Smithsonian Libraries & The Biodiversity Heritage Library: 2003 - 2012
Martin R. Kalfatovic | Smithsonian Libraries Town Hall | 19 September 2012 National Zoo | Washington, DC
The cultivation of natural science cannot be efficiently carried on without reference to an extensive library
Charles Darwin, et al (1847)Darwin, C. R. et al. 1847. Copy of Memorial to the First Lord of the Treasury [Lord John Russell], respecting the Management of the British Museum. Parliamentary Papers, Accounts and Papers 1847, paper number (268), volume XXXIV.253 (13 April): 1-3. [Complete Works of Charles Darwin Online]
The Wherefore of BHL
Smithsonian Libraries & BHL Pre-historyUS Exploring Expedition, 2003
Smithsonian Libraries & BHL Pre-historyBiologia Centrali-American, 2004
Smithsonian Libraries & BHL: 2006
New BHL Governance Structure
Executive Committee - Chair, Vice-Chair, Secretary - Project Director, Deputy Project Director - Technical Director
Steering Committee - Contribute funds to the Secretariat - 10 institutions (subset of the Institutional Council)
Institutional Council - Interested institutions who sign participation agreement- 14 institutions
BHL Founding DirectorTom Garnett retires, March 2012
Executive CommitteeAugust 2011
Vice Chair
Chair
Secretary
Secretariat and Technical StaffAugust 2011Program Director
Program ManagerCollections Coordinator
Technical DirectorProgrammerData Analyst
Dedicated & Funded StaffAugust 2011
Stefaan HurtsImaging Specialist
JJ FordBHL Librarian
Erin ThomasBHL Librarian
Gilbert BorregoLibrary Technician
“Merely” Dedicated StaffAugust 2011AdministrationNancy GwinnMary Augusta ThomasPolly Khater
MetadataSuzanne PilskBess MissellDiane ShawJulia Blakely (contract)
Special CollectionsLeslie OverstreetDaria Wingreen-Mason
Information TechnologyKeri ThompsonJoel RichardErin Rushing
Natural & Physical SciencesGil Taylor
Robin Everly
Book ConservationVanessa Smith
Katie Wagner
DigitizationDavid HolbertConrad Ziyad
FinancesKathy Hill
Ninette DeanDave Opkins
Sharon Glenn-Burroughs
And allSIL staff!
Scanning Operations: NMNHEquipment
Internet Archive Scribe
StaffDaniel EuperatInternet Archive
Scanning Operations: PennSILEquipment
Phase I BC 100
StaffDavid HolbertImaging Specialist
Stefaan HurtsImaging Specialist
Scanning Operations: FedScanEquipment
12 Internet Archive Scribes
1 large van
Many book carts
Whole lotta shrink wrap
Scanning Operations: Macaw
SIL Funding
Atherton Seidell Endowment$1.7 million / over 5 years
Increase to Federal appropriations$150K / year ($200K FY 12)
Internal “pool” funds$100,000 / over past 3 years
In Kind Contributions: CY 2011SIL Direct Staff Contributions 5.3 FTE $408,164
Other Costs $242,948
Funding Received (internal, grants, etc.) $537,607
Administration
Metadata
Collections support
Database/Systems
Conservation
Scanning Preparation
Direct Scanning
Quality control
BHL Member Participation Staff FTE
16.22 FTE from the 14member institutions(does not include Secretariat or Technical staff)
In-kind Participation Contributions
Staff
Other
Scanning
Internal Grants
External Grants
$980K
$470K
$923K
$980K
$422K
$505K
39,513,872 pages107,808 items56,718 titles
September 2012
SIL Scanning Statistics
2004-2012/Sep
6,058 Titles15,979 Items6,418,882 Pages21,156,338 Names found
2012
2004
User Statistics: 2007 - 2012Visitors: 3,628,088Page Views: 17,604,395New vs. Returning: 48.88% vs. 50.12%
2007
2012112,584 visitors | March 2012
233 countries
“Thank you much for your help. It is so useful as I am right now working on the fishes of Ganges. Moreover it is so great that the library provides classic literature on fishes and it was a dream to me [when] I started my taxonomy ten years back. It is marvellous [what] you did for us which are badly in need of old literature. Thanks a lot.”“Thank you much for your help. It is so useful as I am right now working on the fishes of Ganges. Moreover it is so great that the library provides classic literature on fishes and it was a dream to me [when] I started my taxonomy ten years back. It is marvellous [what] you did for us which are badly in need of old literature. Thanks a lot.”
What an absolutely wonderful site. It is a treasure trove of information. Thank you!
May I compliment you on this splendid service? The Library's invaluable for my work on seasonal
variability of climate and vector-borne disease in British India, 1875-1940.
I really appreciate your work. The Biodiversity Heritage Library is an excellent resource that regularly helps my assistant and I obtain original descriptions for plants .... I feel so privileged to be working in a day in age when such resources are so readily available and easy to obtain.
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June 2012
Over 30 librarians, scientists, informaticians gathered in Cape Town, South Africa to start the formation of the BHL Africa node
FacebookTotal Post Views: 245,095Audience Growth (Total new people who like our page): 338Audience Engagement (Total post interactions): 1,620Total Monthly active Users by End of Q1, FY12: 1,273Total Page Likes: 1,871
Twitter @ BioDivLibraryTotal Followers: 1,951
BlogTotal Visits: 4,868Unique Visitors: 3,540
2,567,169 total views (September 2012)
More Outreach
BHL & EOL BoothAmerican Library Association MeetingDallas, TX, January 2012
Related Projects: TL-2
Related Projects: Field Notes
Looking Forward
In any well-appointed Natural History Library there should be found every book and every edition of every book dealing in the remotest way with the subjects concerned.
Charles Davies Sherborn Epilogue to Index Animalium, March 1922
Thanks