Today we got to explore the Te Papa museum, one of New Zealand’s most prized landmarks. The museum was incredible as it encompassed so many areas including art, history and nature. There were a couple exhibits in the museum focused on sustainability. One cool one was the futuristic city model, where innovative ideas such as carbon capture devices and solar panel strips were the norm. The carbon capture device could take CO2 out of the atmosphere but allow other atmospheric gasses like oxygen and nitrogen to pass. The solar panel strip is a concept that is currently being worked on to create more efficient solar panels than the ones we have today.
Another exhibit related to sustainability was the blood earth fire exhibit, depicting how colonizers rapidly destroyed forests for settlements. I felt sick when I learned about the hundreds of years old trees that colonizers quickly cut down for timber. In contrast, Māori believe that what ever you take from the land, you should be able to give back to the land as well. Their ancient lunar calendar was cool to see as it was very detailed, describing good or bad harvest days for every day based on the phases of the moon and the seasons. An important factor in this calendar was that it allowed time for nature to replenish itself, by setting aside rest days from fishing, hunting, or gathering.
Some other amazing aspects of the museum were the large, life-like figures featured at the Gallipoli exhibit, depicting a treacherous war area in WWI. Fun fact, these 2.4 scale models were built by Wētā workshop, the same company that brought to you all of the set and costume design from Lord of the Rings! This exhibit was powerful and poignant and unlike any exhibit I’ve seen before. Going to the Te Papa museum was a very enjoyable and unique experience, and I could easily spend a whole other day at this museum again, as there is so much to see!
