Editor’s Pick: Earth Day at FUTURES
FUTURES is a special exhibition at the Smithsonian with 150 innovative and awe-inspiring objects, ideas, prototypes, and installations.
It was America’s first National Museum upon opening in 1881 and has subsequently been referred to as the “Mother of Museums” for its role in incubating some of today’s freestanding Smithsonian museums.
Obviously, the architectural icon at the heart of the National Mall now known as the Arts and Industries Building has history down pat. Since last fall, the 141-year-old structure has shifted to become a future-focused institution, to the extent that it has been rebranded for the time being “a national space to explore the future.”
All such exploration starts with FUTURES, a special exhibition that currently fills 32,000 square feet of space with more than 150 innovative and awe-inspiring objects, ideas, prototypes, and installations — all displayed with the aim of helping visitors “imagine many possible futures on the horizon.”
For three days starting on Earth Day, Friday, April 22, the primary focus will be on “bold new solutions for a sustainable world” in areas as diverse as food, climate, energy, and transportation. The special programming kicks off with an Earth Day- and sustainability-themed “Fridays at FUTURES” community-geared evening from 5:30 to 7 p.m.
Throughout Saturday, April 23, and Sunday, April 24, guests can get a taste of tomorrow at the FUTURES Food Market, participate in an energy-efficient Silent Disco, immerse themselves in a Morning Sound Bath, contribute to a biodegradable Community Living Art Wall, or take a close-up view of Ford Motor Company’s new Lightning EV prototype of an all-electric truck.
Each day also offers a different “We Interrupt Your Regularly Scheduled Panel” discussion, with the first, Saturday, April 23, starting at 4 p.m., “Energizing our FUTURES,” looking at the defining role the renewable energy sector, including solar, wind, and water power, could play in shaping the future, with panelists including LeRoy Coleman of the National Hydropower Association, Raymond Nevo of the National Housing Trust, and Amit Ronen of The George Washington University and its GW Solar Institute.
The “Future of Transportation” panel on Sunday, April 24, starting at 4 p.m., spotlights the various methods that could radically transform cities and the world, from mass transit to autonomous cars to electric-powered bikes and scooters, with speakers including Rachel Healy of the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority aka Metro, Dominick Tribone of Lyft Bikes & Scooters, Tara Pham of civic tech data organization Numina, Sheryl Connelly, Ford’s Chief Futurist, and Regan Patterson of the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation.
Another highlight, available throughout April, is “FUTURES Play Lab: Future of Water,” an immersive virtual-reality experience, in partnership with Oracle, that follows the water life cycle from storm drains to ocean evaporation, offering specific action steps along the way that individuals could take to aid in water conservation.
The Smithsonian’s Arts and Industries Building is at 900 Jefferson Dr. SW. Admission is free. Call 202-633-1000 or visit www.aib.si.edu.
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