What Is an Eco Museum?

The Ecomuseum (Eco Museum) concept was introduced in 1971 by the French museologist Hugues de Varine. Although there is considerable discussion about an exact defintion the words ‘living musuem’ continue to emerge.

With the Georgian Bay Eco Museum the common ground of a georgraphic boundary of water identify the area. One additional component of the Georgian Bay Eco Museum incorporates the watersheds feeding into Georgian Bay. Ecology is recognized as an “ecological community” in addition to the “human community”. The emphasis on separating Eco from Museum reflects the importance of ecology and sustainability in the current Georgian Bay regions. A detailed discussion on the Eco Museum concept can be found on the Wikipedia website-Ecomuseum.

Types of Ecomuseums (Eco Museums)

Eco Museums come in all shapes and sizes. For example, on the Island of Montreal there is the Saint Lawrence Valley Ecomuseum, operated as a Natural History Museum—an educational wildlife park.

Alberta’s Kalyna Country claims to have the world’s largest ecomuseum encompasing
20,000 sq km with an emphasis on living history, a vibrant culture, natural beauty, great recreation and attractions.

In Denmark, there is The Danish Lake District Ecomuseum. The objective is to strengthen and improve the presentation of the region's culture and nature in order to provide the local people and the many guests to the area with the best possible experiences and possibilities.