Eco-Tech

Live earthworms, a giant globe, a wind chamber and a solar-powered car are part of a new interactive exhibit at the California Museum of Science and Industry that celebrates the 25th anniversary of Earth Day.

“Balancing Acts: Providing for Today, Preserving Tomorrow” takes visitors on a tour of five countries, including the United States, to look at alternative methods of agriculture, energy use and manufacturing that do little to threaten the earth’s limited resources.

With hands-on multimedia displays, the exhibit also explains how earth-sensitive technologies function and how they have worked in other cultures, in some cases for thousands of years.

The exhibit is divided into five sections featuring an overview of the toll humans have taken on the earth’s ecology and examples of resource-friendly agriculture, wind and solar energy, environmentally sensitive manufacturing, and conservation tips.

At the end, participants are invited to share opinions on the world’s most pressing ecological issues and take home a kit to make “s’more” chocolate treats using solar energy.

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“Balancing Acts” runs through the end of the year at the California Museum of Science and Industry, 700 State Drive in Exposition Park. Museum hours are daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is free. Information: (213) 744-7444.