Contents: The Beaty Biodiversity Museum
- Introduction to the Beaty Biodiversity Museum
- The History of the Beaty Biodiversity Museum
- The Goals of the Beaty Biodiversity Museum
- The Future of the Beaty Biodiversity Museum
- Conclusion
Introduction to the Beaty Biodiversity Museum
Welcome to the Beaty Biodiversity Museum!
The museum is on the campus of the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada. It opened in 2010 and is named after Ross Beaty, a donor and UBC alumnus who supported it with his wife Trisha (Beaty Biodiversity Museum).
The History of the Beaty Biodiversity Museum
The museum is open to the public and offers a variety of educational programmes and events, alongside an active research programme on projects related to biodiversity. One of the museum's most notable features is "Big Blue", the skeleton of a blue whale that washed ashore on Prince Edward Island in 1987. It hangs in the museum's glass atrium and is Canada's largest blue whale skeleton; only 21 are on public view worldwide (Beaty Biodiversity Museum).
Visitors to Vancouver are encouraged to visit the Beaty Biodiversity Museum, a fascinating place that provides a new appreciation for the natural world.
The Goals of the Beaty Biodiversity Museum
The Beaty Biodiversity Museum at the University of British Columbia is dedicated to increasing understanding and appreciation of biodiversity and the importance of conservation. With more than two million specimens, including plants, insects, fish, fossils, mammals and birds, the museum's collections are used by researchers from around the world to study the history and diversity of life on our planet.
The museum offers a variety of public programmes to increase understanding of biodiversity and the importance of conservation, and is involved in local, national, and international conservation initiatives. As a responsible steward of its biodiversity collections, the museum strives to be a leader in biodiversity research and education, and to inspire action to conserve biodiversity
The Future of the Beaty Biodiversity Museum
In September 2025, UBC opened a C$45 million expansion of the Beaty Biodiversity Centre, the building that houses the museum and UBC's Biodiversity Research Centre (UBC Science). The six-storey extension adds about 48,000 square feet of research and meeting space, a fossil-storage room for the museum and a pollinator garden.
The extension serves the wider centre rather than the museum alone.
Conclusion
The Beaty Biodiversity Museum is an institution dedicated to the study and appreciation of biodiversity. With more than two million specimens in its collection, which were first put on public display when the museum opened in 2010, the museum is a valuable resource for education, research, and conservation efforts.
Visitors can explore more than 500 natural history exhibits, from fossils and shells to insects, birds and mammals. Its commitment to educating the public about the importance of biodiversity is more important than ever.
