We are delighted to see the official notification that the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, one of the 23 founding national members of GBIF, has returned to Voting Participant status.
With the signature of Dr Cheryl Case of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) and other UK consortium members on the voluntary Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), the United Kingdom has rejoined the 42 other national governments that contribute financially to GBIF’s core global budget.
With the renewed commitment, the UK delegation will again exercise its voting rights during GBIF’s annual Governing Board meetings, which set the network’s strategic direction and the Secretariat’s annual work programmes.
The revitalised national consortium includes:
- DEFRA
- Natural Environment Research Council (NERC)
- Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC)
- Natural History Museum, London (NHM London)
- Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (Kew), the current seat of the UK head of delegation
- Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC)
- National Biodiversity Network Trust (NBN Trust)
The NBN Trust will continue its crucial role in coordinating national activities as the UK’s GBIF node.
You can read the full announcement on GBIF’s website and you can read the NBN Trust’s response to the news in our earlier news story.