RCN: SERNEC: SouthEast Network of Expertise and Collections

东南地区专业知识和收藏网络（SERNEC）包括美国东南部15个州的150个植物标本馆。该中心的中心愿景是使人们更广泛地了解地球上植物种类最多的地区之一，从而改进植物学研究，改善合理的生物多样性和土地使用管理，并使公众更了解情况。 东南部包含大量未开发的土地，有详细记录的过去植物迁移记录，并且是大量植物标本馆的所在地，所有这些都使其成为评估我们不断变化的生物群的理想模型。通过在区域范围内整合馆藏，将小型标本馆和大型研究馆藏联系起来，SERNEC网络将为对生境破碎化、全球变暖、入侵物种和其他紧迫的区域、国家和全球生物问题感兴趣的研究人员和教育工作者提供广泛的信息和专业知识。SERNEC在实现其愿景方面所追求的目标是：1）制定计划，以数字形式向科学界和一般用户提供区域收集，2）协调网络成员和参与者之间的研究活动，以帮助解决人类对生物区系的影响以及如何减轻这种影响，3）协调教学活动，培养新的植物学家，帮助K-12教师开发新的和更丰富的课程，并激发公众对植物学的认识。该网络将举办五个年度区域研讨会/讲习班，与东南部生物学家协会（ASB），南阿巴拉契亚植物学会（SABS）和植物标本馆馆长协会（SHC）的年度会议以及州一级的研讨会/讲习班。一份电子讨论清单用于协调核心网络参与者的活动，第二份清单用于协调代表45个植物标本库的更大的小组。特别困难情况/全国选举事务处的网址是http://www.newberrynet.com/sabs/shc/，目前正在编制一份电子通讯，可以印刷本分发给其他有关方面。区域范围内的数据库收集将提供信息，以解决分类，生态，进化，保护和植物天然产品的研究问题。这一区域专门知识网络补充了其他大规模数据收集和传播举措，为未来的研究工作产生了协同作用。各机构专家之间的互动提供了一个“虚拟校园”，以协助培训生物学家，并作为联邦、州和地方机构以及社区学院寻找所需专业知识的资源。 植物标本馆和他们的策展专业知识是K-12教师，学生和更广泛的社区的信息的一个很好的来源，这个网络提供了所需的信息，以协助每个植物标本馆在最大限度地扩大他们的教育工作者和当地公众。最后，这一网络将确保长期保存独特的研究材料并使公众能够获得这些材料。

The SouthEast Regional Network of Expertise and Collections (SERNEC) includes 150 herbaria in 15 states throughout the southeastern United States. The central vision for SERNEC is to engender a wider understanding of one of the most botanically diverse regions of the earth, which will lead to better botanical research, improvements in rational biodiversity and land-use management, and a better-informed public. The Southeast contains a significant amount of undeveloped land, has a well-documented record of past plant migrations, and is home to a large number of herbarium collections, all of which make it an ideal model for evaluating our changing biota. By integrating collections at a regional scale, linking smaller herbaria and larger research collections, the SERNEC network will make information and expertise broadly available to researchers and educators interested in habitat fragmentation, global warming, invasive species, and other pressing regional, national, and global biological issues.The goals SERNEC is pursuing in achieving its vision are: 1) developing plans to make regional collections available in digital form to the scientific community and general users, 2) coordinating research activities among network members and participants to help address the impact of humans on the biota and how that impact can be ameliorated, 3) coordinating teaching and learning activities to train new botanists, to help K-12 teachers develop new and richer curricula, and to spur greater botanical awareness among the general public. The network will hold five annual regional symposia/workshops in conjunction with the annual meeting of the Association of Southeastern Biologists (ASB), the Southern Appalachian Botanical Society (SABS) and The Society of Herbarium Curators (SHC) and state level symposia/workshops. An electronic discussion list serves to coordinate activities of the core network participants and a second has been created to coordinate a larger group representing 45 herbaria. The SHC/SERNEC website is available online at http://www.newberrynet.com/sabs/shc/ and an electronic newsletter is being developed that can be distributed in hard copy to reach other interested parties. Databasing collections on a regional scale will provide information to address taxonomic, ecological, evolutionary, conservation and plant natural products research questions. This network of regional expertise complements other large-scale data gathering and dissemination initiatives to generate a synergy of ideas for future research endeavors. Interactions among experts at various institutions provides a "virtual campus" to assist in training biologists and serves as a resource for finding needed expertise for federal, state and local agencies, and community colleges. Herbaria and their curatorial expertise are an excellent source of information for K-12 teachers, students, and the broader community, and this network provides the information needed to assist each herbarium in maximizing their outreach to educators and the local public. Finally, this network will ensure the long-term preservation of and public access to unique research materials.