A conversation with Melanie Ide, President & CEO of Bishop Museum, about her leadership philosophy and exhibition design work in numerous world-class museums and institutions across the country. 

Melanie has nearly 30 years of experience in museum planning, design and program development. Prior to accepting the role of President and CEO at Bishop Museum, she was  a principal of the world-renowned Ralph Appelbaum Associates (RAA), a multi-disciplinary, international planning and design firm with active projects in more than twenty countries.  From 2005-2014, Melanie led RAA’s team to restore and reinterpret Bishop Museum’s now iconic Hawaiian Hall and Pacific Hall and the first phase of a comprehensive masterplan for the Museum. 

In addition to her work at Bishop Museum, Melanie’s signature projects have included the iconic Fossil Halls, Hall of Biodiversity, and Rose Center for Earth and Space at the American Museum of Natural History in New York, N.Y.; the William J. Clinton Presidential Library in Little Rock, Arkansas.; the United States Capitol Visitor Center in Washington, D.C.; and the Smithsonian’s new National Museum of African American History & Culture in Washington, D.C. She led the team and continues to consult for President Obama’s museum at the Obama Presidential Center in Chicago, Illinois, a project that resonates strongly in its mission to train new leaders to make positive change in their communities.