Museums function in the context of Communities. The town in which the museum exists is often the reason for the museum's existence. Museums have their own cultural communities, or are specialized museums that are associated with another community (mining, forestry).

Here are some resources exploring the museum's place in these communities.

Muse Article, March/April 2003 (PDF Version) (Word Version)

Mapping Community Assets, An approach to evaluating what assets your community has, created by the Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory Rural Education Program.

American Association of Museums' Museum Assessment Program contains a Community Involvement component.