NatSCA Digital Digest – July 2024

Compiled by Milo Phillips, Digitisation Coordinator at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh.

Welcome to the July edition of the NatSCA Digital Digest.

A monthly blog series featuring the latest on where to go, what to see and do in the natural history sector including jobs, exhibitions, conferences, and training opportunities. We are keen to hear from you if you have any top tips and recommendations for our next Digest, please drop an email to blog@natsca.org.

Sector News

SPPC Registration and Call for Abstracts

Registration for the Symposium on Palaeontological Preparation and Conservation is now open!

The deadline for abstract submission is July 31st and, the symposium will be run in a hybrid format. Afternoon tours of the university archaeological laboratories will also be available.

For more information on SPPC and to see past abstracts and posters, please visit their website.

Call for Papers – Book of Nature, Nature of Books: Practices of Female Botanists

The research centres TIL (Université de Bourgogne) and EMMA (Université Paul-Valéry Montpellier 3) are organizing a bilingual, international, interdisciplinary conference on the role of women in the development of botany as part of visual, manuscript and print cultures, from the Middle Ages to the contemporary period.

Discussions will focus on the history of natural sciences, print culture, book history, illustration studies, gender studies, plant studies and ecocriticism and the organisers welcome papers on a wide range of case studies, from archives and museum collections to the garden itself.

Please send a 300-word abstract and a biobibliography (in English or French) before 31 October 2024 to the following address: bookofnature2025@gmail.com

The full details can be found here.

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NatSCA Digital Digest – June 2024

Compiled by Olivia Beavers, Assistant Curator of Vertebrate Zoology at World Museum, National Museums Liverpool.

Welcome to the June edition of NatSCA Digital Digest.

A monthly blog series featuring the latest on where to go, what to see and do in the natural history sector including jobs, exhibitions, conferences, and training opportunities. We are keen to hear from you if you have any top tips and recommendations for our next Digest, please drop an email to blog@natsca.org.

Sector News

From Collections to Connections, May – November 2024

This Changing Chalk commission/ Natural Trust funded project is a collaborative archival art and environment initiative. Artist Pauline Rutter invites Black and minoritised young people, their families and communities to explore the rich history of flora and fauna across several locations of the Changing Chalk area within the South Downs National Park.

‘From Collections to Connections’ offers opportunities for learning and sharing about collections held at the Booth Museum which relate to the Sussex locations of Mill Hill, Truleigh Hill and Devils Dyke. Through walks, talks and creative interventions, opportunities are provided for exploring the museum collections and their related histories. Individuals will be invited to find their own connections between these elements and their experiences within the natural and museum environments. To find out more, follow this link to the summary outline: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1cJQh4UYMTeRB_HqsM7EydOmNBLGKYQpb/view

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NatSCA Digital Digest – May 2024

Compiled by Ellie Clark, Collections Moves Team Leader at the Natural History Museum.

Welcome to the May edition of NatSCA Digital Digest.

A monthly blog series featuring the latest on where to go, what to see and do in the natural history sector including jobs, exhibitions, conferences, and training opportunities. We are keen to hear from you if you have any top tips and recommendations for our next Digest, please drop an email to blog@natsca.org.

Sector News

Registration is now open for the 13th European Bird Curators Meeting, October 2024, in Liverpool.

The European Bird Curators Meetings aim to promote cooperation, dissemination of best practices and new techniques in the curation, management, and use of bird collections. Presenters in the scientific programme often include curators, collection managers, museum historians and ornithological researchers. These are friendly meetings and anyone with an interest is welcome to join us.

The meeting will include plenary and submitted presentations, discussion sessions, collections tour, conference dinner (optional – Tuesday 29th October) and field excursion (optional – Thursday 31st October). 

Please follow the ‘Tickets available here’ link from the event webpage to register. They have single day registration options and have kept costs as low as possible to encourage attendance by local natural history curators. 

If you have any questions, please email vertebratezoology@liverpoolmuseums.org.uk.

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NatSCA Digital Digest – March 2024

Compiled by Olivia Beavers, Assistant Curator of Vertebrate Zoology at World Museum, National Museums Liverpool.

Welcome to the March edition of NatSCA Digital Digest.

A monthly blog series featuring the latest on where to go, what to see and do in the natural history sector including jobs, exhibitions, conferences, and training opportunities. We are keen to hear from you if you have any top tips and recommendations for our next Digest, please drop an email to blog@natsca.org.

Sector News

NatSCA Annual Conference & AGM 2024

Registration is open for the 2024 Annual Conference & AGM of the Natural Sciences Collections Association. Trials and Triumphs: sharing practice across the museum sector will be held on Thursday 18th and Friday 19th April 2024 in the Oxford University Museum of Natural History. This practical conference aims to celebrate triumphs and amplify successes in museums, but also highlights pitfalls and lessons learned from situations that didn’t go as planned. Members – please remember to contact membership@natsca.org for your promotional code to release discounted tickets.

The event will be physical/digital hybrid, with attendees able to attend in person or online via Zoom. Follow the link for more details and to register.

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NatSCA Digital Digest – February 2024

Compiled by Ellie Clark, Collections Moves Team Leader at the Natural History Museum.

Welcome to the February edition of NatSCA Digital Digest.

A monthly blog series featuring the latest on where to go, what to see and do in the natural history sector including jobs, exhibitions, conferences, and training opportunities. We are keen to hear from you if you have any top tips and recommendations for our next Digest, please drop an email to blog@natsca.org.

Sector News

The Society for the History of Natural History (SHNH) Early Career Researcher Symposium – Registration open

The Early Career Researcher Symposium is an event dedicated expressly to showcase research into the history of natural history being done by doctoral and early career researchers across the globe.

This online event will be on Thursday 22 February 2024. Registration is free but required. You can find the programme along with more information here.

The SHNH have a range of other events happening throughout the year including a joint seminar with the Animal History Group, a visit to the University Herbarium at Winterbourne House and Gardens, as well as their Annual Conference. Note that their AGM will be held online and separate from the conference to ensure as many members as possible can attend.

Geological Curators Group 50 Year Anniversary – Call for Abstracts

The Geological Curators Group 50 Year Anniversary will be held from the 17th – 18th of May 2024 at the University of Leicester.

Day 1: Presentations on the theme of past, present and future of geological collections at the University of Leicester. Reception at Leicester Museum & Art Gallery, followed by an evening meal.
Day 2: Presentations and tours at British Geological Survey Nottingham and Charnwood Forest Geopark

Please send abstracts of up to 250 words to events@geocurator.org and state whether it is for a poster or platform presentation. Abstract deadline is 1st March 2024. Presenters will be invited to submit papers for a special golden anniversary issue of Geological Curator.

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