Many museums have been struggling to stay afloat -- especially in small rural communities.

Thursday in Kamloops, delegates at the B.C. Museum Association conference will discuss what museums can do to stay alive.

Kirstin Clausen is the Executive Director of the Britannia Mine Museum on Britannia Beach, on Highway 99 near Squamish.

In 2010 the museum got a $14.7 million dollar facelift and it was mining companies how provided much of the funding for that renovation.

Clausen says governments aren't funding museums like they used to, and it's now more important than ever for them to turn to the private sector for cash.