[PCA] Norton Brown Herbarium may close

Tue Oct 25 15:00:07 CDT 2016

Although a little dated the findings published by a committee chaired by Peter Raven under the auspices of the National Academy of Sciences are still relevant and well-written explaining the critical importance of systematic collections to basic science and conservation of biodiversity.    https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK236473/

Bert Pittman
Botanist
SC Heritage Trust Program

A Biological Survey for the Nation
National Research Council (US) Committee on the Formation of the National Biological Survey.
Washington (DC): National Academies Press (US)<http://www.nap.edu/>; 1994.
ISBN-10: 0-309-04984-0

  *   Copyright and Permissions<https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK236473/#_ncbi_dlg_cpyrght_NBK236473>
Hardcopy Version at National Academies Press<http://www.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=2243>

From: native-plants [mailto:native-plants-bounces at lists.plantconservation.org] On Behalf Of Sylvan Kaufman
Sent: Tuesday, October 25, 2016 11:04 AM
To: native-plants at lists.plantconservation.org
Subject: Re: [PCA] Norton Brown Herbarium may close

At Elizabeth's suggestion, I've written a couple paragraphs that can be used in a letter of support.  Please feel free to modify these as you see fit.

Ongoing herbarium work is essential to our understanding of the natural world, especially in these days of rapid change. The Norton Brown Herbarium was started to support the Maryland Agricultural Experiment Station in 1901 and now has a collection of more than 87,000 specimens with a focus on the flora of Maryland and mid-Atlantic, several plant families, and several special collections including those of the University’s College Park Arboretum and Botanic Gardens.  The herbarium serves as a repository for state endangered and rare plant collections and serves to document changes in plant distributions across the state.  It is used by state agencies including the Department of Natural Resources and Department of Agriculture as well as by researchers from around the world.  Students use the herbarium to learn about plant taxonomy and to conduct research projects.  Herbarium specimens can be used to study everything from plant genetics, crop diseases, and medical uses to climate change.

For this sort of research to continue, it is vital that the University maintain support for the Norton Brown Herbarium.  It should be considered a valuable asset to the University in attracting world class researchers and funding, but instead it seems to be viewed as a financial burden. The Herbarium needs to be able to maintain and update its collections and make that information available to researchers and to the public.  It is an irreplaceable resource.

On Mon, Oct 24, 2016 at 11:44 AM, Becky Erickson <beckyerick711 at centurylink.net<mailto:beckyerick711 at centurylink.net>> wrote:
Also try Crowd Funding or Kickstarter; open a new page on Facebook - explain
the history, issue and ask for money.

-----Original Message-----
From: Steve Erickson
Sent: Sunday, October 23, 2016 8:39 PM
To: Sylvan Kaufman
Cc: native-plants at lists.plantconservation.org<mailto:native-plants at lists.plantconservation.org>
Subject: Re: [PCA] Norton Brown Herbarium may close
Public pressure is your best bet, along with the press.

And reach out not just to the obvious (i.e. conservation groups,
including those that are not necessarily focused on veg). Make a
list of the obvious allies, from Natural Heritage to Audubon.
Pick up the phone. Ask friendlies if they know who are good
politicians and reporters to go to. Then expand the circle. Also
go for scientists that are not botanists and ecologists. Get
some cancer researchers to do a sign on letter and make sure it
goes to the press and friendly legislators.

Remember, the squeaky wheel gets the grease and the most
obnoxious annoying loudest wheel gets the most lubrication. This
isn’t science, its straight out politics. And don’t spare
the hyperbole. An herbarium is a library of nature. Surely they
wouldn’t burn a library or fail to repair a leaking library
roof? Finding other funding is not your goal. Your goal should
be to generate enough political heat so the university
administration does its job and finds the funding.

-Steve

===================================

On 10/22/16 at 9:37 AM, sylvan.kaufman at gmail.com<mailto:sylvan.kaufman at gmail.com> (Sylvan
Kaufman) wrote:

>I learned this week from the Director of the Norton Brown Herbarium at
>University of Maryland that it will close unless the Director can find
>$100,000 in operating expenses each year starting in 2017.  This herbarium
>is the state herbarium for Maryland .
>
>Does anyone have advice about how to either find outside funding or
>convince the University that they should fund the operating budget?  I have
>put the message out to several Maryland conservation-related listserves in
>the hopes that people will write letters of support to the Chair of the
>Plant Sciences department and Dean of the College of Agriculture and
>Natural Resources that house the herbarium.
>
>Thanks,
>Sylvan
>
---------------------------------------------
Frosty Hollow Ecological Restoration
Helping Nature Heal
Box 53
Langley, WA  98260
(360) 579-2332<tel:%28360%29%20579-2332>   FH at Whidbey.com<mailto:FH at Whidbey.com>
=======================================

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