The National Museum of Nature and Science held a press conference on August 8 about the crowdfunding campaign that began in August to manage the largest specimens in Japan, and expressed its gratitude for the more than 6 million yen raised, which greatly exceeded the target amount.
The National Museum of Nature and Science conducted a crowdfunding campaign from August 500 to the night of August 8, as the funds to collect and store the collection of more than 7 million animal and plant specimens and fossils, the largest in Japan, are in a critical situation due to soaring utility costs.
On the 5th, Kenichi Shinoda, the director of the museum, held a press conference and revealed that as a result of crowdfunding, about 6 million yen was collected from more than 5,6000 people.
He explained that more than 3 million yen of the funds collected will be used for gifts and commissions, but the rest will be used for construction costs to expand the storage facility in Tsukuba City, Ibaraki Prefecture, and to further enhance the collection in order to properly manage the increasing number of specimens every year.
Director Shinoda said, "The result was a great success, and the number of supporters was much higher than expected, and we are grateful for their support. In the future, we would like to secure funds by increasing the number of donations from supporting members and others."