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.
A strategic plan is being developed for a 10-year, national effort to digitize and mobilize images and data associated with biological research collections. The plan aims to create a publicly available, comprehensive collections resource that will increase access to biological collections across the country. The plan was drafted by workshop participants at the National Evolutionary […]
The Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Review Committee will be holding three meetings to discuss matters relating to the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA). Included on the agenda for the May 14, 2010 meeting are presentations to the Review Committee by Indian tribes, museums, and federal agencies on both the positive […]
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) requests public comments regarding the agency’s application and reporting requirements for the importation and exportation of fish and wildlife products. Two permits issued by the FWS that regulate the international trade of wildlife, FWS Form 3-200-2 and Form 3-200-3, are scheduled for government review this year. Of potential […]
Registration is now open for the inaugural conference on Informatics for Phylogenetics, Evolution, and Biodiversity (iEvoBio). iEvoBio aims to bring together biologists working in evolution, systematics, and biodiversity, with software developers, and mathematicians, both to develop new tools, and to increase awareness of existing technologies (ranging from standards and reusable toolkits to mega-scale data analysis […]
The National Park Service is now accepting applications for the George Melendez Wright Climate Change Fellowship. This student fellowship program aims to support new and innovative research on climate change impacts to protected areas and to increase science-based management of natural resources. Award recipients receive a grant in the range of $5,000 to $20,000 for […]
For fiscal year (FY) 2011, the President has requested a $36 million budget increase for the Smithsonian Institution (SI). If provided by Congress, SI would operate with approximately $797.6 million of federal funds. Within this amount, roughly $661 million (an increase of $27 million) would be allocated to Salaries and Expenses with the balance of […]
A new online group has formed to encourage networking among natural science collections leaders. This group offers an opportunity for leaders from collections across the nation to identify and discuss common public policy issues, and other common challenges facing natural science collections professionals. To join this group you must first join LinkedIn (www.linkedin.com). There is […]
Join the Society for the Preservation of Natural History Collections (SPNHC) and the Canadian Botanical Association (CBA/ABC) for their joint annual conference to be held May 31 to June 5, 2010 in Ottawa, Canada. With 2010 declared “The International Year of Biodiversity” by the United Nations, this gathering of natural history collection professionals and botany […]
The Inspector General (IG) for the Department of the Interior (DOI) has “found that DOI is failing to fulfill its stewardship responsibilities over museum collections.” In a December 2009 report, the IG found that DOI has failed to properly accession, catalogue, or inventory museum collections, leaving artifacts “unavailable for research, education, or display and … […]
In 2008, the Natural Science Collections Alliance (NSC Alliance) conducted an online survey to assess how scientific collections were responding to worsening economic conditions. The complete findings of this survey have now been published in the online publication, CLS Journal of Museum Studies. The publication includes the survey results and some possible actions for scientific […]