FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 19, 2017
ARLINGTON, VA – The American Alliance of Museums (AAM), the only organization representing the entire scope of the museum community, today launched an unprecedented economic study to quantify the economic value and impact of museums nationwide.
“Museums educate and inspire, nourish minds and spirits, enrich lives and create healthy communities. And museums also return substantial economic value to their communities,” said Alliance President and CEO Laura Lott. “Despite that real economic value, museums are under attack in the federal budget and by many state and local policymakers, and we need better, more comprehensive data to quantify our value and tremendous community benefit. We’re grateful to the Mellon Foundation for recognizing this need and supporting this critical research, which will give a more complete picture than ever seen before of the economic impact and value of museums.”
With support from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, the Alliance has partnered with Oxford Economics to complete the research and report by the end of 2017. The research will result in a comprehensive report on the value and economic benefit of museums including jobs, direct spending, and supply-chain effects. Using this new data and other resources, AAM will equip and engage thousands of museum trustees, as well as museum professionals, across the United States to articulate and share the value and impact of museums in their communities.
Hamilton Galloway, head of consultancy, Americas at Oxford Economics, said, “We are excited to work with AAM to deepen knowledge and understanding of the economic importance and contribution of American museums across US society. In addition to being leading innovators in research and education, museums serve as connective tissue between history, arts, science, conservation, the environment, and the public. In our work for AAM, we will be bringing to bear the full range of our analytical tools, techniques, and team capabilities to rigorously quantify the economic contribution of museums to America and Americans.”
About the American Alliance of Museums
The American Alliance of Museums has been bringing museums together since 1906, helping to develop standards and best practices, gathering and sharing knowledge, and providing advocacy on issues of concern to the entire museum community. Representing more than 35,000 individual museum professionals and volunteers, institutions, and corporate partners serving the museum field, the Alliance stands for the broad scope of the museum community. For more information, visit www.aam-us.org.
###
Press Contact:
Joseph Klem
Director, Public Relations
Phone: 202-218-7670
Email: jklem@aam-us.org
