor inner-city young people and adults to attend RAP coursestuition-free; Discover Graphics, the free program of instruction inprintmaking for public high school students and teachers;Tuesday Mornings at the Smithsonian, the lecture and breakfastseries for senior citizens; and Discovery Theater, a low-costtheater for children and families offering live dramatic, musical,and puppet performances; and the annual Kite Festival on theMall. The Resident Associate Program currently serves amembership exceeding 61,000 households. The Program isactively attracting increasing participation by theAfrican-American community through its Afro-American Studiesdepartment. RAP expects to enhance its already existingAmerican Indian programming as the National Museum of theAmerican Indian takes shape.One of the most popular and successful Associate memberbenefits established by the Institution is the Smithsonian magazine.Acutely aware of the vicissitudes of publishing, the magazine'smanagement nonetheless expects demand for its product toremain strong. Revenues from the magazine meet the cost ofproduction first, with net proceeds distributed to unrestrictedtrust funds. The Institution continues to support theSmithsonian/Air and Space magazine which explores humanendeavor in flight and in exploration, science, and research withinthe atmosphere and beyond.
Publication Program The Smithsonian Institution Press (SIP), a member since 1966of the Association of American University Presses, designs and
66
Institutional Funding Goals?Operations
produces exhibition catalogs, educational pamphlets, andinformational leaflets that serve the Institution's millions ofvisitors and its extensive programs. The Press publishes highquality scholarly and general interest books, together withrecordings that preserve significant developments in the history ofAmerican music. SIP's customers include libraries, museums,scientific institutions, and the general public. The Press expects tocontinue to perform successfully with some net gains each yearfrom the production and sales of its products.
The Smithsonian has provided sales desks since the 1860s, Auxiliary and Otheroffering a diverse array of Institution-related products. Each item Business Activitiesoffered for sale in a museum shop must relate to the collections,be appropriate to the museum where sold, and conform to highstandards of quality and taste. Exhibition catalogs, otherpublications consonant with exhibition themes, and works bySmithsonian scholars are available in the museum shops. Otherofferings include reproductions of three-dimensional artifacts,handicrafts, and educational materials for children.From the original sales desk in the Castle, the Institution hasexpanded the Smithsonian experience to reach people of all ageswithout regard to their geographic distance from the Mall. TheMail Order Division publishes and distributes several catalogseach year to Associate members. These catalogs offer special itemsthat reflect Smithsonian collections and programs. In addition, theProduct Development and Licensing Division produces andmarkets reproductions and Smithsonian-related product lineswith major manufacturers.The Institution also refreshes visitors with restaurant facilitiesin major Smithsonian museums, including an old-fashioned icecream parlor in the Museum of American History. The NationalAir and Space Museum has a cafeteria seating eight hundred anda full-service restaurant on the mezzanine level. The Commons, inthe Castle, is open to Contributing Members and Smithsonian
staff. Other income-producing activities run by concessionairesare the popular carousel and popcorn wagons on the Mall, andthe shop, restaurant, and parking facilities at the Zoo.Several museums of the Institution conduct activities thatextend their continuing educational mission and provide asurplus of funds which help finance fellowships, collectionsacquisitions, guest lecturers, symposia, and special events. Mostnotable are the Langley Theater and the Planetarium at theNational Air and Space Museum.
67
Institutional Funding GoalsCapital Outlays
Repair and Restoration of Buildings
The Smithsonian's responsibility for its museum buildings andother facilities requires a continuing program of repair andmaintenance?which the staff accomplishes in part with fundsfrom operating budgets?and renovations and restorations. Theobjectives of the Repair and Restoration program are to provideefficiently operated, safe, and accessible facilities for research,education, and care of collections. Maintenance and preservationof facilities to ensure their long-term operation is one of theInstitution's highest priorities. This priority reflects theInstitution's great concern for the condition of its buildings,many of which appear on the Register of HistoricLandmarks.The Repair and Restoration of Buildings (R&R) accountfunds building repairs, restoration, and remodeling to bringbuildings into compliance with life-safety and health regulationsand to replace or renovate major building equipment orcomponents. This effort is a substantial one because theInstitution's buildings and facilities (other than the Zoo) consist offifteen museums and galleries in Washington, D.C., and NewYork City; facilities at Suitland, Maryland, and New York City forthe preservation and storage of collections; centers for biologicalresearch, conservation, and education in the Republic of Panamaand on the Chesapeake Bay; a center for astrophysics inCambridge, Massachusetts; and the Whipple Observatory on Mt.Hopkins near Tucson, Arizona.In past years, funding for maintenance, repair, andpreservation of buildings has not kept pace with need, resulting ina currently identified backlog of $216 million in repair andrestoration requirements. The R&R program will requireapproximately $35 million of annual funding throughout the nextten years in order to make progress in eliminating the backlog.During the next five years the Institution will address anumber of major problems including:
Installation of fire detection and suppression systemsrequired throughout Smithsonian buildings to meetcurrent fire codes;Removal or containment of dangerous substances, such asasbestos, remaining in many buildings;
68
SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTIONRepair & Restoration of Buildings
Fiscal Years 1991-1996(Millions of Dollars)
DI IV1/AJWIV V-rt 1 CVj^M FY 1991 FY 1992 FY 1993 FY 1994 FY 1995 FY 1996
Repair, Restoration & Code ComplianceGeneral Repairs $ 4.3 $ 2.6 $ 3.0 $ 2.5 S 2.8 S 1.6Facade, Roof & Terrace Repairs 3.8 3.6 10.3 1.9 2.8 2.2Fire Detection & Suppression 0.9 1.6 0.4 0.2Access, Safety & Security 2.8 4.2 2.1 2.2 2.4 1.1Utility System Repairs 4.5 5.0 1.4 3.8 1.5 0.7Advanced Planning & Inspection 1.0 2.1 2.8 2.7 2.7 2.2
Subtotal 17.3 19.1 20.0 13.1 12.4 7.8Major Capital Renewal 13.9 12.5 16.5 22.4 25.0 28.9TOTAL FOR R&R $31.2 $31.6 $36.5 $35.5 $37.4 S36.7
BY BUILDING FY 1991 FY 1992 FY 1993 FY 1994 FY 1995 FY 1996
National Museum of American HistoryNational Museum of Natural HistorySmithsonian Institution BuildingArts & Industries BuildingAmerican Art/Portrait Gallery
National Air & Space MuseumRenwick GalleryFreer Gallery of ArtSilver Hill FacilityEnvironmental Research Center
Hirshorn Museum & Sculpture GardenAnacostia MuseumSmithsonian Tropical Resarch InstituteSmithsonian Astrophysical ObservatoryCooper-Hewitt MuseumMuseum Support CenterNational Museum of the American IndianMiscellaneous
5.4 $ 7.1 $ 3.6 $ 2.4 $ 0.810.2 6.6 13.0 14.1 13.1 13.10.8 0.1 0.3 1.1 0.2 4.20.4 0.5 0.7 8.0 7.6 7.70.2 0.3 0.3 3.2 2.4
3.3 2.1 9.7 0.4 3.8 3.70.3 0.7 0.31.7 2.2 0.20.3 0.4 0.5 0.9 0.8 0.60.1 0.4 1.3 0.3 0.6 0.2
0.7 1.5 1.10.2 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.10.5 1.0 0.2 0.3 0.2 0.20.5 0.7 0.6 0.5 0.4 0.33.0 1.3 0.4 0.8 0.1 0.1
0.2 0.8 0.6 0.10.2 0.1 0.1 0.7 0.13.4 5.7 5.7 5.4 4.7 3.9TOTAL FOR R&R $31.2 $31.6 $36.5 $35.5 $37.4 $36.7
69
CHOOSING THE FUTURE
Repair or replacement of roofs, skylights, and windows atseveral buildings; andReplacement of electrical systems and of heating,ventilating, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems at theNatural History, American History, Arts and Industries,and American Art and Portrait Gallery buildings.
The R&R account consists of two subaccounts: Repairs,Restoration, and Code Compliance and Major Capital Renewal.
Repairs, Restoration, and Code Compliance
This subaccount funds routine repair and restorationincluding: general repairs; facade, roof, and terrace repairs; firedetection and suppression; access, safety, and security; utilitysystem repairs; and advanced planning and inspection for suchprojects. During the next five years, the Institution will seekfunding to eliminate the backlog in these projects.
Major Capital Renewal
During the next five years, a number of the Institution'shistoric buildings will reach the age at which the Institution mustundertake cyclical renewal of building components and systemssuch as the heating, ventilating, and air conditioning systems. Themajority of the HVAC equipment is now more than twenty-fiveyears old and requires replacement to avoid system failures.Unless the Smithsonian pays extraordinary attention to thespecific needs of its older buildings now, the Institution increasesthe possibility that equipment and systems failure may require theclosing of significant portions of buildings dedicated toexhibitions, collections storage, and research activities. TheInstitution has undertaken a significant portion of this cyclicalrenewal, but further analysis of the condition of the Smithsonian'solder buildings served to increase the estimated backlog.Projects in this category involve replacing major buildingsystems and components that have outlasted their useful lives.Complete replacement ensures long-term operation andpreservation of the building. Modifications of the building alsoimprove energy efficiency, meet fire detection and suppressionrequirements, and correct hazardous conditions. By groupingthese tasks together, the Institution saves money and avoidsrepeated disruption to building activities. The Institution mustrelocate staff and collections from the areas under construction toprevent damage and to allow staff to continue working during theconstruction period.
70
Institutional Funding Goals?Capital Outlays
Following are examples of current and planned Major CapitalRenewal projects.
In 1982, a study of the HVAC system of the American HistoryBuilding recommended replacement of the deteriorated HVACand refrigeration equipment and controls in the nowtwenty-five-year-old building. This will ensure continued energyefficient climate control. The Museum will isolate the verticalsegments of the building and work simultaneously on fireprotection, asbestos removal, and HVAC replacement. TheMuseum will synchronize its exhibition reinstallation and otheractivities with this renovation to take maximum advantage of thedown-time in each area of the building. Work began on the projectin 1987, and the Museum expects to complete the project in 1992.A subsequent project will replace systems in the basement.
HVAC System,American HistoryBuilding
Over the past several years the Institution has undertakenseparate studies of energy conservation, fire protection andsuppression, communications, security upgrading, asbestosabatement, and other measures to remedy building deficiencies,especially in the HVAC and electrical systems of the NaturalHistory Building. The studies revealed that the building requiresextensive work, and managers have developed a schedule thatwill economically sequence construction while limiting majordisruption of the Museum's activities. The Institution proposesconstructing a new building in the East Court to providepermanent additional space for the Museum's current activities.The Museum will use this building as staging space duringrenovation, to allow relocation of staff and collections affected byrenovation while work is in progress.The principal component of the renovation project is thereplacement of the HVAC and major electrical equipment in thebuilding, including the automatic temperature-control system.Ninety percent of the electrical lighting and power panels are at ornear the end of their useful life. The main high-voltage switchgearequipment serving the transformers for the Natural History, aswell as the Freer Gallery, Arts and Industries, and SmithsonianInstitution buildings, is approximately forty years old. TheInstitution must replace these and related electrical componentsbecause spare parts are unavailable. The Institution willincorporate fire protection modifications into the project, alongwith removal or encapsulation of asbestos insulation in the atticsand on equipment, duct work, and piping throughout thebuilding. In addition, modifications will include energy
HVAC and ElectricalSystems, NaturalHistory Building
71
CHOOSING THE FUTURE
conservation improvements. The Museum will coordinate theexhibit reinstallation program with the renovation project.
Utility Tunnels, Arts andIndustries Building One of the finest examples of Victorian architecture in thenation, the Arts and Industries Building, originally designed tohouse representative artifacts of the Philadelphia CentennialExposition, also needs extensive repair. Like the building itself,the underground utility trenches located within the building datefrom 1881. The tunnels are small and provide minimal or noaccess to the piping and electrical circuits within them makinginspection, maintenance, and alterations difficult and costly.Asbestos insulation covers some pipes within the tunnels. TheInstitution must renovate these utility tunnels before it canrefurbish the HVAC, electrical, and other utility systems nowreaching the end of their useful life.
HVAC System,American Art andPortrait Gallery Building The twenty-five-year-old HVAC system in the American Artand Portrait Gallery Building is in poor condition, and theSmithsonian must replace it to ensure continued service. Whilerenovating the HVAC, the Institution will improve the building tofoster the environmental conditions necessary to preserve thecollections housed in the building. These improvements will, forexample, provide more precise control of humidity and providebuilding technicians with the capacity to operate the heating andcooling systems simultaneously during the transitional seasons tomaintain appropriate temperatures. In addition, the phasedproject will include repair or replacement of all windows withdouble-glazed windows and the installation of waterproofing andof water-detection systems.
72
Institutional Funding Goals?Capital Outlays
State of Smithsonian Facilities
The Institution is responsible for the operation,
repair, restoration, and long-term preservation ofthe extensive and aging physical plantencompassing over two hundred buildings ofvarious sizes and types and totalling more than5.5 million square feet. Many of the buildingsare monumental in size and are NationalHistoric Landmarks. The Institution facesdilemmas with regard to its facilities that arefamiliar to other major museums, institutions ofhigher learning, and public and privateorganizations nationwide. Aging facilities,increasing construction, maintenance andenergy costs, and the need to update buildingsystems to comply with federal and localregulations have stressed resources available forconstruction, replacement, and repair ofbuildings. With changes and growth in demandsfor public programs, personnel, and scholarlyresearch, competition for Institutional resourceshave placed facility requirements in a precariousposition.The Smithsonian Institution faces two majorchallenges in the coming years with respect toits facilities. The first challenge is keeping upwith the repair requirements of these buildings.The high wear-and-tear from heavy visitor trafficand continuous operation of environmentalsystems exacerbates the natural aging process ofbuilding materials and components. Life-safety,health, and disabled access deficiencies requirecorrection to meet current codes. A backlogexists of over $200 million in repairs,
restoration, and code compliance work. At stakein the phased elimination of this backlog is thecontinued leadership of the Institution in itspublic programs, collections management, andresearch endeavors and its stewardship
responsibilities for the Smithsonian's currentfacility assets. The Institution has developed astrategy for eliminating this backlog over thenext decade, and the Regents, the Office ofManagement and Budget, and Congress havemade significant commitments to sustainfunding necessary to achieve this goal. Onlywith continued financial support can theInstitution keep its existing physical plant ingood working order and preserve its historiclegacy for future generations.The Smithsonian's second challenge is toprovide space in which its varied and changingprograms can function effectively. Program
vitality depends on the ability to keep pace withrequirements for new or modified space forcollections storage and management,exhibitions and educational activities, andresearch and support services. The Smithsoniancurrently experiences a serious shortage ofspace in which to carry out its mission fully. Thespace problem is particularly acute in the areaof collection storage. The Institution has to storea majority of its enormous wealth of objects thatdocument the natural world and man's history,
art, culture, and achievements in overcrowdedconditions. Much of the collections-storagespace does not meet the environmentalrequirements necessary to ensure long-termpreservation of the collections. The poorconditions contribute to deterioration of theobjects and prevent staff and other scholars fromworking with and studying the collections. TheSmithsonian's long-term goals for capitalexpansion include projects that will address thespace requirements most essential for continuedsuccess of its programs.
73
CHOOSING THE FUTURE
Construction
The Institution has numerous construction projects currentlyunderway or projects that will begin shortly at facilities on theMall, in the State of Arizona, and in the Republic of Panama. Infiscal years 1991 and 1992, the Institution will complete alterationsof the Freer Gallery, including the construction of the tunnellinking the Freer with the Sackler Gallery, expansion of storagespace, and renovation of the basement and gallery levels. TheSmithsonian will also complete a new base camp at the WhippleObservatory and research and support facilities at several sites ofthe Tropical Research Institute. The Institution will begin designand construction of facilities for the new National Museum of theAmerican Indian and an expansion of the National Museum ofNatural History.The Smithsonian continues to implement the master plan forthe National Zoological Park. The Zoo is repairing, altering, andimproving the plant property; constructing additions and minornew facilities including exhibits; and preparing plans andspecifications for further construction. The Zoo has developed afive-year construction and improvement schedule for both theRock Creek facility and the Conservation Center at Front Royal.Plans for facility development in the coming years represent amajor investment in the Institution's long-range program goals.The Smithsonian has a growing requirement for physical plantexpansion and modification to support program needs. The totalestimated cost, excluding nonappropriated sources of funds, ofthe comprehensive construction program for the next decade is inexcess of $700 million; the anticipated cost for construction andimprovements for the National Zoological Park is over $130million. Through realization of these plans, the Institution willremain vital in far-reaching programs of research, collectionsmanagement, public exhibitions and education, and other services.The following sections present the key elements of theplanned construction program in the next decade.
National Air and Space Museum Extension
The National Air and Space Museum currently faces a criticalfacilities shortage that threatens to cripple its basic collecting andexhibition programs. The Museum exhibits and stores itscollection of aircraft, spacecraft, and related artifacts in the Mallbuilding and at the Paul E. Garber Facility in Suitland, Maryland.These buildings are filled to capacity, despite deliberate steps to
74
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CHOOSING THE FUTURE
limit the growth of the collection. The enormous size ofcontemporary aircraft and spacecraft also prohibits the Museumfrom adding important artifacts to its collection because it isphysically impossible to transport them, even dismantled, toexisting facilities. The advanced age and deterioration of theSuitland buildings jeopardizes long-term preservation of theMuseum's existing collection. Many of the approximatelytwenty-three metal structures date to the 1940s and early 1950sand have an estimated life span of less than ten to fifteen moreyears. A number of the buildings do not provide climate controlnecessary for preservation of fragile materials.In addition to storage problems, artifact size has dictatedexhibit limitations as well. The Museum cannot display a numberof important aircraft and spacecraft already in the collectionbecause they are too big and /or too heavy for the Mall building.Because the current buildings cannot accommodate largercontemporary aircraft and spacecraft, the Museum cannot conveyto the public the evolving social impact and policy issuesexemplified by these artifacts.The Institution has long recognized that an Air and SpaceMuseum Extension at or near an airport in the Washington areawould best meet the physical requirements for storage andexhibition of contemporary aircraft and spacecraft. Such a facility,located and constructed to accommodate large-scale artifacts,would provide the context in which to communicate complexthemes of social, environmental, and policy change ushered in bytheir use.Congress is currently considering legislation authorizing theInstitution to plan and design the Air and Space MuseumExtension.
National Museum of the American IndianThe Institution plans to construct a new museum building, theNational Museum of the American Indian (NMAI) on the lastremaining site on the Mall. Congress reserved this property,bounded by Third Street, Maryland Avenue, Fourth Street andJefferson Drive, for future activities of the Smithsonian (P.L. 94-74,approved August 8, 1975). The Institution also will build aconservation, collections storage and research facility onSmithsonian land in Suitland, Maryland, and will operate asatellite exhibition and education center in a portion of the OldUnited States Custom House in New York City. The Institutionanticipates a federal appropriation for construction of the newfacilities and also is seeking support from private sources.
76
The Institution has, for a number of years, experienced asevere shortage of space in which to store, document, andconserve its collections. The Museum Support Center opened in1983 and the proposed Air and Space Museum Extension willprovide space to solve the most immediate storage needs fornatural history and aerospace collections. The Institution urgentlyneeds space, however, to ensure the continued vitality of thecollection-based research and collections-management programsof other Smithsonian museums and bureaus. The Institution hasbegun documenting its immediate and long-term needs foradditional space to house growing collections in history and art,as well as important archival and library collections. TheInstitution expects to need almost three million square feet of newstorage and collections-management, conservation, and researchsupport space over the next twenty years.The age and condition of the present storage buildings atSuitland exacerbate the space requirement problem. Among thestructures at the Institution's storage facility are temporary, metalbuildings which provide 115,000 square feet of storage space forthe National Museum of American History. Most of thesebuildings have a life expectancy of less than ten to fifteen moreyears. Since half the National Museum of American Historycollections, exclusive of stamps and coins, reside there, it isessential to have facilities ready in the next decade or so to ensurethat the national collections have proper housing. Othermuseums, as well as archival and library bureaus, have a seriousshortage of appropriate collections-storage facilities.Overcrowding in the Mall museums has caused several museumsand bureaus to move collections into leased space off the Mall toavoid damage to and deterioration of sensitive materials fromexcessive crowding. A number of these locations, as well as manyof the Suitland buildings, do not provide environmentalconditions suitable for long-term preservation of museum artifacts.A recently completed study determined that land is availableon the Smithsonian's Museum Support Center property inSuitland, Maryland, on which to build facilities to accommodatethe identified requirements. The Smithsonian plans to sequenceconstruction of a new Collections Research Center at Suitlandover the next ten to twenty years. Space will also be available onadjacent land, once the Paul E. Garber Facility is dismantled, thatcould provide three to five million additional square feet of spacefor growth of the collections and support services well into thenext century.
Institutional Funding Goals?Capital Outlays
-Collections Research Center
?
CHOOSING THE FUTURE
General Post Office Building
In 1984 Congress authorized the transfer of the General PostOffice Building from the General Services Administration to theSmithsonian. The General Services Administration will transfercustodianship of the building when the Institution receivesfunding to renovate it for museum use.America's first native-born professional architect, Robert Millsof South Carolina, designed the original wing. Mills also designedthe Patent Office Building, the Washington Monument, and theTreasury Building. The General Post Office Building, bounded bySeventh, Eighth, E, and F Streets in northwest Washington, D.C.,is the fifth oldest public building in Washington and has neverundergone renovation or restoration.The Institution is concerned about the long-term preservationof this historic landmark and plans a comprehensive program ofrestoration and repairs to make the building usable forSmithsonian activities directed at scholarship in the field ofAmerican art. In addition to old and deteriorated buildingsystems and exterior components, a number of hazardousconditions require early renovation.
National Museum of Natural History, East Court Building
The Natural History Building on the Mall is the center ofnumerous activities that support the Institution's basic mission toincrease and diffuse knowledge. Over one hundred fifty scientistsand their staffs, and over two thousand visiting scientists annuallyconduct basic and collections-related research of criticalimportance to the advancement of scientific knowledge andunderstanding of natural phenomena. Exhibitions communicate arange of themes in the natural sciences to millions of annual
visitors. The Museum also houses extensive collections,educational and public service activities, and administrative andsupport staff. In order to accommodate the growth in the staff, theMuseum has repeatedly partitioned offices and laboratories intosmaller and smaller spaces. Two exhibit halls, dismantled severalyears ago, remain closed to accommodate staff activities. Therelocation of part of the collections to the Museum Support Centerwill provide some additional space, but not enough to maintainthe best conditions for the Museum's diverse programs.The complete renovation of the HVAC, as well as electricalsystems, in the building will exacerbate the space problem at theNatural History Building over the next decade. The Museum willhave to find temporary staging space to house its programs andcollections during this renovation. Use of exhibit space for this
78
Institutional Funding Goals?Capital Outlays
purpose would close many of the public exhibitions for ten years,and leased space would provide appropriate facilities only at avery high cost.The Museum plans to alleviate its space problems by buildinga new structure in the east court of the Natural History Building.The new building will provide about eighty-thousand square feetof staging space for laboratories, offices, and collections duringthe HVAC renovation and will allow permanent redistribution ofstaff and collection areas at the end of the construction period. TheInstitution will begin the design phase in fiscal year 1991.
Smithsonian Tropical Research InstituteThe Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute located in theRepublic of Panama, is the nation's principal center for tropicalbiology. Most STRI facilities include buildings constructed in the1920s and 1930s and renovated structures obtained from the U. S.military and other agencies. In 1986 the Institution completed amaster plan to guide a comprehensive program to improve STRI'sfacilities and to support the Smithsonian's long-range scientificgoals. The Institution is now constructing new facilities in anumber of locations to replace the most inadequate anddilapidated ones. The Tupper Laboratory and Conference Centerwas dedicated in Spring 1990 at the headquarters site in Tivoli.The Institution is building new laboratory, dining, conference,residential, and docking facilities on Barro Colorado Island. TheSmithsonian will begin relocating and upgrading the Atlanticresearch field station and facilities in the San Bias archipelago andwill purchase and equip a new floating laboratory. STRI plans to
Glenn Tupper cuts theribbon to officially openthe Tropical ResearchInstitute's Earl S. TupperCenter, named in honorof his father. (Photo byMarcos Guerra)
79
CHOOSING THE FUTURE
build a new workshop and maintenance facility at Tivoli toprovide a central location for ongoing maintenance of itsbuildings and its fleet of vehicles and boats.
Administrative Service Center
Construction Planning
Over the past fifteen years, the Smithsonian has consolidated anumber of scattered special purpose, warehouse, and lightindustrial support activities in a single leased location at 1111North Capitol Street, N.E., in Washington, D.C. Now, two factorshave prompted the Institution to acquire a replacement for thisleased facility. First, the current lease expires in the fall of 1992,and the present building owners are actively seeking to sell thisproperty because of its significantly increased value as an officebuilding site. Second, a thorough review of Institution supportactivity space requirements indicates that a larger Service Centeris now needed to accommodate the current operations andcontinue the policy of reserving space on the Mall for publicprograms and research.Preliminary review of possible replacement facilities indicatesthat a number of lease arrangements or options for futureownership may be available. Although the Institution does notanticipate relocating before 1993, the management is seekingfederal support for planning, design and consultant services, andother one-time costs that are anticipated.
An essential part of an effective facilities developmentprogram is the ability to assess requirements and make detailedlong-range plans. A comprehensive long-range planning programidentifies major issues affecting each expansion project, includingprogram needs, spatial ideas, operating logistics and costs, andpreliminary construction cost estimates. The Institution hasestablished an improved long-range planning capability byadopting a ten-year development program to address theInstitution's most urgent expansion needs. During the planningperiod, the staff will refine these plans and consider additionalrequirements that will extend well beyond the year 2000.
Minor Construction, Alterations, and ModificationsThe Smithsonian requires continued changes andimprovements to existing buildings to meet programmaticobjectives in the areas of research, collections management,exhibitions, and administration.
80
Institutional Funding Goals?Capital Outlays
Into the Twenty-First CenturyBeyond fiscal year 2000, the Institution will continue to requirenew facilities to meet its multidimensional program needs. TheInstitution is considering the following construction projects in thelong-term:
Continuation of the initiatives to develop collectionsresearch and storage facilities;Removal of the antiquated buildings at the Garber Facilitywhen the National Air and Space Museum Extension iscompleted;Development of a dedicated presence forAfrican-American programming either through expansionof the National Museum of American History or a separateexhibition, collection, and research center;Construction of a new, expanded facility for the AnacostiaMuseum;Expansion of the Cooper-Hewitt National Museum ofDesign to provide additional space for collection storageand exhibitions and to support educational activities;Expansion of the Hirshhorn Museum to accommodateincreased exhibition and research programs;Continued acquisition of land for environmental researchat the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center;Expansion of the Mathias Laboratory at the SmithsonianEnvironmental Research Center to meet the increasingneed for environmental research; andExpansion of the National Museum of Natural HistoryWest Court to accommodate increased programming andconstruction of a new restaurant pavilion.
Zoological Park and Conservation Research Center Master Plan
In keeping with the 1889 charter, the National Zoological Parkendeavors to "administer and improve" the Zoo for "theadvancement of science and instruction and recreation of thepeople" (20 U.S.C. 81). The National Zoological Park complexincludes 163 acres in Rock Creek Park (Washington, D.C.) and its3,150 acre Conservation and Research Center in Front Royal,Virginia. Since 1890, exhibition and public educational functionshave centered in the Rock Creek Park location. Conservation,research, and breeding functions take place at both Rock Creekand the Conservation and Research Center. This section surveysthe construction and improvement projects anticipated over theplanning period for both locations.
81
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CHOOSING THE FUTURE
Olmsted Walk Restoration and construction of the Olmsted Walk began infiscal year 1985 with emphasis given to preserving and enhancingthe natural and historical character of the Park. The Zoo willrenovate some exhibits along the Walk to enhance the visitors'experience of viewing the animals. This renovation will includenew surfaces for the Walk, adequate drainage, new landscaping,additional benches and drinking fountains, and improvedsignage. These improvements will unify the exhibits and groundsand provide a pleasant and educational experience for the publicat the National Zoo. The Zoo has completed the first three phasesof the Olmsted Walk renovation. With continued federal supportin fiscal year 1992, the Zoo will complete overall landscaping ofthe adjacent areas. The landscaping will screen parking areas,create shade, add color, and develop diversity for the benefit ofthe visiting public.
Loop Trail Signage The Olmsted Walk project established a clear pedestrianthoroughfare from the Connecticut Avenue entrance down to theRock Creek entrance. This efficient route connects most of theZoo's exhibit structures. However, it bypasses the Bird House,with its new wetlands exhibit, the exhibits in Beaver Valley, andthe Zoo's new Aquatic Habitat complexes. The Loop Trail willconnect these major exhibits and other animal areas with the mainOlmsted Walk.
New street signs andmaps. (Photo byJessie Cohen)
84
Institutional Funding Goals?Capital Outlays
The Zoo plans aquatic exhibits that will include a full range of Aquatic Exhibitsfish, aquatic mammals, birds, reptiles, and amphibians. Theplanned exhibits will concentrate on freshwater animals. Togetherwith the invertebrate exhibit which opened in May 1987, theproposed aquatic exhibits will fill the last gap in the Zoo'spresentation to the public of representatives of all the majoranimal groups. Previously, the Zoo emphasized terrestrialanimals almost exclusively despite the fact that over 60 percent ofthe world's vertebrate animals are fish and despite the fact thatthe general public knows little about aquatic animals. Theanimals that the Zoo will feature in the new aquatic exhibitsinclude those not presented in most zoos, hence the proposedexhibit provides an excellent opportunity to educate and entertainthe general public about these engaging and important groups ofanimals.The aquatic exhibits will include four components whichtogether, will fully embody the Biodiversity Park philosophy: theAmazonia Exhibit; the Amazonia Gallery; an Aquatic Trail; andother Aquatic Habitat exhibits.The Zoo has scheduled the first phase, the Amazonia Exhibit,for construction. This exhibit will display aquatic mammals,appropriate fish, invertebrates, birds, and amphibians, as well asvegetation in the natural habitat, a tropical river shore. Visitorswill view these animals from both above ground and underwaterviewing stations. The exhibit setting, a tropical rain forest, willillustrate the predominant features of tropical biology andemphasize complexity, specialization, and species interactions.As an extension of the Amazonia Exhibit, the Zoo plans aneight-thousand-square-foot Amazonia Gallery that will containthe Smithsonian Tropical Science and Global EnvironmentalScience Gallery. The Gallery will educate the visitor about globalproblems and tropical biology. The exhibits in the Gallery willprovide close-up views of the complex web of cooperation andcompetition among plants and animals.The Aquatic Trail will consist of a cluster of exhibits near theZoo's Amazonia Exhibit. The exhibit will include the addition oftwo widely popular groups of animals, sea otters and penguins.These animals are the focus of important conservation efforts.Within the Aquatic Trail cluster of exhibits, the Zoo plans tohighlight areas such as the American Lake, the South AtlanticCoast, the Chesapeake Marshes, and a Mangrove Swamp.In addition to the aquatic exhibits planned through fiscal year1991, the Zoo plans further aquatic habitats as included in themaster plan.
85
CHOOSING THE FUTURE
Parking Facility For over a decade the Institution has entertained a long-rangeplan for a centralized multi-level parking garage at Rock Creek.Such a facility would expand exhibition space by using thepresent surface-parking areas that occupy level land in the centerof the Zoo. This level ground is more appropriate to certainspecies, and its use as exhibition space would increase the naturalsetting of the Zoo's core areas. The proposed parking garage willinclude approximately 1,100 spaces compared to the existing 250spaces on the site adjacent to the present General ServicesBuilding. The construction will include a pedestrian walk andtunnel to allow visitors unimpeded access to the central animalarea. The Zoo has tentatively scheduled construction of theparking facility for 1993 through 1995.
Grasslands and ForestsExhibits The Zoo proposes to develop three exhibits during the comingdecade, each representing a distinct ecological and geographicarea. These will include: American Grasslands, AfricanGrasslands, and Forests. Construction of the first will occur in late1993 and 1994.The American Grasslands exhibit will consist of two majorhabitats, the North American Prairies and the South AmericanGrasslands. Separating the two exhibits, a planted berm willconceal a service yard and holding buildings. Bison, coyotes,sandhill cranes, prairie dogs, and gopher snakes will populate thePrairie exhibit. The American Grasslands exhibit will quartermara, giant anteaters, capybara, maned wolves, rhea, andguanacos.The African Grasslands exhibit also will subdivide into twomajor habitats, the African Savannah Grasslands and the AfricanDesert Grasslands. The trails in the two subdivisions will includescreening and specimen plantings to create the illusion of being inAfrica. Animal species such as zebra, ostrich, wildebeest,flamingo, spotted hyena, blesbok, gerenuk, and dwarf mongoosewill inhabit the new exhibit. A nocturnal exhibit will includespecies such as the zorille, aardvark, fennec fox, cobra, andinsects. The Zoo plans to include gazelle, crowned crane, meerkat,duiker, and klipspringer in the Desert exhibit.The Forests exhibit will feature three major habitats: WestAfrican Forests, Southeast Asia Forests, and the Sulawesi Forests.The Zoo will include mandrill, leopard, bongo, Eld's deer, tapir,muntjac, anoa, and babirusa in the exhibit.The Zoo estimates that construction of the Grasslands andForests Exhibits will occur between fiscal years 1992 and1994.
86
Institutional Funding Goals?Capital Outlays
In order to reflect its enhanced animal husbandry standards,the Zoo will remodel the Monkey House and replace it with theHall of Humankind. The new facility will treat primate biologyand will include human biology, origins, and culturalachievements. This exhibit will complement exhibits on humanorigins in the National Museum of Natural History. Here the Zoowill exhibit tool-using capuchin monkeys, language- anddrawing-capable apes, orb-weaving spiders, leaf-cutting ants, andhoneybees as analogues of socially, technologically, agriculturally,linguistically, and artistically accomplished humans.
Hall of Humankind
The Zoo plans to construct a Children's Facility beginning infiscal year 1995. The new exhibit will provide programming forchildren and their families. The building, to be known as theRabitat, will include both an indoor and an outdoor activitygarden with natural animal exhibits, a human-size game maze,and a sensory garden maze. Rabitat will combine fantasy with anatural environment to help children learn about a habitat and theanimals that share it.
Children's Facility(Rabitat)
In addition to the redevelopment master plan, the ZoologicalPark is responsible for a continuing program of maintenance andrepair of its sixty separate structures, and associated grounds,
utilities, and equipment. The Zoo will require $2 million annually($2.2 million by fiscal year 1996) for structural, mechanical, andelectrical repairs and renovation of the physical plant.
Renovation and Repairs
To improve operations, security, and accessibility, the Zoo willconsolidate into one area the maintenance trade shops that servethe Conservation and Research Center. The Zoo will renovate andmodify a group of supply buildings to serve as the new tradeshops and to provide parking for the Center's motor pooloperations and off-site employees. The Center will use the spacethe present shops vacate for expanded research laboratories andstudent housing.
Maintenance Facility
This proposed new facility will provide needed additionalspace to support research and breeding programs for small tomedium-sized endangered species of mammals. This facility willutilize the same passive solar heat/natural light that has provenso successful in the small animal facility devoted to conservationand improved animal health. The Multi-Purpose Animal Facilityis scheduled for construction in 1991.
Multi-Purpose AnimalFacility
87
CHOOSING THE FUTURE
Water System,Hydrants, and RoadExtensions
The Conservation and Research Center plans to develop aninfrastructure that will serve equally any of the major functionalpaths that the Center may follow in the next twenty years. TheCenter will upgrade and extend the water distribution system,including fire hydrants. The Center also will redesign the roadsystem to improve vehicular access to outlying areas and willrepair or replace deteriorating existing roads.
Training Center The Zoo's Conservation Research Center at Front Royal,Virginia, will continue to expand its widely acclaimedinternational training programs. These programs have nowinvolved more than thirty-five countries. The Zoo plans toconstruct a new complex of classroom, laboratory, auditorium,and living and recreational space which will serve its training andsmall conference needs.
Pachyderm Facility This facility, scheduled for construction in fiscal years 1993and 1994, will quarter large, nontemperate mammals for researchand breeding. The Zoo has chosen a site that is well suited for thispurpose and will require minimal support. The facility will permitthe Zoo to pursue breeding programs for such criticallyendangered groups as rhinoceroses and tapirs.
88

. . for the increaseand diffusionof knowledge.
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:
Smithsonian InstitutionFive-Year Prospectus Fiscal Years 1992 - 1996