World Nature Conservation Day
28th July 2024
A day dedicated to raising awareness about the importance of protecting our planet’s natural resources and biodiversity. We will look at four libraries where conservation is at the heart of what those organisations do.
Natural History Museum
The Natural History Museum is using their unique collections and world class expertise to help tackle some of the biggest global challenges and to inspire people to care about the natural world. Find out about the research they are conducting, to benefit both people and the planet: Our science | Natural History Museum (nhm.ac.uk).
The Museum’s Library and Archives maintains the world’s finest collection of natural history literature, artwork, and manuscripts. The collections of more than one million items have developed since 1881 and highlights include the Darwin collection. Whether you’re looking for incunabula from 1469 or cutting-edge research articles, they can help. Their comprehensive collection includes items to support your research, answer your questions and fire your imagination.
Find out more about the library and explore on Library Hub Discover
Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew are working at preventing biodiversity loss to save life on earth. Discover more about their research and conservation activities aimed at improving the global prospects for biodiversity: Conservation Science | Kew.
The Library, Art & Archives of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew was established 160 years ago and contains one of the largest collections of material in the world relating to botany. The collections comprise 300,000 printed volumes, 5,000 journal titles and 25,000 maps. The Art and Illustrations Collection is without equal and is made up of over 200,000 items – watercolours, prints, drawings, oil paintings and photographs – by some of the finest artists working in the field of botanical art and illustration. Kew’s own archive of some seven million letters, lists, field notebooks, diaries and manuscript pages complete the paper collections. In total they form an unparalleled resource which supports all aspects of the institution’s work and serves visiting scholars and researchers from around the world.
Find out more about the library and explore on Library Hub Discover
Scottish Ornithologists’ Club
A club for birdwatchers, ornithologist and a network of volunteers gathering important information about Scotland’s wild birds: Bird Recording – The SOC (the-soc.org.uk)
The Scottish Ornithologists’ Club’s library, known as the George Waterston, is located in Waterston House overlooking Aberlady Bay in East Lothian. It contains around 5,000 books and 130 journals making it the largest ornithological collection in Scotland. This up-to-date working collection has a particular emphasis on Scottish material and meets the needs of beginner bird watchers, researchers, and professional ornithologists. In addition, the archive contains a unique collection of ornithological ephemera and artefacts including notebooks, correspondence and photographs belonging to amateur enthusiasts and eminent Scottish ornithologists.
Find out more about the library and explore on Discover
Zoological Society of London
An international conservation charity driven by science, working to restore wildlife in the UK and around the world by protecting critical species, restoring ecosystems, helping people and wildlife live together and inspiring support for nature: Wildlife conservation | ZSL
ZSL’s Prince Philip Zoological Library & Archives contains a unique collection of resources on zoology and animal conservation. Founded in 1826, ZSL Library is one of the major zoological libraries in the world and is open to all. With a collection of more than 200,000 volumes consisting of journals, books dating from the 16th century, drawings, prints and images.
Find out more about the library and explore on Discover
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