From Plant Press, Vol. 8, No. 4 from October 2005.
This month, the Biological Conservation Newsletter celebrates the publication of its 250th issue. The newsletter has been a monthly publication of the Department of Botany for the past 25 years. Edited by Gary Krupnick, Head of the Plant Conservation Unit, the newsletter contains items on biological conservation issues, highlighting research at the Smithsonian Institution and elsewhere. The newsletter is mailed postally and electronically free to over 2,100 subscribers in 94 countries.
The newsletter was first issued by the Office of Biological Conservation (housed in the Department of Botany) in February 1981. In its humble beginnings, the newsletter stated “The Office seeks to develop an awareness in the minds of our colleagues and the general public to the ever-present changes in the environment caused by human activity and thus serves as a monitoring and warning system.” In the “Recent Literature of Interest” section of the newsletter, the first issue cited 11 publications; the October 2005 issue cites 200 publications for the month.
The newsletter features articles on conservation research and current news items, as well as information on new publications, fellowships and grants, job announcements, educational materials, and meetings. In addition, the newsletter’s Web page <http://ravenel.si.edu/bcn/> features an extensive searchable bibliography of 25,923 citations, making the newsletter a valuable resource to the biological diversity and conservation community.
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