Muzeum Ziemi UAM - od kolekcjonerstwa do nowoczesnej dydaktyki

Scientific and educational potential of the academic Earth Museum at Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, Poland is analysed along with its activities related to modern approaches to museums. The social context of the traditional, place-based museology is modified by 1) the dominance of science-centred role of the educational institutions and 2) the view of the museum as an educational product. The first assumption leads to the dependence on an ongoing volunteer support, while the second requires a substantial managerial effort to accomodate the support of the community. This opens up a new perspective in which the museum becomes a venue for innovative means of scientific communication in which the scientific knowledge is disseminated through the myriad of educational projects at the local and regional scale, contributing to the development of the whole community.