Art museums are increasingly pursuing initiatives aimed at environmental sustainability. Examples include replacing paper exhibition flyers and floor maps with online publication or digital distribution, and reusing temporary partition walls and other exhibition materials. Some art museums are also reducing electricity consumption and carbon emissions associated with labor-intensive processes and waste disposal by lengthening the duration of their exhibitions and reducing the frequency of setup and dismantling.

When working with overseas museums, familiarizing yourself with their environmental policies and initiatives can be crucial. For example, if partition walls or display cases are to be reused, this might require improvisation in artwork layout and installation methods. Similarly, if printed materials such as lists of works or commentaries are deprecated, you will need to take a digital-first approach to publicity and exhibit interpretation.

Sustainability standards and practices vary from organization to organization. Always respect the policies of the museum you are working with and tailor your exhibition plans to them.