Thank you for your interest in volunteering in the Office of Education and Outreach at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History.
Currently, we are recruiting volunteers for the Butterfly Pavilion, Insect Zoo, Forensic Anthropology Lab, and Discovery Room.
Against all Odds: Rescue at the Chilean Mine is a temporary exhibition that commemorates the rescue of 33 Chilean miners after more than two months trapped in the collapsed San Jose mine during the Summer and Fall of 2010. The exhibition tells the compelling story of miners and the rescue with a selection of objects, images, video, audio, models and text that help take viewers to the scene, while learning about the region’s geology, the mine collapse, survival underground, the miner’s personal stories, and the science of the rescue.
As a volunteer you would guide audiences to encourage dialogue, interaction and reflection through activities, help visitors find answers to their questions, and encourage their curiosity.
Special requirements:
Help the Smithsonian by volunteering in a lush tropical setting surrounded by hundreds of butterflies from around the world!
The Butterflies + Plants: Partners in Evolution exhibit is looking for reliable volunteers, with a genuine interest in learning more about butterflies and plants, the co-evolution of plants and animals, and interacting with the public. Volunteers welcome Museum visitors to the pavilion and help guide them in their discovery of the amazing evolution story of butterflies and plants. The exhibit offers a rare opportunity to get close to over 300 living butterflies from around the world while making science more accessible.
Special requirements:
Are you interested in anthropology, biology, and mineral sciences? Do you like working with children and families in an interactive and dynamic setting? Consider volunteering in the Discovery Room!
The Discovery Room is a hands-on space geared to families with children who want to explore the natural world at their own pace guided by their own interests. Volunteers guide children and families through activities, help them find answers to their questions and encourage their curiosity. Weekday and weekend opportunities are available in the morning and afternoon.
Are you a fan of bones, mysteries and colonial history?
The Forensic Anthropology Lab, which is part of an exhibition called Written in Bone: Forensic Files of the 17th Century Chesapeake, is a hands-on learning space where visitors, including organized school groups, can work to solve a realistic forensic case studying real human bones and using the tools and techniques that forensic anthropologists use in their line of work. Volunteers will answer questions, help visitors in their exploration of bones, facilitate hands-on learning activities and help them understand what kinds of information scientists gain from bones.
The Earth has many stories to tell ... the secrets of over 4 billion years of Earth history lie within the rocks and minerals that are scattered across our planet and Solar System!
As a volunteer, you will explore the exhibition with museum visitors and stimulate their curiosity about the beauty and wonder of the rocks, minerals, and meteorites in the Museum's collection.
The Museum is in search of enthusiastic, affable and dedicated volunteers to help museum visitors discover the amazing world of insects, spiders and their many-legged relatives.
The O. Orkin Insect Zoo exhibits over 50 species of insects and their arthropod relatives. The exhibit introduces visitors to the story of arthropod diversity, evolution, and how they evolved over hundreds of millions of years to successfully inhabit most of the Earth's environments. Insect Zoo volunteers help spark visitor conversations and questions through handling live insects, giving tarantula feeding demonstrations, and by engaging visitors with everything from an observation bee hive to a case of Costa Rican cone-headed katydids.
The newly formed Office of Visitor Experience within the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History is delighted to extend the opportunity of joining one of the largest and most visited museums of its kind in the world. The Visitor Concierge program is a new, keystone program of the Office of Visitor Experience that recruits and trains world-class volunteers to engage with and inspire the myriad visitors who visit the museum each day. The Museum programs over 385k square feet of public space with exhibitions, films, interactive experiences and amenities, and only a well-informed visitor-centric staff can transform a visit to a meaningful experience. As a Concierge you will join a select team of volunteers who work closely with museum staff, undergo specialized training and receive additional service benefit all with the aim of elevating the visitor experience at Natural History.
Visitor Concierges are available to Museum visitors to orient and enhance experiences throughout the Museum.
Visitor Concierge serve in central locations throughout the Museum to welcome visitors, and discern from visitors which of the over 25 exhibition halls their interests lie and how best to connect each of these awesome experiences to one another. The Concierge team will become the primary response team that helps build visit itineraries for visitors to Natural History.
Special Requirements: