Currently geological collections, including the institutions and professionals curating them, face growing operational and financial threats. Several University Earth Science Departments and scientific Institution face merging with other disciplines or closure and their historical collections are at risk of destruction. Museums and other institutions are struggling with financial resources and space. Yet, in an era dominated by modelling and big data, the strategic, scientific, and educational value of geo-collections is frequently unrecognized. While there is the need to preserve important and, in some cases, unique collections of specimens, historical photographs, field documents, geological maps and scientific instruments, there is an urgent need to discuss how to collect for the future and what it is the best way to use both existing and future collections.
This session provides a platform to showcase the scientific, educational, and societal value of physical and digital sample repositories. We invite contributions demonstrating how collections drive the advance of geological research. In this context, “collections” encompasses repositories managed by museums, universities, volcano observatories etc. We welcome submissions exploring case studies using physical or digital sample repositories for research, innovative methodologies for enhancing FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable) data principles and Open Science, interdisciplinary applications of geo-collections, best practices for physical preservation, archiving and conservation, funding strategies, community engagement and lessons learned.
We aim to bring together curators and researchers to foster international collaboration, advocate for institutional support, and promote the active use of geo-scientific collections.