Developing specialisedinformation services

within anintegrated library service:

examples in botany and forestry

Roger MillsPlant Sciences Library, OULS

May 2004

Old but not past it

• Botany 1621Botany 1621• Agriculture 1870Agriculture 1870• Forestry 1905Forestry 1905• Imperial Forestry Institute 1924Imperial Forestry Institute 1924• Present ‘Worthington’ building Present ‘Worthington’ building

19501950• Plant Sciences 1985Plant Sciences 1985• OULS 2000OULS 2000

The List Library

Then

Council

General Board of the Faculties

Congregation

Libraries BoardPlant Sciences

Plant SciencesLibrary

HerbariaCentral & Faculty

Libraries

Botanic Garden Other depts

Now

Council

Life & Environmental Sciences Div

Admin Services& UniversityCollections

Other Divisions

Congregation

Plant Sciences Other Depts

Herbaria

OULS(Libraries)

Botanic GardenOUCS

(Computing)Museums

Plant SciencesLibrary

40+ other libraries

Schizophrenia

• 50% of our users are not members of the University

• Known and act as international resource

• But not funded as such• Well, roughly• University users from 20+

departments

Plant Sciences Library

• General Plant Biology• Undergrad degree in Biological Sciences

• Taxonomy• Sherard Collection• Sibthorpian Library

• Forestry• Oxford Forest Information Service• In partnership with CAB International• All languages

• c. 200,000 items, c. 2000 current serials, plus 4000 dead

• c. one third microfilmed

In Partnership

• With CAB International since 1938• Entire forestry collection

abstracted• CABI deposits forestry material• Oxford runs document delivery

service for CABI

Neighbours

• Zoology, Ornithology• MSc in Biology (Integrative Bioscience)

• Geography, Environmental Change Institute

• MScs in:• Biodiversity, Conservation & Management• Nature, Society and Environmental Policy• Environmental Geomorphology • Environmental Change and Management• Water Science, Policy and Management

• University Museum of Natural History• Earth Sciences

Location, Location, Location

Plant Sciences Library• Remains in Department• Alongside Herbaria• Owns books in Herbaria• Rare Books room part of Herbaria suite• Not responsible to Dept• Sibthorpian Prof statutory responsibility for

Sibthorpian Library• 1 mile from Botanic Garden• No proper book transport system

Do we really need a library?

• Move to fully electronic desktop delivery

• As soon as possible• Extra funds or diverted funds?• And the old stuff?• Trees grow slowly• So – we need both• So – we have to fight

Head above the parapet

• Raise visibility• Demonstrate external interest• Report on visits• Forge alliances and sign MoU’s• Get involved in projects• Arrange exhibits, talks, user

education• Spin

Publicise affiliationsBritish Falconer's Club

British Falconer's Club British

Falconer's Club

British Ornithologist's Union

Projects

• BIOME• GFIS• NEFIS• TNW

Digitisation

• Flora Graeca in the 21st Century• External consultant: Prof H.W. Lack

• Oxford Digital Library for Forestry• in association with:

• Commonwealth Forestry Association• CAB International• FAO• OFI

Consultancy

• British Council• World Bank

Collaboration

• The GFIS Task Force on slippery ground

Exhibitions

• Oxford’s Botanical Treasures and the Shirley Sherwood Collection

• Ashmolean Museum Oxford• 2 May – 11 Sept 2005

Services

• Oxford Forest Information Service• Centralised services:

• Digital imaging service• Document Delivery / Inter-library loans

service• Organised centrally – marketed

locally• Subject enquiries – handled on-site

Celebrations

• 100 years of Forestry in Oxford

1905 - 2005

User Education

• Curriculum sessions• Bytes for Biologists

OFIS History

•Think forest information – think IUFRO!

How it all started

• International Association of Forest Research Institutes founded 1893 (renamed International Union of Forest Research Organizations 1929)

• Article 2 of 1929 Statutes: …to work…for the unification of terminology…to provide for the creation of an international forest bibliography…

History – 1903-1908

• 4th meeting 1903 (Vienna): ‘compilation of general forest bibliography’ first on agenda

• By 5th meeting 1906 (Stuttgart):• International Committee on Forest

Bibliography formed• Bibliographical system should be that of

Melvil Dewey• A permanent secretariat of forest

bibliography should be established• Swiss Federal Institute of Forest Research

authorised as secretariat 1908

1908-1922

• Subscriptions taken• Card catalogue and ‘quarterly

magazine’ planned• Past literature from 1750 to be

published in book form• All stopped by First World War • Discussions resumed 1922

1922-1933

• Forest Bibliography: an International Decimal Classification on the basis of Melvil Dewey’s system published in German 1933, translated into French and English 1936 (‘Flury System’)

• Prepared by Dr Philipp Flury (Birmensdorf) (secretary of the Bibliograpical Committee)

• Chaired by Prof RS Troup (Oxford)

1934-1939

• Imperial Forestry Institute, Oxford began card index and ‘magazine’ Current Monthly Record of Forestry Literature 1934 under Troup’s direction [metadata and indexing in support of networks]

• Imperial Agricultural Bureaux invited to found Forestry Bureau (IFB) at Oxford with IUFRO’s support 1938 (CFB from 1948)

• Forestry Abstracts first published 1939

1939-1953

• Second World War ended plans for international secretariat. Clearing house role adopted by CFB/Oxford

• Classification developed by CFB under F.C. Ford-Robertson

• Bib. Cttee. revived as Joint FAO/IUFRO Committee on Forest Bibliography 1949 (= IUFRO Section 01)

• Revised new classification and after ‘prolonged and earnest deliberations’ finalised Oxford System of Decimal Classification for Forestry, adopted by IUFRO and FAO 1953 and published by CAB

1953-1995 > 2005

• Joint Committee embarks on publication of multi-lingual terminology

• 1972 IUFRO restructured: Joint Committee becomes S6.03, Information systems and terminology

• 1995 renamed Information services and knowledge organisation with sub-groups

• 01 Libraries and Information Services• 02 Trends in forest terminology• 03 Forest Decimal Classification• 04 Latin American systems network

• Next review: Brisbane 2005

In brief

• Words, numbers, people, stuff

words

• SilvaVoc 1995: Clearinghouse for multilingual forestry terminology http://iufro.boku.ac.at/iufro/silvavoc/

• International Bibliography of Dictionaries, Glossaries and Terminological Publications in Forestry and Related Sciences

• Collaborative development of a multilingual forestry thesaurus

• Harmonizing forest-related definitions for use by various stakeholders

numbers

• International work on Dewey for subject gateways

• Revival of ODC/FDC as GFDC• Advantage of numbers: logical

arrangement not dependent on language

people

• GFIS is a network of networks• Deliver information faster• Who’s there to help? Compilation of

international directory• Supporting information services in Europe:

FORELISE

Stuff : finding it

• It’s on the web• But where?• Subject gateways extend

‘bibliographic control’ to web-based resources

• BIOME AgriFor gateway

Stuff : getting it

• So I know it exists, how do I get it?• Non-digital libraries and archives• Electronic journals• Digital Libraries• In future, how will we trace and

communicate knowledge?

Talk to me

• European Botanical and Horticultural Libraries founded 1994

• Now 59 institutions in 22 countries• Associated with CBHL in N America• Joint symposium approved at

International Botanical Congress, Vienna 2005

• Similar group for Forestry - FORELISE

Pictures

John Sibthorp (1758-1796)

• Third Sherardian Professor of Botany at Oxford

• Journeyed to Greece and Turkey

• With artist Ferdinand Bauer

Flora Graeca

• Sibthorp and Bauer• Plant specimens (living and dried),

notebooks, drawings, water colours (colour key), topographical drawings, fauna

• Most expensive flora ever published• Now being digitised• After being meticulously studied by

Walter Lack

Papaver pilosum Sm.

Specimens

Establishing the Type

• Index Kewensis/IPNI

Digital detail

Scene of the crime

A fishy story

Drawings

Seeing the wood for the trees

• Identification• Testing• Properties

It all hangs together

• If we all hang together• Otherwise we will all hang

together…

All we need is…

And…When I’m 64?