“Biota of North America: what we know, what we don’t know and what we’re losing.”

October 12-13, 2018

This year’s Symposium brings together a distinguished group of speakers actively working on increasing our understanding of species diversity and ecological interactions in North American ecosystems, as well the most pressing conservation issues they face. A surprising number and variety of North American species are quietly disappearing, yet scientists have only catalogued a small proportion of the total diversity of organisms. Our speakers will highlight the current status of our knowledge of North American species, showcase important ecological interactions at risk, and provide a perspective on future conservation actions. The program will be of interest to students of systematics, phylogeny, evolution, and conservation.

Organizing committee: Monica Carlsen, Aaron Floden, Peter Hoch, and James Miller

The Missouri Botanical Garden (MBG), the New York Botanical Garden (NYBG), and the Universidad Estatal Amazónica (UEA) are pleased to announce a 3-week training program in Tropical Field Botany in Ecuador for highly motivated early graduate students from American universities who are interested in pursuing a career in Plant Systematics.  Scientists from MBG, NYBG, and UEA will offer a broad introduction to the topics of tropical field botany and plant taxonomy through a variety of experiences, including classroom lectures, discussion sessions, and fieldwork.  Drawing from the instructors’ personal research experiences, students will learn about the tools and methods used to understand and conduct research on Tropical Botany and the related topic of plant conservation

The Rupert Barneby Award, named in honor of the late NYBG scientist and renowned legume expert, consists of US$2000 granted annually to assist researchers to visit The New York Botanical Garden to study the rich herbarium collection of Leguminosae. Graduate students and early career professionals with research in systematics and/or legume diversity are given special consideration. Projects that will result in the improved curation of the collection are desirable. Anyone interested in applying for the award should submit their: 1) curriculum vitae; 2) a proposal describing the project for which the award is sought; 3) contact information for two individuals who can vouch for the qualifications of the applicant. The proposal should address specifically the activities to be performed at NYBG and should consist of: 1) title page with proposal title, applicant’s name, address, and e-mail address; 2) body of the proposal of no more than two pages, including justification, objectives, and research plan; 3) literature cited; 4) travel budget. The application should be addressed to Dr. Benjamin M. Torke, Institute of Systematic Botany, The New York Botanical Garden, 1900 Southern Blvd., Bronx, NY 10458-5126, USA, and received no later than December 1, 2018. Submission by e-mail is preferred (send to: btorke@nybg.org). Announcement of the recipient will be made in January. Travel to NYBG should be planned for some period during 2019. Recipients are asked to give a presentation about their research.

June 21, 2018 – New York – The Council on Botanical and Horticultural Libraries, Inc. (CBHL) presented its nineteenth Annual Literature Awards on June 21, 2018. This presentation was made in Brooklyn during CBHL's 50th Annual Meeting hosted by the New York Botanical Garden and the Brooklyn Botanic Garden. The CBHL Annual Literature Awards, created to recognize significant contributions to the literature of botany and horticulture, this year honored four remarkable works.

Susan Fraser, Thomas J. Hubbard Vice President and Director, The LuEsther T. Mertz Library of the New York Botanical Garden, received the Charles Robert Long Award of Extraordinary Merit on June 22, 2018 from the Council on Botanical and Horticultural Libraries (CBHL).

Tropical Botany is an intensive course of study in the biology and systematics of tropical plants. The class is largely based on the extensive holdings of tropical vascular plants at Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden, The Kampong of the National Tropical Botanical Garden, University of Miami’s Gifford Arboretum, and the Montgomery Botanical Center.  These gardens have the largest living collections of tropical plants in the United States.  Additionally, field trips to the Florida Everglades, the Florida Keys, and adjacent natural areas are included.  The natural vegetation of South Florida, which includes littoral and dry land habitats, mixed tropical hardwood hammocks, pinelands, and mangrove communities, introduces students to the diversity of tropical vegetation. For more information, please email tropics@fiu.edu

Plant BLOOME 2018- Applications now being accepted

In 1995, ASPB established Plant BLOOME with the goal to enhance public awareness and understanding of the essential roles of plants in all areas of life. Plant BLOOME 2018 is open to ASPB members with education and outreach projects that advance youth, student, and general public knowledge and appreciation of plant biology. These projects should strive to promote and explain varying facets of the:

• Importance of plants for the sustainable production of medicine, food, fibers, and fuels;
• Critical role plants play in sustaining functional ecosystems in changing environments;
• Latest developments in plant biotechnologies, including genetic modifications that improve the quality and disease- and stress-resistance of crops;
• Discoveries made in plants that have led to improved human health and wellbeing; and
• Range of careers related to plant biology or available to plant biologists.

A maximum award size of $50,000 can be requested for the one-year funding cycle. Projects can begin any time after recipients are notified. Applications will be accepted December 1, 2017 - April 2, 2018 (11:59 ET). Learn more and apply at http://bloome.aspb.org

4th International Brachypodium Conference on 25-28 June 2019, in Huesca, Spain. The conference will be organized by the University of Zaragoza - Huesca Campus and will be held at the Huesca Convention Centre.

This biennial meeting follows successful conferences in France in 2011, Italy in 2013, USA in 2015, and China in 2017.

Brachypodium distachyon has proven to be an outstanding model system for functional, comparative, and other studies in plant biology and crop improvement. Recently, the model has been extended to include other annual and perennial Brachypodium species opening the door to explorations of polyploid genome evolution and perenniality. We will gather to share and discuss the latest discoveries, tool and resource developments, establish Jackpot City collaborations and identify avenues for future research.

You can visit our 4th IBC 2019 web site at brachypodium2019.org to get updated information on the conference. The registration period will be open from January 2019 on.

We look forward to meeting you at Huesca and enjoying the Central Pre-Pyrenees and Pyrenees, one of the world “hotspots” of Brachypodium diversity.

In Partnership with the American Museum of Natural History and the Southwestern 
Research Station, we are proud to announce the 20th installment of The Bee Course.  Held 
in Portal, Arizona from August 20th through the 30th, the Bee Course is designed to 
provide biologists interested in pollinators with the tools and knowledge necessary to 
collect, process, and to begin to identify bee specimens.  We encourage all interested 
parties to apply.  For more information, including instructions on how to apply, please visit 
our new home at www.thebeecourse.org.  Applications are due before March 1, 2018.

It is with pleasure that the Botanical Society of America (BSA) and the Latin American Botanical Society (ALB) announce the Pan-American Scholar program associated with the XII Latin American Botanical Congress to be held in Quito, Ecuador 21-28 October 2018. Four awards will be made to participants ($1,500 each) who will be called ‘Pan-American Scholars’. Applicants eligible to apply must be members of the BSA (Two awards) or ALB (Two awards) and early career professionals and faculty members who have received their PhD within 5 years. www.clb2018.org