Richard Lane, Chair Natural History Museum, London

Richard Lane, Chair Natural History Museum, London

Scientific Collections International (SciColl)

An international coordinating mechanism

OECD GSF Vienna April 2010

Photo National Ice Core Labratory, USGS

Photo J. Hicks, U.S. Geological Survey

Millenium seed bank Kew

Herbarium, NHM London

Marine Zoology, NHM London

Scientific Collections – key points

• Selected & Structured samples of the world around us

• Vouchers / samples : • repeatable, verifiable

• can be re-examined with new tools (cf observations)

• Source of new knowledge and ideas

• Can be arrayed, distributed infrastructure

SciColl: International Coordinating Mechanism

Two main benefits

• Ensure collections are efficient and integrated infrastructures

SciColl: International Coordinating Mechanism

Two main benefits


• Enable more science to be done, especially interdisciplinary research

SciColl: International Coordinating MechanismTwo main benefits


• Enable more science to be done, especially interdisciplinary research

This will lead to the sustainabilty and development of collections

Scientific Collections InternationalSciColl - update

• Outreach to scientific disciplines and countries

• Developing Governance and sustainability

Workshop: International Coordination of an interdisciplinary

global research Infrastructure

• 8-9 Feb 2010 at Royal Belgian Institute for the Natural Sciences, Brussels.

• 85 researchers and institutional reps from 36 countries

• Funded: European Science Foundation, US National Science Foundation,

Belgian Science policy Office

• Earth sciences, archaeology, biomedical sciences, biodiversity sciences, anthropology


global research InfrastructureResearch using collections:

• Climate, environment and ecosystem change from palaeo proxy collections

• Changing human disease patterns

• Climate and human induced extinctions

• Use of natural history collections for climate change research


global research InfrastructureManaging collections:

• Global Biological Resource Centre network – laboratory-based living organisms

• Korean National Research Resource centre

• European network of natural science collections (Synthesys)


global research InfrastructureOutcomes:

• Strong support for SciColl concept

• SciColl aligns with other infrastructure initiatives (eg. Mapping European Research

Infrastructure Landscape) and data coordination (GEO, GBIF)




• SciColl aligns with other infrastructure initiatives and data coordination

• Added value of SciColl is connecting different research fields and thereby increasing access– Use ontologies of target topics

– “Yellow pages” as finding tool




• SciColl aligns with other infrastructure initiatives and data coordination

• Added value of SciColl is connecting different research fields and thereby increasing access

• Two or three pilot topics not just one – eg. environmental change and emerging disease

Developing Governance and sustainability

• Revised terms of reference based on comments at last GSF meeting and Brussels workshop

• Financial contributions - revised

Category

GERD (latest

available figs)

Countries (examples) Expected contribution

(€ p.a.)

1 > $50 billion USA, Japan, Germany, China

90 k€

2 $18-50 billion Canada, France, Italy, Korea, Russia, UK

40 k€

3 $7.5-18 billion

Australia, Austria, Israel, Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland

20 k€

4 < $7.5 billion Belgium, Finland, Singapore, South Africa, Portugal, Norway, Poland

10 k€

Category Operational budget, including staff [US$]

Staff number on collections [additional indicator]

Institutions (examples)

Expected Contribution€ (p.a.)

Large -1 >$5 million >150 NHM, SI, MNHN, IODP

16k

Medium - 2 $1 million - $5 million

50-150 MfN Berlin, Naturalis, NICL

8k

Medium-small - 3

$200k - $1 million

10-50 INBIO, NMK, University of New Mexico

4k

Small - 4 <$200k <10 Linnean Society London,

2k

For consortia, the annual financial contribution will be determined in agreement with the Executive Board

Developing Governance and sustainability

• Revised terms of reference based on comments at last GSF meeting and Brussels workshop

• Financial contributions – revised

• Secretariat and activities budget remains as before

Workplan

Deliverables:

1. A community network of scientific collections

2. Improved quality of collections care

• Improving collections management

• Increased digital access to collections

3. Increased access and usability of collections

4. Catalysed new interdisciplinary research

• Two or three pilot topics

Timeline and MilestonesPhase 1 - exploration Feb 2006-Oct 2008

Phase 2 – organisational planning and community consultation Oct 2008 – April 2010

Phase 3 - Membership development April – November 2010

• May 2010: invitation to submit letters of intent to join SciColl

• August/ Sept 2010: when sufficient commitment establish Interim Executive Board

• August/ Sept 2010: launch of request for proposals to host SciColl Secretariat

• November 2010: Selection of Secretariat Host

• [Sept/ Oct steering committee and workshop in Australia]

Phase 4 – Organisational launch

• Nov. 2010: Advertisement for post of SciColl Executive Director • Early 2011: official launch of SciColl (establishment of Secretariat)

Questions?

Richard Lane, Chair Natural History Museum, London

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