CONNECTED | Nov 21, 2025
A PEM internship fuels a lifelong love of environmental advocacy
I have always had a passion for museums. I grew up going to museums on the North Shore, and PEM was always among my favorites. I have had an interest in nature for as long as I can remember, and more recently, that interest has evolved into a passion for environmental politics and advocacy. As a current undergraduate student pursuing a degree in politics, I felt that an internship in a museum was likely not a path I would be able to pursue, but an internship at PEM’s Art & Nature Center offered me the perfect opportunity to fuel my interest in environmental outreach.
The Knowing Nature: Stories of the Boreal Forest exhibition at PEM. Knowing Nature: Stories of the Boreal Forest Exhibition Documentation, 2025. Peabody Essex Museum. Photo by Kim Indresano.
My internship coincided with PEM’s presentation of Knowing Nature: Stories of the Boreal Forest, an exhibition developed by the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service. Preserving the boreal forest is critical: This biome, situated just below the Arctic Circle, accounts for roughly one-third of the Earth’s forest. The boreal (also known as the taiga) stretches through Alaska, Canada, Europe and Siberia, and is home to several hundred Indigenous communities and a diverse array of wildlife.
A young visitor greets an animal ambassador during a Knowing Nature event at PEM. EIMA Knowing Nature Family Breakfast, 2025. Peabody Essex Museum. Photo by David Tucker.
My role in this exhibition involved guiding visitors to make a personal connection with the boreal forest. I operated an interactive cart with touchable items like stuffed animals, sphagnum and peat moss and maps charting the migration of birds to and from the boreal. Visitors were encouraged to touch and ask questions. It soon became clear that people were connecting the lichen samples and miniature animals on my cart to experiences in their personal lives. When I explained to one visitor how coal is formed from peat, she exclaimed that she was from a coal-rich region in Pennsylvania, yet never knew how coal was created. One couple recalled their recent kayaking trip to Alaska, and gained a newfound appreciation for the environment they had immersed themselves in thanks to Knowing Nature. One young visitor picked up a plush loon and was excited to realize that she had seen a real loon on a trip to New Hampshire.
Lilly and Hannah Glass inside a work from Stickwork: Patrick Dougherty, a past PEM exhibition. Photo courtesy of Lilly Glass.
Witnessing kids deepen their appreciation for nature at PEM was a special experience. The opportunity to build a connection to the environment early in life is so vital; I care deeply about nature largely due to my parents’ efforts to immerse me in nature at a young age. They often brought my twin sister and me to PEM. I remember one particular visit when we found ourselves inside What the Birds Know, a sculpture by Patrick Dougherty made entirely from saplings. Although I was in the middle of Salem, this experience surrounded me in nature.
Knowing Nature also offers a deeper connection to the boreal through the inclusion of art by Aquinnah Wampanoag artist Elizabeth James-Perry, whose works and accompanying audio recording reveal her relationship with the forest. Unlike the other Indigenous artists with works in the exhibition, James-Perry is based in New England, rather than the boreal region. Her local connection invites people to consider their own relationship with and impact on New England forests.
Visitors were additionally invited to complete a pledge card, writing down a way they would commit themselves to helping the boreal. I was one of several people responsible for transcribing the responses that were left on these cards, and I was struck by the creative ways people promised to do their part for this important ecosystem. One person pledged to create art that would raise awareness; another wrote that they would join a local habitat restoration group. One visitor pledged to “be a litter lugger, not a litter bugger.”
The theme of connection is found throughout the Art & Nature Center. In fact, “everything is connected” is one of The Pod’s three “Pod Principles” for visitors of all ages to consider about their local habitats.
Visitor responses to the “Boreal Forest and You” section of the exhibition. Knowing Nature: Stories of the Boreal Forest Exhibition Documentation, 2025. Peabody Essex Museum. Photo by Kim Indresano.
And PEM doesn’t simply advocate for the environment through educating its visitors — the museum goes to great lengths to commit itself to environmental preservation. From its status as a Level 2 Arboretum, to the Climate + Environment Initiative, to things as small as using recycled paper for the boreal pledge cards, PEM views being eco-friendly as an important, ongoing effort.
Advocating for the environment in a museum setting was such a valuable and enlightening experience. I felt that I was making positive change in the world, while also building my own knowledge and confidence in the process. My PEM internship allowed me to pursue my interests while discovering new passions and building valuable connections that I will take with me into my future experiences.
Knowing Nature: Stories of the Boreal Forest is on view through September 27, 2026. Applications for PEM’s spring 2026 internships are open now through December 7, 2025.
Knowing Nature: Stories of the Boreal Forest is developed by the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service and made possible by the National Audubon Society, with additional support from The Anders Foundation, Charlie and Nancy Hogan, and Anne C. Madison. This exhibition at PEM is made possible by Carolyn and Peter S. Lynch and The Lynch Foundation. We thank Jennifer and Andrew Borggaard, James B. and Mary Lou Hawkes, The Creighton Family, Chip and Susan Robie, Timothy T. Hilton, and an anonymous donor as supporters of the Exhibition Innovation Fund. We also recognize the generosity of the East India Marine Associates of the Peabody Essex Museum and the support and guidance of the Art & Nature Center Visiting Committee.