California Academy of Sciences

San Francisco’s California Academy of Sciences reopened in a dressed-up, 100,000-sq.-ft. space in the middle of Golden Gate Park in the fall of 2008 after being closed to the public for a few years. On par with San Francisco’s green-friendly approach, the museum was completely rebuilt to reduce its carbon footprint. The Living Roof comprises two-and-a-half acres of 1.7 million native species carefully picked for their ability to flourish in the park’s climate. The new-and-improved model encompasses an aquarium, planetarium and museum all rolled into one — it’s the only institution of its kind in the world — with 12 different spaces in which to host an event. Perhaps the pièce de résistance is its Rainforests of the World annex, a four-level, glass-walled tower with each floor dedicated to a different forest. Just outside the annex, pay a visit to the building’s most popular resident, the albino alligator. Don’t miss the pendulum that represents Earth’s rotation. calacademy.org