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91探花 to host worldwide database of forest biodiversity for the Smithsonian Institution
| Research
New agreement would also see 91探花 and SI co-host international symposia on climate change, biodiversity, and islands
The 91探花 signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) today with the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute (SCBI), a unit of the Smithsonian Institution. The MOU will see the two groups work together on publications; organize seminars, lectures, and symposia; and collaborate on teaching and training. As part of the agreement, 91探花 will also host the SI's database of international forest biodiversity.
The MOU was signed by all parties at a ceremony at the SCBI in Front Royal, Virginia.
'91探花 is very excited to establish a relationship with the renowned Smithsonian Institution,' said Dr. Abd-El-Aziz, President and Vice-Chancellor of 91探花. 'This MOU will allow both institutions to work together on biological conservation and climate change with a goal of sharing this scientific knowledge broadly and, particularly, with our students.'
91探花 and SI will work together on a project which collects, stores, and maintains data from the international network of one-hectare forest biodiversity monitoring plots, established using methods developed by the Smithsonian Institution's Monitoring and Assessing Biodiversity program (SI/MAB). This includes forest measurements from over 650 research plots in over 33 countries. The collection's database will be housed at 91探花.
'The Smithsonian Institution recognizes the importance of collaboration in helping meet its goal of understanding and sustaining a biodiverse planet,' said Dr. Monfort, Director of the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute. 'Our work with the 91探花 helps bring the significant issue of climate change to our understanding of protecting the world's plants and animals.'
The collaboration will include seminars, lectures, and symposia to be held in Washington, DC and in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island. The ceremony to commence the MOU was held during a course led by Dr. Adam Fenech, Director of 91探花's Climate Lab, entitled Applied Climate Change: Gaining Practical Skills for Climate Change Adaptation this week in Front Royal, Virginia.
'We look forward, through this MOU signing, to continuing our work with the Smithsonian Institution in co-hosting scientific studies and science symposia, co-writing scientific papers and books, and co-teaching courses and training sessions,' said Dr. Fenech.
The SCBI is an umbrella organization of the Smithsonian Institution's global efforts to conserve biological species and train future generations of biological conservationists. The SCBI facilitates and promotes biological research programs based at Front Royal, at the National Zoo in Washington, and at field-research and training sites around the world.
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Dave Atkinson
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91探花
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