<div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div class="gmail_default" style="font-size:large">Andy, Can you be more explicit about the scope of the term "taxonomic impediment" in the context of your response and Doug's comment.</div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-size:large"><br></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-size:large">I had a similar feeling about the questionnaire as Doug (and some others have) expressed.</div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-size:large"><br></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-size:large">The intro to the questionnaire asks:</div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-size:large"><br></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-size:large;margin-left:40px"> "Are there ways we can focus our individual and collective efforts to
effectively harness our resources and knowledge to address the
biodiversity crisis? How should the natural history collections
community and SPNHC respond to this call to action?" </div></div><div><br></div><div><div style="font-size:large" class="gmail_default">One of the questions asks:</div><div style="font-size:large" class="gmail_default"><br></div><div style="font-size:large;margin-left:40px" class="gmail_default">"Are there other actions you think SPNHC can and should take to address the biodiversity crisis?"</div><div style="font-size:large" class="gmail_default"><br></div><div style="font-size:large" class="gmail_default">How does Doug's commentary (about "taxonomic impediments"?) not respond in a SPNHC-y way to those questions?</div><div style="font-size:large" class="gmail_default"><br></div><div style="font-size:large" class="gmail_default">It's not to be picky, but to better understand what sideboards SPNHC (e.g., you, the questionnaire) is putting on the collections services world view that SPNCH is prepared / able to contemplate programmatically.</div><div style="font-size:large" class="gmail_default"><br></div><div style="font-size:large" class="gmail_default">Peter</div><div style="font-size:large" class="gmail_default"><br></div><br></div><div class="gmail_quote"><div dir="ltr" class="gmail_attr">On Tue, Feb 11, 2020 at 2:22 PM Bentley, Andrew Charles <<a href="mailto:abentley@ku.edu">abentley@ku.edu</a>> wrote:<br></div><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0px 0px 0px 0.8ex;border-left:1px solid rgb(204,204,204);padding-left:1ex">
<div lang="EN-US">
<div class="gmail-m_-4130899415868693728WordSection1">
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:rgb(31,73,125)">Hi Doug<u></u><u></u></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:rgb(31,73,125)"><u></u> <u></u></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:rgb(31,73,125)">Both very valid points. The taxonomic impediment is however somewhat outside of the scope of what SPNHC as a collections organization can tackle. I see this
more as a research-based problem that is beyond our purview. Granted, we can advocate for the increase in taxonomic expertize as it relates to identifying materials in collections to address the biodiversity crisis but funding such an endeavor is outside
of our scope of work.<u></u><u></u></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:rgb(31,73,125)"><u></u> <u></u></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:rgb(31,73,125)">Digitization and data cleanup is foremost in everyone’s mind and at the heart of SPNHC’s mission at the moment and a number of recently released papers have highlighted
this – BCoN, etc. It will also be a central tenant of the soon to be released National Academy and IWGSC reports. I guess we were trying to explore OTHER ways in which SPNHC could tackle this crisis beyond the existing measures – not to say that this is not
something that needs to continue to be at the bleeding edge of what we do.<u></u><u></u></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:rgb(31,73,125)"><u></u> <u></u></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:rgb(31,73,125)">Thanks for your input and we will definitely keep this in mind when collating results for dissemination.<u></u><u></u></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:rgb(31,73,125)"><u></u> <u></u></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:rgb(31,73,125)">Andy<u></u><u></u></span></p>
<div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:rgb(31,73,125)" lang="EN-AU"> A : A : A :<br>
}<(((_°>.,.,.,.}<(((_°>.,.,.,.}<)))_°><br>
V V V<br>
Andy Bentley<br>
Ichthyology Collection Manager<br>
University of Kansas<br>
Biodiversity Institute<u></u><u></u></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:rgb(31,73,125)" lang="EN-AU">Dyche Hall<br>
<a><span style="color:rgb(5,99,193)">1345 Jayhawk Boulevard</span></a><br>
<a><span style="color:rgb(5,99,193)">Lawrence, KS, 66045-7561</span></a><br>
<a><span style="color:rgb(5,99,193)">USA</span></a><br>
<br>
Tel: <a href="tel:%28785%29%20864-3863" target="_blank"><span style="color:rgb(5,99,193)">(785) 864-3863</span></a><br>
Fax: <a href="tel:%28785%29%20864-5335" target="_blank"><span style="color:rgb(5,99,193)">(785) 864-5335</span></a> <br>
Email: <a href="mailto:abentley@ku.edu" target="_blank"><span style="color:rgb(5,99,193)">abentley@ku.edu</span></a> </span><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:rgb(31,73,125)"><u></u><u></u></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:rgb(31,73,125)" lang="EN-AU"><a href="http://ichthyology.biodiversity.ku.edu/" target="_blank"><span style="color:rgb(5,99,193)">http://ichthyology.biodiversity.ku.edu</span></a></span><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:rgb(31,73,125)"><u></u><u></u></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:rgb(31,73,125)"> A : A : A :<br>
}<(((_°>.,.,.,.}<(((_°>.,.,.,.}<)))_°><br>
V V V<u></u><u></u></span></p>
</div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:rgb(31,73,125)"><u></u> <u></u></span></p>
<div>
<div style="border-color:rgb(225,225,225) currentcolor currentcolor;border-style:solid none none;border-width:1pt medium medium;padding:3pt 0in 0in">
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif">From:</span></b><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif"> Nhcoll-l <<a href="mailto:nhcoll-l-bounces@mailman.yale.edu" target="_blank">nhcoll-l-bounces@mailman.yale.edu</a>>
<b>On Behalf Of </b>Doug Yanega<br>
<b>Sent:</b> Tuesday, February 11, 2020 12:19 PM<br>
<b>To:</b> nhcoll <<a href="mailto:nhcoll-l@mailman.yale.edu" target="_blank">nhcoll-l@mailman.yale.edu</a>>; <a href="mailto:ECN-L@LISTSERV.UNL.EDU" target="_blank">ECN-L@LISTSERV.UNL.EDU</a><br>
<b>Subject:</b> Re: [Nhcoll-l] Biodiversity Crisis - We need your input<u></u><u></u></span></p>
</div>
</div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><u></u> <u></u></p>
<p>"We have developed a short online survey that we hope will capture the information we need to formulate a meaningful response.<br>
<br>
<a href="https://nam10.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Furldefense.proofpoint.com%2Fv2%2Furl%3Fu%3Dhttps-3A__tiny.cc_biocrisis%26d%3DDwMFAg%26c%3DCu5g146wZdoqVuKpTNsYHeFX_rg6kWhlkLF8Eft-wwo%26r%3D-lUMCZ4RK28H4qvcd3vmEBuyVJHHG0OpDzFenR9wX-A%26m%3DsvMlQwGevn9uqNrpxRJ2yJpVdtCjQ3_9IKGzhmbqTyE%26s%3D_36g9gn3ccJQs7in_wF0OOyeADV7eZCMs9FLKvqkAEI%26e%3D&data=02%7C01%7Cabentley%40ku.edu%7C31309983095442c759c608d7af1ef5fb%7C3c176536afe643f5b96636feabbe3c1a%7C0%7C0%7C637170419828327920&sdata=nq%2BGmnfPLbS2AykF0lq5yOjglub%2F9J2idgKPM41YlrY%3D&reserved=0" target="_blank">https://tiny.cc/biocrisis"</a><u></u><u></u></p>
<p>Having just completed this survey, I'll note that among the agenda items we're asked to prioritize, two of them ask about the need for funding or leading conservation efforts, but none of them ask about the need for funding or leading
<b>curatorial</b> efforts, such as training and supporting taxonomists to provide identifications for natural history collections, or capturing and mobilizing specimen data.<u></u><u></u></p>
<p>I think all of us in the community understand that you can't promote effective assessment or management of biodiversity if you don't know what the organisms are, or where they live, and while I don't doubt for a minute that the people in SPNHC are fully
aware of this fundamental need, I do have to wonder why it does not appear anywhere in the survey, when it seems to me that it should be an integral part of the discussion. After all, it's not like this work has been completed, or is anywhere even close to
complete - there isn't a natural history collection in the world that has all of its holdings databased, online, AND fully reviewed for accuracy (both accuracy of data,
<b>and</b> accuracy of identification). Is this not one of the highest priorities we in the collections community need to address in terms of the biodiversity crisis? How useful are our millions upon millions of specimens if we don't know whether we can trust
the data, or trust the IDs?<u></u><u></u></p>
<p>I'm not really looking for a public response, but I do want to encourage people taking the survey to make use of the comments towards the end to give feedback, and expand upon the very limited selection of agenda items in the survey, if you agree with me
that there are some fundamental things missing.<u></u><u></u></p>
<p>Sincerely,<u></u><u></u></p>
<pre>-- <u></u><u></u></pre>
<pre>Doug Yanega Dept. of Entomology Entomology Research Museum<u></u><u></u></pre>
<pre>Univ. of California, Riverside, CA 92521-0314 skype: dyanega<u></u><u></u></pre>
<pre>phone: (951) 827-4315 (disclaimer: opinions are mine, not UCR's)<u></u><u></u></pre>
<pre> <a href="https://nam10.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https:%2F%2Ffaculty.ucr.edu%2F~heraty%2Fyanega.html&data=02%7C01%7Cabentley%40ku.edu%7C31309983095442c759c608d7af1ef5fb%7C3c176536afe643f5b96636feabbe3c1a%7C0%7C1%7C637170419828327920&sdata=l%2BjJs7Yz6858MKS2plTZ%2FCZkHuQqCdsnyPxMJuyxGS8%3D&reserved=0" target="_blank">https://faculty.ucr.edu/~heraty/yanega.html</a><u></u><u></u></pre>
<pre> "There are some enterprises in which a careful disorderliness<u></u><u></u></pre>
<pre> is the true method" - Herman Melville, Moby Dick, Chap. 82<u></u><u></u></pre>
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