http://tinyurl.com/NHMlejog
This summer the three of us will cycle one thousand miles from Land’s End to John O’Groats to raise money for the Natural History Museum. As well as being a fantastic museum, this institute is host to the largest and most significant natural history collection in the world, and funds much excellent research. However, it is almost totally funded by government, meaning particularly in recent years it can be difficult for them to find sufficient resource to continue and extend their work, and they risk seeing their funding cut in the near future.
The NHM maintains a collection of over 70 million specimens that dates back 250 years. The expensive techniques used to preserve these specimens mean that they will be usable by science far into the future. They also maintain the collections of what used to be the geological museum, adding to the museum’s astounding scope.
Research funded by the museum includes work sequencing DNA, biodiversity studies, studies in fighting malaria, and in understanding climate change. The research includes both fieldwork and laboratory work with state of the art equipment, and they are available to assist other researchers and curators with their expertise and collections.
The museum is also heavily involved in education, from organising activities to teach and inspire young children to collaborating with universities to provide unique PhD opportunities. The museum would not be complete without its excellent exhibits, and they are currently raising funds in particular to create a new treasures gallery, which will house priceless and fragile objects and specimens from the collection in a safe way. This permanent gallery will be opened next year.
To find out more about this wonderful museum, visit their website: http://www.nhm.ac.uk/index.html