THE GOULANDRIS MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY HAS BEEN DECLARED A NATIONAL MUSEUM
The Goulandris Museum of Natural History (GMNH) has been officially proclaimed as the National Museum of Natural History under Article 38 of Law 5106/2024 (Government Gazette A 63/01.05.2024 of the Ministry of Environment and Energy): “Regulations to address the Multilevel Impacts of Climate Change,” passed on Friday, April 24, 2024, which pertain to the following sectors:
a) water management,
b) forest management and protection,
c) urban resilience and policy,
d) combatting illegal construction,
e) energy security.
Greece, a country with rich biodiversity and a high degree of endemism due to its geophysical location, was one of the few that do not have a National Museum of Natural History.
The valuable collections of the GMNH, its extensive, multifaceted, rich, and widely recognized research and educational work, its infrastructure, laboratories, and branches – the Greek Biotope-Wetland Centre in Thessaloniki (EKBY) and the Paleontological Museum of Rethymnon in Crete – along with its established international reputation, justify its evolution into a National Museum, as was the vision of its founders.
As a National Museum, the GMNH is presented with the opportunity and obligation to leverage its knowledge assets on environmental issues and provide expertise on complex matters, responding to current and future challenges. In addition, its ability to coordinate and support organizations and similar initiatives is strengthened, so as to promote a strong scientific message for the planet’s salvation.
Moreover, it will foster connections with corresponding National Museums abroad, integrating Greek museological practices into international networks.
The fact that Article 38, concerning the National Museum, was passed with broad acceptance and consensus, highlights the importance Parliament places on critical environmental issues, which require the collaboration of everyone.
THE FOUNDERS
In 1964, Angelos and Niki Goulandris founded the Goulandris Museum of Natural History (GMNH) with the purpose of promoting natural sciences and educating people, providing them with the knowledge required to respect nature as the only source of life.
They established an institution new to Greece, aimed at enhancing national preparedness for protecting the country’s precious natural wealth and shaping societal consciousness towards a new value system, oriented towards the balanced coexistence of environment and humans through sustainable development.
Angelos Goulandris strongly believed that environmental protection would become the focal point of political action in the coming decades.
Today, the Museum functions as a Model Center for Scientific Research and Education for the Environment and the planet’s most serious threat, Climate Change.
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