youth looking through virtual reality goggles

Is the Smithsonian in your community?

Affiliate Benefits

Photo courtesy of Greensboro History Museum
/ Lynn Donovan Photography

Find an Affiliate near you, browse distance learning resources, or learn how to become a Smithsonian Affiliate.

Student enjoying immersive technology demonstration

Is the Smithsonian in your neighborhood?

Find an Affiliate near you!

Distance Learning

Photo courtesy of
Greensboro History Museum
/ Lynn Donovan Photography

2023 Virtual Conference: Fostering Conversations on Questions that Matter

Join Smithsonian and Affiliate colleagues October 31 – November 2, 2023! We will come together under our theme, Fostering Conversations on Questions that Matter, to hear from different and diverse perspectives and provide a platform for initiating important and often crucial conversations.

Virtual Conference Information

Learn How to Become a Smithsonian Affiliate

Considering an affiliation with the Smithsonian Institution? Core to our work is catalyzing public engagement, sparking curiosity and learning, and ultimately inspiring a deeper understanding of our world. Get to know Smithsonian Affiliations, what it means to be an engaged Affiliate, and the process for applying on our Learning Excursion pages.

Applying for Affiliation

Fostering Essential Community Conversations

At this watershed moment in American history, museums are finding a wide spectrum of ways to address injustice with their communities, and facilitate the difficult but essential dialogue that is necessary. Find resources from the Smithsonian and our Affiliates to help catalyze these conversations in your community.

Community Dialogue Resources

Impacting the Affiliate Community

See the impact of a Smithsonian exhibition in an Affiliate community as staff from the Burke Museum of Natural History in Seattle, Washington, describe the exhibition Life in Once Cubic Foot.