NBII
Access Newsletter
Newsletter of the National Biological Information Infrastructure
Summer 2003
(Volume 6, Number 3)
The NBII has launched a new Web page featuring information about its growing portfolio of international activities. This page was conceived after the success of the NBII's International Resources Gateway, which was launched in late 2001. While the International Resources Gateway was designed to provide access to Web sites for foreign and international biological organizations, the new International Initiatives Page is now the home for information about the NBII's program-level cooperation with other countries and international organizations. It also links to the already existing International Resources Gateway.
From this page, users will be able to browse and search a Web-enabled database of the NBII's international partnerships and activities. The database holds abstracts describing the nature of each international activity or partnership. This catalog will be updated routinely to capture and track the NBII's international activities information.
The international activities umbrella page also provides easy access to fact sheets and brochures that describe the nature of NBII partnerships with initiatives like the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) and the Inter-American Biodiversity Information Network (IABIN). In addition to these useful publication links, an archive of presentations given by NBII personnel at international venues will be accessible, and an archive of "International Connections" articles from the Access newsletter will be available.
IABIN seeks to promote sustainable development and biodiversity conservation through the sharing of biodiversity information for decision-making and education among the countries of the Americas (see <http://www.iabin.net> and <http://www.iabin-us.org>). GBIF (see <http://www.gbif.org>) encourages, coordinates, and supports the development of worldwide capacity to access the vast amount of biodiversity data held in natural history museum collections, libraries, and databanks.
To find the International Initiatives Page, choose the International tab under Geographic Perspectives on the NBII Home Page or go directly to <http://international.nbii.gov>.