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.
Scientists, collections managers, and graduate students who are interested in communicating the importance of federal investments in scientific research and education to lawmakers are invited to participate in the Biological and Ecological Sciences Coalition (BESC) Congressional Visits Day in Washington, DC. This event is an opportunity for scientists to meet with their members of Congress […]
The deadline for the Heritage Health Information 2014: A National Collections Care Survey has been extended to 13 February 2015. If you have not had the opportunity to complete your survey, now is the time. Invitations to participate were sent to institution directors in October. These invitations included personalized login information, which may be entered […]
In 2014, the NSC Alliance engaged in a number of notable activities to raise the profile of natural history collections with policymakers, researchers, and the general public. A few highlights are presented below: Partnered with the American Institute of Biological Sciences and the Society for the Preservation of Natural History Collections to launch a national […]
Daniel Le, the Botany Collection’s Digital Media Specialist at The Field Museum, won Second Place in the Faces of Biology Photo Contest. His photo depicts Allie Stone working with tropical butterflies from the museum’s vast collections. Stone and Le collaborated on a project to digitally image natural history specimens. The Faces of Biology Photo Contest […]
Three new board members and two incumbent board members have been elected to the NSC Alliance Board of Directors. Dr. Robert J. Baker was re-elected to the Board of Directors. Dr. Baker is Director and Curator of Mammals and Genetic Resources in the Natural Sciences Research Laboratory at the Museum of Texas Tech University. His […]
The U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) and the American Institute of Biological Sciences (AIBS) have launched the Beyond the Box National Digitization Innovation Competition. The initiative will award $1 million to the individual or team who develops a novel way to accurately and efficiently capture digital images of insect specimens and their associated data from […]
A new paper in ZooKeys looks at the future of Italian natural history collections. According to the paper’s authors, “Italian natural history museums are facing a critical situation, due to the progressive loss of scientific relevance, decreasing economic investments, and scarcity of personnel.” The proposed solution is to create a network of museums that function […]
Applications are being accepted for the 2015 AIBS Emerging Public Policy Leadership Award. This award recognizes graduate students in the biological sciences who have demonstrated initiative and leadership in science policy. Recipients receive first-hand experience at the interface of science and public policy. Winners receive: A trip to Washington, DC, to participate in the Biological […]
A national survey has launched to assess the state of the nation’s collections held by museums, scientific research collections, archaeological repositories, archives, and libraries. The results of the survey will be used to recommend next steps in collections preservation The Natural Science Collections Alliance is serving as an allied partner in the effort. If your […]
The Small Collections Network and iDigBio have announced the dates for future webinars in their series focused on small natural history collections. The webinars are free to attend and registration is not required. Small Fish in a Big Pond: Lessons Learned in Digitizing a Small Paleontology Collection 13 November 2014, 3-4 p.m. EST http://scnet.acis.ufl.edu/content/small-fish-big-pond-lessons-learned-digitizing-small-paleontology-collection The […]