Natural Science Collections Alliance

Our members are part of an international community of museums, botanical gardens, herbariums, universities and other institutions that house natural science collections and utilize them in research, exhibitions, academic and informal science education, and outreach activities.

Month: December 2010

Legislative Update: IMLS Reauthorization and Plant Genetic Resources Treaty

On December 22, President Obama signed into law a bill to reauthorize the Institute for Museum and Library Services (IMLS).  The legislation (S. 3984) increases funding authorizations for the agency’s museum services to $38.6 million in fiscal year 2011.  This represents an increase of 14 percent above the fiscal year 2010 funding level. According to […]

2010 Fiscal Survey of States

The National Governors Association (NGA) and the National Association of State Budget Officers (NASBO) recently released the 2010 Fiscal Survey of the States.  As described in the report, the survey “presents aggregate and individual data on the states’ general fund receipts, expenditures, and balances.  Although not the totality of state spending, these funds are used […]

Student Internship Opportunity with CollectionsWeb

CollectionsWeb announces the availability of a research internship in collections-based research. The interns can be housed at any institution in the U.S. and supervised by any appropriate mentor. The purpose of the internships is to train students, create collaborations among museums and labs from different institutions, encourage the development of new tools and foster diversity. […]

Senate Committee Passes Legislation to Reauthorize IMLS

The Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions passed a bill on December 3 to reauthorize the Institute for Museum and Library Services (IMLS).  The legislation, S. 3984, would increase funding authorizations for the agency’s museum services to $38.6 million in fiscal year 2011.  This represents an increase of 14 percent about the fiscal […]

Collections May Hold 35,000 Unidentified Plant Species

A major untapped pool of undiscovered flowering plant species may be natural history collections, according to a paper recently published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Based on a survey of 3,200 plant species, the study’s authors found that only 16% of species were described within five years of collection; nearly […]

New Shipping Regulations to Ease Regulatory Burden for Collections

Starting 1 January 2011, natural history specimens shipped via commercial air will no longer be classified as “dangerous goods.”  The new policy, issued by the International Air Transport Association (IATA), also removes a requirement for shippers to be formally trained in how to package scientific specimens; instead the shipper can train themselves. These special provisions, […]

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