[Nhcoll-l] Proposal for a SPNHC 2022 session

[John E Simmons]

*Managing Future Sustainability: Preparing Collections for an Uncertain
Future*



I am putting together a proposal for next year’s SPNHC meeting in Edinburgh
(04-10 June 2022) to consider ways to sustainably manage natural history
collections for the long-term future with limited resources. I am looking
for people who would like to contribute to this session.



Most of us are already dealing with ever-growing collections and limited
collections care resources while facing an uncertain future due to climate
change. How can we cope with these challenges while still providing quality
collections care? A few examples:

--Collection growth is rarely linked to resource (time, space, and
personnel) availability. How can the principles of “Active Collections” (
http://www.activecollections.org/) be applied to natural history?

--Densely packing cabinets and shelves may solve a space issue, but dense
storage negatively impacts the ability to monitor specimen condition—is
there a better solution?

--Databases were designed to make collection information available, not to
improve collection management. How can we redesign databases for
comprehensive collection management?

--What are the best parameters for a sustainable collection storage
environment as we undergo climate change?

--Currently available collection storage furniture is designed for old
collection storage arrays—how can we redesign storage furniture to make it
more efficient?



If you are concerned about these or related issues and would like to
participate in this session, please send me an email (
simmons.johne at gmail.com) outlining your proposed contribution. The deadline
for submission of the formal session proposal is 22 October 2021.



--John


John E. Simmons
Writer and Museum Consultant
Museologica
*and*
Associate Curator of Collections
Earth and Mineral Science Museum & Art Gallery
Penn State University
*and*
Investigador Asociado, Departamento de Ornitologia
Museo de Historia Natural, Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos, Lima
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