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.
The 2013 U.S. Virtual Herbarium Survey is now online. This survey is designed to assess the progress herbaria in the United States are making towards the goal of making records of all specimens in all U.S. herbaria available online. The information provided by survey participants is used in reports, grant proposals, and articles highlighting a […]
A recent post on the blog “The Lab and Field” explored why natural history museums are “essential for science.” The blogger described his recent use of bird specimens to study moult energetics in Least Auklets. The species spends most of the year over the Pacific Ocean, where they are inaccessible to researchers. Using 60 specimens […]
Proposals for the National Science Foundation’s Collections in Support of Biological Research program are due 16 July 2013. The Collections in Support of Biological Research program provides funds: 1) for improvements to secure, improve, and organize collections that are significant to the NSF BIO-funded research community; 2) to secure collections-related data for sustained, accurate, and […]
The National Science Foundation is accepting proposals for the Advancing Digitization of Biodiversity Collections program. This initiative seeks to enhance and expand digital data documenting existing vouchered biological and paleontological collections. The deadline for full proposals is 18 October 2013. More information is available at http://www.nsf.gov/pubs/2013/nsf13569/nsf13569.htm.
The NSC Alliance has been asked to circulate the following survey to our members. I hope you will take a few moments to complete this survey. Regards, Larry Page President Dear Colleagues: We are writing to invite you to participate in a survey on the state of teaching in taxonomy and systematic biology.  If your […]
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is proposing to implement regulations to provide for the preservation, management, and protection of paleontological resources on federal lands. The rule would address the management, collection, and curation of paleontological resources from federal lands including management using scientific principles and expertise, collecting of resources with and without a permit, […]
The 2014 Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill and Ecosystem Science Conference is soliciting proposals from the community for sessions to address the conference themes and integrative topics. For guidelines and submission instructions, please visit http://gulfofmexicoconference.org/program/scientific-sessions/. The deadline for submissions is 30 June 2013.
The Natural Science Collections Alliance is proud to announce that it joining with the American Institute of Biological Sciences and Entomological Society of America to sponsor the 5th Annual Biological Sciences Congressional District Visits event. This national initiative is an opportunity for biologists across the country to meet with their federal or state elected officials […]
The NSC Alliance has joined a broad coalition of scientific organizations and universities in endorsing a set of guiding principles for the reauthorization of the America COMPETES Act. The law outlines policies and goals for ensuring America’s continued international leadership in science and engineering. Congress is currently considering changes to the America COMPETES Act. The […]
A coalition of 110 scientific organizations signed a letter in defense of peer review at the National Science Foundation (NSF). The NSC Alliance was one of the organizations that signed the letter. The letter was prompted by recent congressional actions that called into question the merit review process used by the National Science Foundation (NSF) […]