Museum für Naturkunde Berlin

The Museum für Naturkunde Berlin – Leibniz Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity Science – is an integrated research museum within the Leibniz Association. It is one of the most important research institutions worldwide in the areas of biological and geological evolution, biodiversity, science in society and citizen science. The Museum’s mission is to discover and describe life and earth – with people, through dialogue. As an excellent research museum and innovative communication platform, we want to engage with and influence the scientific and societal discourse about the future of our planet, worldwide. Our vision, strategy and structure make the museum an excellent research museum. We have research partners in Berlin, Germany and approximately 60 other countries. Over 700,000 visitors per year as well as steadily increasing participation in educational and other events show that we have become an innovative communication centre that helps shaping the scientific and social dialogue about the future of our earth. Alongside knowledge transfer, our research and our collection are the main pillars of the museum’s work. The collection is a unique natural and cultural asset, inextricably linked to our research and comprises over 30 million items covering zoology, palaeontology, geology and mineralogy and is of highest scientific and historical importance. Citizen Science is also a key pillar of the Museum. Building on a long tradition of volunteer research, the inclusion of citizens is becoming increasingly significant. As part of the project Citizens Create Knowledge (Bürger schaffen Wissen), we support participants in their networking activities and help raise their profile, as well as looking at concrete questions in connection with the implementation of citizen science projects. We are also building an international network of competence in the shape of the European Citizen Science Association – ECSA.