Denver Museum of Nature & Science

A nonprofit organization

$223,264 raised by 509 donors

100% complete

$160,000 Goal

“Nature is not a place to visit, it is home.”

- Gary Snyder

This Colorado Gives Day, we’re asking you to envision a new type of Museum experience. Imagine you are outside on a warm, sunny day. A cool stream babbles nearby. A bee buzzes among a stand of wild roses. A rich canopy of leaves wafts gently in the breeze, casting mottled light onto the forest floor.

You have just stepped into Nature Play, the Museum’s first ever outdoor experience (opening late 2024). Free and open to the public year-round, this four-acre habitat and recreation space located just outside the Museum in City Park will provide the urban community with a refuge that will nurture the emotional, mental and physical well-being of all who enter.

Modeled after the Museum’s Explore Colorado Diorama Hall and co-created with the community in partnership with Denver Parks and Recreation, Nature Play follows the story of Colorado’s water from the alpine tundra to the grasslands of the prairie. Along the way, you will encounter live specimens and organic representations of endemic flora, fauna and geology. Enjoy your lunch on a wildlife-themed bench carved by local artist Chainsaw Mama, find solace in the shade of a gamble oak tree or delight in the merriment of children exploring the numerous open-ended nature-based play structures embedded in the park.

Through Colorado Gives Day, you have the opportunity to make this extraordinary project possible for your community. Thanks to a generous group of donors, your tax-deductible donation made now through Dec. 6 will be matched dollar for dollar, up to $80,000, when you give to support Nature Play! Every gift is also boosted by a statewide $1 million+ incentive fund.

Did you know that scientific studies have demonstrated a strong correlation between time spent in nature and overall mental and physical well-being? It’s true! Children are especially likely to experience improved social-emotional health, cognition and in-school learning as well as broad potential benefits to language and communication skills, interpersonal relationships and opportunities to succeed in life.

Will you join us in this effort to create a necessary place of respite in our urban community so everyone can experience the healing power of nature? We thank you for being a strong member of our community and the catalyst that makes the Museum an incredible place to learn, play and discover!

For more information about Nature Play or additional ways to support the programs you love, click the “funds” tab above.  

If you would like to purchase or renew a membership, please visit our membership page, http://www.dmns.org/join/. We are unable to process memberships through ColoradoGives.


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"La naturaleza no es un lugar para visitar, es hogar."

-Gary Snyder

Este Colorado Gives Day, te pedimos que imagines un nuevo tipo de experiencia en el Museo. Imagina que estás al aire libre en un día cálido y soleado. Un arroyo murmura al lado. Una abeja zumba entre las rosas silvestres. Las hojas se mueven lentamente con la brisa, dejando caer luz y sombra sobre el suelo del bosque.

Acabas de entrar a Nature Play, la primera experiencia al aire libre del Museo. Prevista para abrir a finales de 2024, este refugio de cuatro acres será gratuito y accesible al público durante todo el año. El área de hábitat y recreación, situada justo fuera del Museo en City Park, proporcionará a la comunidad urbana un refugio para fomentar el bienestar emocional, mental y físico de todos los que entren.

Modelado a partir de la Sala de Dioramas Explore Colorado del Museo y co-creado con la comunidad en asociación con Denver Parks and Recreation, Nature Play sigue la historia del agua de Colorado desde la tundra alpina hasta las praderas de la llanura. A lo largo del camino, encontrarás especímenes vivos y representaciones orgánicas de la flora, fauna y geología endémicas. Disfruta de tu almuerzo en un banco con temático de vida silvestre tallado por la artista local Chainsaw Mama, encuentra consuelo en la sombra de un roble o observa a tu hijo explorando las numerosas estructuras de juego basadas en la naturaleza y abiertas al público en el parque.

A través del Colorado Gives Day, tienes la oportunidad de hacer posible este extraordinario proyecto para tu comunidad. Gracias a un generoso grupo de donantes, tu donación deducible de impuestos hecha ahora hasta el 6 de diciembre será igualada dólar por dólar, hasta $80.000 cuando dones para apoyar Nature Play. ¡Cada regalo también es potenciado por un fondo de incentivo estatal de más de $1,4 millones!

*Debido a límites de caracteres, no podemos incluir la traducción completa al español. Por favor, sigue este enlace para ver el contenido en su totalidad. https://www.dmns.org/about/strategic-plan-everyone-everywhere/nature-play-in-city-park/co-gives-day-spanish-translation/

Giving Activity

Mission

OUR MISSION

Be a catalyst! Ignite our community's passion for nature and science.

OUR VISION

An empowered community that loves, understands, and protects our natural world.

The mission and vision were adopted by the Denver Museum of Nature & Science Board of Trustees in April 2014.

OUR VALUES

• We love science.

• We are curious, creative, and playful.

• We cultivate relationships: with each other, diverse communities, the environment, and for our future.

• We think critically and act with empathy.

Background Statement

The Denver Museum of Nature & Science was founded in 1900 by a group of Denver citizens interested in preserving the natural history of the Rocky Mountain region. Over the last century, it has grown into one of the largest natural history museums in the west. Accredited by the American Alliance of Museums, the Denver Museum of Nature & Science is a premier source of informal education in science, culture and natural history as well as a leader in scientific research in the fields of anthropology, earth sciences, health sciences, paleontology, space sciences and zoology. All of the Museum's activities promote STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art and math) learning throughout the community. The Museum's collections number 4.3 million objects, including an extensive library/archives and education demonstration collection. In addition to its permanent exhibitions and historic diorama halls, the Museum offers temporary exhibitions, giant screen theater films and planetarium shows. Education programs for school groups, adults, teachers and young children reach broad audiences both onsite and throughout the community.

Looking forward, the Museum is executing on its Everyone, Everywhere strategic plan, which is guided by an overarching objective to connect more and diverse people to nature and science in ways that are meaningful to them. The projects within this strategic plan aim to:

• Make science accessible, inclusive, fun, understandable and meaningful;

• Activate human imagination that will catalyze a generation of explorers, problem solvers, creative strategists and analytical thinkers; and

• Contribute to a strong and vibrant future for Colorado.

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Organization Data

Summary

Organization name

Denver Museum of Nature & Science

other names

Denver Museum of Nature and Science, DMNS, Colorado Museum of Natural History, Denver Museum of Natural History

Year Established

1900

Tax id (EIN)

84-0518447

Category

Arts, Culture & Humanities

Organization Size

Large Organization

Address

2001 Colorado Blvd
Denver, CO 80205

Service areas

Denver County, CO, US

Phone

303-370-6000

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