The Case for Collection Support: Getting to the “First Step”

1. Judith Skog Biological Sciences Directorate National Science Foundation July 11, 2012 The Case for Collection Support: Getting to the “First Step”

2. Themes • Collections contain information that is valuable for a variety of purposes • Target audience must be considered • Framing is extremely important for survival of collections

3. Beginnings • Ginkgo biloba known as a fossil only in west • Saved from extinction in east • Chinese trees venerated by Buddhist monks and preserved in gardens • Medicinal and religious uses of seeds and leaves • People respected old age and long life

4. Early history • Earliest botanical garden and herbarium at Padua in 1545 • Center for scientific research • Medicinal uses of plants not standard in practice • Government of Venice wanted people healthy • Scientists’ case for study • Continues to present day

5. Continuing exploration • Hans Sloan as successful physician • Supported his botanical collections • Founding collections for British Museum

6. Mutual cooperation • Linnaeus with patrons • Importance of collecting • Medical uses with understanding of nature • Supported students to collect around the world adding to the growing knowledge of organisms

7. 1800s public science • Public middle classes interested in their world and what was in it • Amateurs collected variety of items • Beginning of societies for natural history • Often pastimes were arranging collections

8. Public museums • Increasing numbers of public museums for the general interest in the natural world – 1881 Nat. HistMus opened to public in London • Growth of cities encouraged people to romanticize the natural world • Science discussed and debated

9. 20th Century Collaboration • Ecology proposing large major facility • Biodiversity researchers also proposing large effort • Center activities increasing – NCEAS first • Taxon-based data resources being established • FishNet and Species Analyst in 1999 • HerpNet and MaNIS in 2001 • Environmental data integration projects (Ocean Biogeographic Information System, 1997)

10. Setting the stage in 21st Century • NSF priorities: People, Ideas, Tools • Cyberinfrastructure • NEON planning began • Global organization for biodiversity information • Collections collaboration increasing • Workshops on collection interactions – at University of Florida, New York Botanical Garden

11. NSF Strategic Plan for 2006 Discovery Foster research that will advance the frontiers of knowledge, emphasizing areas of greatest opportunity and potential benefit and establishing the nation as a global leader in fundamental and transformational science and engineering. Research Infrastructure Build the nation’s research capability through critical investments in advanced instrumentation, facilities, cyberinfrastructure and experimental tools.

12. 2005 on • Research Collections proposals for collaborations allowed, but underfunded – needed increase of funds in program and new solicitation • Research Coordination Network awarded for Collections Web to bring the community together • Within the Federal Government, there was recognition that the U.S. collections were a heritage needing attention and that they were important for a number of reasons. This concern was expressed in the Office of Management and Budget memos to the federal agencies for consideration of priorities in their budgets.

13. Administration priorities • OMB memo to Federal Agencies highlighted the importance of scientific collections • “ Two areas requiring special agency attention and focus through the NSTC are Federal scientific collections and R&D assessment.” • “Agencies should assess the priorities for and stewardship of Federal scientific collections and should develop a coordinated strategic plan to identify, maintain and use Federal collections and to further collections research.”

14. Federal Actions • Interagency Working Group on Scientific Collections began in Fall 2005 • All agencies with collections at meeting • NSF houses no collections – but was deemed to be the interface with the non-federal collections that had received funding over many years for improvements to collections • First step was to assess existing collections • NSF had to develop separate assessment for collections not federally owned

15. NSF Activities • Set up a focus group to develop an appropriate assessment questionnaire for the non federal collections • Held at AMNH in NY with variety of collections represented • Questionnaire was approved by OMB and those collections that had received support from NSF were surveyed • At the end of the survey, about 72% of those surveyed responded with information. • Clear that collections needed additional funds

16. Summary of NSF survey of collections produced

17. Major Needs of Research Collections • Enhanced coordination and networking among collections and curators. • Finding and retaining expertise. • Reducing the risk of loss of specimens. • Improving accessibility of collections • Developing new tools to enable exchange of data

18. Previous NSF Support for Digitization • Primary: • Improvements to Biological Research Collections • Systematic Biology and Biodiversity Inventories • Other: • Advances in Biological Informatics • Major Research Instrumentation • Long Term Ecological Research • Ecology • CISE/Information and Intelligent Systems, Computer and Network Systems Funding Decisions were Independent, Disaggregated

19. Defining the Need Scientific collections provide proper validation of species including a wealth of ancillary data such as DNA samples and environment/habitat information. These data provide the baseline from which to begin further biodiversity studies and provide critical information about the existing gaps in our knowledge of life on earth. To maximize the use of this information, digitizing scientific collections into a resource that can be accessed by the broadest possible community is vital

20. Digitization of Images: Bringing dark data to light September 2009: BIO Advisory Committee discussed collections and digitization—what is needed? • Development of a focused strategic research agenda • Development of technologies to enhance digitization capabilities • Determination of where to start digitizing

21. Next Steps Develop a plan to engage and mobilize the collections community to answer the question: What would a focused, ten-year campaign to digitize existing collections look like? Held two focus group meetings to develop a community strategic plan

22. Result from the Focus Group • Strategic plan for digitizing, imaging, mobilizing collections data for the non-federal collections in the USA completed by June 2010 • Need a central organization for integration • Need for thematic networks based on research area • Need for regional groups or clade based groups • Assess need for new tools and technologies • At the core are the collections

23. New NSF Strategic Plan • Transform the frontiers emphasizes the seamlessintegration of research and education as well as the close coupling of research infrastructure and discovery.

24. America Competes Act • Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), in consultation with relevant federal agencies, develop policies for management and use of federal scientific collections to “improve the quality, organization, access, including online access, and long-term preservation of such collections for the benefit of the scientific enterprise.”

25. Advancing Digitization of Biological Collections • 10 year effort to digitize as many of the U.S. owned collections as possible • Invest at least 10 million dollars per year • Establish the central resource • Start Thematic Collections Networks based on major research challenges

26. Themes again • Information is an important component of collections and emphasizes the need to communicate that information in the form best suited for the century • Know the audience and what they wish to know and understand the political priorities • In that context, framing the issue is critical

28. Future? o s m o s C