Helsinki City Museum’s summer exhibition will challenge your perception about trash
Just a week before May Day, the Helsinki City Museum opens a new exhibition designed especially for families with children. Trash! invites visitors to explore the journey of household waste and the significance of environmental responsibility through playful tasks and diverse themes.
Opening on April 25, Trash! – What We Leave Behind sheds light on a lesser-seen side of Helsinki and its history. The exhibition reveals what kind of waste is produced in Helsinki homes, where it ends up, and how it affects the environment.
As Finland’s second most visited museum, Helsinki City Museum wanted to create this exhibition as part of its EcoCompass environmental program. Visitors are encouraged to reflect on their own consumption habits and consider more sustainable choices.
The exhibition features a variety of interactive stations and themes related to Helsinki’s waste. Home illustrates changes in consumption, Sewer reveals the secrets of pipelines, Waste Management shows the routes of different waste types in the city, Recycling Shop gives new life to old items, and Future encourages visitors to dream of a sustainable city.
Visitors can test their recycling skills, try a trash-throwing game, and even crawl through a sewer pipe. Younger children can search for exhibition mascots: Mr. Sumppi, Lörö, Voda, Kara, and Rööperi the Rat.
“We wanted to avoid greenwashing and aimed to produce the exhibition as sustainably as possible, using repurposed materials and recycled or borrowed props. The exhibition was created in collaboration with the Helsinki Region Environmental Services HSY and Uusix workshops. Two school groups from Paloheinä Primary School also took part,” says producer Magnus Rask.
Opening Event: ‘Poop Basketball’, Trash Workshop, and Wastewater Purification
Families, school groups, and daycare groups can enjoy fun workshops and activities on the exhibition’s opening day, Friday April 25 from 11 AM to 3 PM. At the museum, you can play ‘Poop Basketball’, do crafts with recycled materials and try your hand at treating wastewater.
Free admission to the exhibition and all related events.
