Collaborating on Our Future

Over Coffee® | Stories and Resources from the Intersection of Art and Science | Exploring How to Make STEAM Work For You

“Colorful” and “fun” aren’t usually adjectives people apply to solving the problem of climate change.

But Dr. Michelle Maranowski has made them applicable to The Tech Interactive Museum’s largest new exhibit, “Solve for Earth” in San Jose.

Michelle, who is The Tech’s full-time Exhibit and Content Developer, spent five years creating “Solve for Earth”. The exhibition comprises five thousand square feet, with fifteen different exhibits, and is designed to keep evolving.

And it’s all about engaging visitors in thinking about their role on the planet–as they play and generate new ideas. No one ever said that coming up with solutions to a serious problem, couldn’t involve whimsy in the exploration process.

“We’re all innovators,” says Michelle, who has a Ph.D. in electrical engineering. As an education professional, she also has a focus on storytelling, as a means to inspire others to solve problems.

Accordingly, she has designed “Solve for Earth” to keep people thinking about reducing their carbon footprint, after they leave the museum. In addition to the physical exhibit, there’s a virtual component with resources, including the Ecotech Challenge, to engage individuals and groups in coming up with ways to live sustainably as a community.

Michelle shared her creative journey, offered a preview of the “Solve for Earth” exhibit and discussed some of the viable ways of lowering our carbon footprint.

On this edition of Over Coffee® we cover:

• The genesis of Michelle’s creative journey as an innovator;

• How Michelle first came up with the concept of “Solve for Earth”;

• Her journey, from there, in creating this landmark exhibit;

• Michelle’s recommendations on sharing information about climate change;

• What you’ll see, as you experience “Solve for Earth”;

• An Easter egg to look for (and there are others!;

• Some exciting new technologies aimed at reducing carbon emissions;

• What’s involved in the Eco Challenge, which encourages attendees to continue to take action after they’ve left The Tech;

• A look at the virtual resources included in “Solve for Earth”;

• One of the best creative challenges which Michelle experienced, while designing the exhibits;

• The ways in which she’d like to see “Solve for Earth” evolve, in the future.