Arlington, VA (January 31)—The Association of Children’s Museums (ACM) and National Geographic Media have announced a collaboration to offer exclusive benefits to children’s museums. ACM U.S. members will now have access to bulk discounts on Nat Geo Kids and Nat Geo Little Kids magazines as well as curated digital content. Through more than 375 ACM members representing all 50 states, children’s museums welcome 31 million visitors annually.
Exploration, education, connections among the peoples, animals, and environments of the world are things that children’s museums and National Geographic Kids have in common. Nat Geo Kids (aimed at ages 6+) and Nat Geo Little Kids (ages 3-6) provide a wealth of content across topics like animals, science, geography, and history tailored towards young and youth audiences that can be a resource to children’s museum educators and staff, as well as a good read or great visual to curl up with in a reading nook or quiet space at a museum.
“Children’s museums serve the needs and interests of children by providing exhibits and programs that stimulate curiosity and motivate learning,” emphasizes Arthur G. Affleck III, executive director of ACM. “Together with National Geographic, we are pleased to amplify our reach to serving children and families in alignment with our strategic vision and mission to enrich their lives and ensure a bright future.”
National Geographic will offer a discounted rate of $19/annual subscription of Nat Geo Kids and Nat Geo Little Kids to ACM member museums. National Geographic will also offer a 30-Day Digital Free Trial to National Geographic’s digital subscription for ACM members and staff.
“National Geographic has been inspiring exploration for over 135 years,” said Julie Galvin, Vice President of Partnerships for National Geographic Media, “We are thrilled to collaborate with the Association of Children’s Museums where together we strive to spark curiosity and wonder in kids of all ages.”
About Association of Children’s Museums (ACM)
The Association of Children’s Museums (ACM) champions more than 375 children’s museums, and individual professionals, and together enrich the lives of children worldwide. In 50 states and 19 countries, serving as local destinations, educational laboratories, community resources, and advocates for children, the children’s museum field welcomes and engages more than 31 million visitors annually.
About National Geographic Media
Nat Geo Media is a worldwide digital, social and print publisher, operating in over 170 countries, with several print and digital products and over 1/2 a billion followers on social media. We inspire curious fans of all ages through bold and innovative storytelling about people, places and projects that shape our world, and enable our fans to connect, explore, engage with and care about the world. For more information, visit nationalgeographic.com, find us on the National Geographic app or visit us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn, Pinterest and TikTok.
GivingTuesday, November 29th this year, reimagines the world as one founded upon generosity. The idea is simple but powerful: every act of generosity counts, and everyone has something to give. Now in its tenth year, GivingTuesday is a movement not just a moment on the calendar to enact kindness including and beyond giving money.
The day is often seen as a time to solicit donations, a nice antidote to the consumerism of Black Friday and Cyber Monday, but there are many ways to be generous along with fundraising: hosting a festival or drive, a day or volunteerism, making it a day of thanking your supporters, encouraging peer-to-peer fundraisers for your organization, hosting a social media take over on your platforms, random acts of kindness kits or campaigns.
GivingTuesday does impact giving behavior:
•84% of those aware of GivingTuesday are inspired to give more
•82% of those aware of GivingTuesday participate
•GivingTuesday is sticky; the people you activate and donors you gain strongly tend to be loyal
Here are some resources to support you in your GivingTuesday plans.
GivingTuesday, begun at the 92nd Street Y ten years ago and now its own nonprofit, provides a workbook as a step-by-step guide: key messages, activations, social media plans, campaign ideas, plus editable logo files and design templates.
Have your supporters, followers, Board members, and community add GivingTuesday to their calendars with one click.
No need to reinvent the wheel: click here for a catalog of acts of kindness you can lead or simply share among your community.
Candid, a nonprofit dedicated to supporting the social sector, provides nonprofits with profiles that share their mission and demonstrate their transparency to potential donors and funders. Details about earning a seal of transparency here. Candid sees a large spike, a 220% increase for GivingTuesday 2021 over non-seasonal periods, on profile views as potential donors review organizations they are considering contributing towards.
Now, though December 31, 2023; if your museum is a less than $1mil operation and you earn your Gold Seal, you qualify for a year of free access to the Foundation Directory, a real research boost to your fundraising efforts year-round.
GivingTuesday can be a lighter lift for your museum by joining with a local community movement. There are over 240 networks within the United States for GivingTuesday and 80 countries worldwide with movements of their own. Check the to see if there’s an existing movement you can join by clicking the links above.
Or, a children’s museum is a natural to start a giving coalition and be the catalyst for a community campaign. Children’s Museums of Fond du Lac is among three Wisconsin nonprofits that joined forces starting in 2020 creating Together FDL, a collective of 15 local nonprofits. Andrea Welsch Executive Director of the Children’s Museum of Fond du Lac acknowledges it can be scary: fear that your piece of donations pie will shrink, or that it’s too close to year’s end to ask. But data shows neither is the case. Fond du Lac’s experience, born of the economic straits caused by the pandemic, was that the many hands of the community make light work. It was worth it to all participants, and they’ll be campaign as a collective for a third year this November.
Use the pledge of one person or organization to inspire others to give. People are 84% more likely to donate if they know they’ll be matched. You can look for your matching donor among your Board Members, major donors or capital campaign contributors, vendors and sponsors, or a local celebrity or influencer. More good news; the amount of the match doesn’t matter greatly in terms of incentivizing giving.
The Associations of Children’s Museums (ACM) champions children’s museums worldwide. Follow ACM on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.
