National Museum and Cultural Institution Energy Survey

MAAM is joining museum and cultural institution associations across the country in supporting the National Museum Energy Survey, one of our first steps in a coordinated commitment to modeling and leading climate action for the communities that trust us. 

Museums use significant energy—a major source of carbon emissions and costs. Yet unlike schools, offices, and other commercial buildings, museums have no standardized way to compare their energy use and overall building performance against peers to understand where there is room to improve. 

To change this, the nonprofits Environment & Culture Partners and New Buildings Institute are collecting building and energy data from museums nationwide. Results will go to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to explore a benchmark and 1-100 ENERGY STAR® Score for the sector, giving us all an easily accessible way to see where our own institutions are already doing well, and where there’s room to be more efficient, reduce emissions and costs, and reinvest savings into the mission-driven work that matters most. 

We need data from about 250 more museums to make this benchmark possible. 

What participation involves: 

• Spending about 30 minutes to complete the Survey, once your data is ready 
• Gathering and sharing 2025 data on your building (e.g., square footage, age, designation), operations (e.g., hours, attendance, staffing, equipment), and energy and water use (monthly totals by source) 

Submit your Survey by October 31, 2026 to be entered in a free drawing. Two randomly selected Survey participants will each receive two 50% off registration codes for the March 2027 Building Museums™ Symposium in Los Angeles, generously provided by the Mid-Atlantic Association of Museums. 

Let’s do this together. 

💡 Learn more about the Survey on the project page
✅ Let the project team know you’re in: https://forms.office.com/r/qR28XcUM1Q 
👍 Start your Survey: https://tally.so/r/obO12e  

Questions? Contact hello@ecprs.org or join the drop-in office hours September 29, 12-1pm PT and October 29, 9-10am PT.