The long-term goals of the natural history collection-holding institutions of Switzerland are to reach
sustainability for their conservation, curation and future development, to promote the physical and
digital accessibility of their collections for fundamental and applied research, education and
society, to build a strong network connected to the international initiatives, and to exchange and
With more than 60 million specimens of animals, plants, fungi, rocks, soil samples and fossils,
Switzerland’s museums, universities, and botanical gardens store remarkably extensive collections:
taken together, the Swiss collections form an entity whose scientific value is comparable to that of
the most prestigious foreign institutions. These objects document the diversity on and below the
surface of our planet, in Switzerland and abroad, represent a record of changes over millions of
years. Museum collections and herbaria are becoming increasingly important for basic and applied
research. For example, they contain essential information for research on pressing social issues
such as health (disease-carrying organisms), agriculture and forestry (beneficial insects, pests,
pesticides), climate, biodiversity (insect mortality) or subsurface use. However, only 17 percent of
this international scientific and patrimonial treasure is digitised. This means that a large part of
unique data on biodiversity and the environment is not easily accessible for research and
education.
To make use of the scientific and societal potential of the extraordinary amount of specimens in
Swiss natural history collections, the Swiss Academy of Sciences (hereafter SCNAT) together with
the musnatcoll (Verband der naturwissenschaftlichen Museen und Sammlungen der Schweiz und
Liechtenstein), the Swiss Systematics Society, GBIF.ch (Global Biodiversity Information Facility,
Switzerland) and Info Species proposed a research infrastructure initiative to increase the access to
natural history collections in Switzerland for research, innovation and education.
Together with representatives of collection-holding institutions, they identified their common
challenges and defined goals and measures to increase the digital and physical accessibility of
natural history specimens distributed in the numerous collections in Switzerland (Swiss Academies
of Arts and Sciences, 2019).
The SwissCollNet initiative aims at making data on specimens from the Swiss natural history
collections available for research, education and society. SwissCollNet will mobilise and provide
open-access to specimen data through nationwide data harmonisation and interoperability among
all relevant stakeholders and data providers, such as natural history museums, botanical gardens
and institutions of higher education. The foremost and overall goal of this four-year period is to
identify, priories and digitise as many collections as possible and to build an online portal, the Swiss
Virtual Natural History Collection (hereafter SVNHC), which will provide open-access to harmonised
specimen data from the Swiss collections.
On the basis of the federal decree on credits for research funding institutions for the years 2021-
2024 (article 2 paragraph 1 letter d), SCNAT is tasked with conducting this initiative with a financial
support of MCHF 12.37. The available funds will be invested to modernise and digitise the
collections, to ensure data interoperability, to develop the SVNHC, to coordinate with the relevant
international initiatives and to ensure the sustainable operation of the SVNHC.
All Swiss public and non-profit natural history collection-holding institutions are invited to
participate by submitting project proposals and thus sustain the initiative with their professional
experience and expert knowledge.
1
2
3
Summary
Introduction
Aim and objectives
SwissCollNet is a nationwide initiative that is implemented under the umbrella of the SCNAT.
The Executive Board of SCNAT is responsible for the election of a Steering Board and for
mandating it with the overall strategic responsibilities of the initiative. A Board of Experts will
support the Steering Board with its technical and operational expertise. For consultancy, single
persons or groups of persons with the relevant specialist qualifications (working groups) can be
convened by the Board of Experts for support in dealing with specific issues in its work at any time.
Figure 1: governance system of SwissCollNet. In blue, assignment relationships between the
bodies; in red, contracts between the bodies; in grey, the roles of each body.
Apart from the overall strategic steering of the project, the SB has several responsibilities: to
allocate funds to the projects that serve the goals of SwissCollNet, to connect with the international
initiatives, to engage in a dialogue with the political and administrative bodies at the national and
cantonal levels, as well as to ensure the sustainability of the process by identifying a suitable
organisation/institution, or consortium of organisations / institutions, to develop and run the Swiss
Virtual Natural History Collection (for members see Appendix I).
develop their knowledge. These goals are being consolidated in a 10-year strategy that fosters the
importance and use of the natural history collections in the Swiss institutions.
Within this context, the main objectives of the four-year period of SwissCollNet are to modernise
and digitise the collections and provide an open-access to harmonised specimen data through an
online portal, the SVNHC. To this end, the available funds will be invested to develop the SVNHC as
well as to condition, integrate, modernise and digitize collections in Switzerland. Furthermore, a
strategy will be developed to guarantee the sustainable operation of the SVNHC, an access to an
increasing volume of specimen data and its international alignment.
4 Governance
4.1 The Steering Board (SB)
Election
Appointment
Appointment
WG 1 WG 2
SERI
Person 1
Steering Board
Board of Experts
Bylaws
Assignment
Person 2
Performance agreement SERI
SCNAT-Executive Board
Bylaws
Mandate provider
a+
Client
Project lead
ØStrategic responsibilities
Technical lead
Ø Scientific/technical strategicplanning
ØOperative tasks
Consulting
ß à
Assignments Contracts Roles
From 2018 to 2020, several investigations have been made to prepare the initiative SwissCollNet.
The technical and scientific expertise of the BoE covers the fields of collection management,
databasing and digitisation of specimens, as well as training and connections with the international
organisations, projects or initiatives in the field (for members see Appendix I).
The Scientific Unit acts as the management office and is run by the SCNAT. It is responsible for the
daily operations and assists the SwissCollNet bodies in the performance of their tasks (for members
see Appendix I).
musnatcoll is a main player in and partner of SwissCollNet. The association represents the interests
of the natural science museums, botanical gardens and natural history collections of Switzerland
and Liechtenstein. Its aim is to make visible and communicate on the importance of natural science
collections and museums as part of the national and international cultural heritage. Public and non-
profit institutions with natural history collections will play an essential role in SwissCollNet. Besides
the precious scientific and cultural heritage – the collections – these institutions hold excellent
knowledge in taxonomy as well as in the curation and management of collections for scientific and
societal use (for collection-holding institutions that support SwissCollNet see Appendix II).
The Swiss Systematics Society unites biologists from different fields, dedicated to the interests of
systematics and taxonomy and maintains international exchange of knowledge. As a partner of
SwissCollNet, it offers a large pool of experts in systematics and taxonomy and serves as a
competent contact for scientists and the society.
GBIF.ch is the Swiss Participant Node recognized by GBIF international (Global Biodiversity
Information Facility). The Swiss Node is officially elected by the Confederation to create optimal
conditions for the incorporation of biodiversity information available in Switzerland within the GBIF
world biodiversity data aggregation network. Its ultimate aim is to register all specimens of
botanical, paleontological, mineral and zoological collections of Museums, conservatories and
botanical gardens in Switzerland, along with observational data compiled in all faunistic, floristic
and mycological databases. The coordination and collaboration between SwissCollNet and GBIF.ch
is thus imperative in order to develop the SVNHC and to mobilize the data related to specimens
hosted in natural history collections in Switzerland both within Switzerland and internationally.
Info Species is the umbrella organisation of the national data and information centres, and the
species promotion coordination offices in Switzerland. The organisation participates in the
exchange of biodiversity data via GBIF.ch and promotes exchange and cooperation with
neighbouring countries. The organisation supports the Confederation, cantons and other actors in
implementing the species promotion measures formulated in the Action Plan for the Swiss
Biodiversity Strategy, as well as in accessing and interpreting species evidence at various
geographic or political levels. Coordination and collaboration with SwissCollNet are essential to
maintain interoperability of specimen and observation data.
5
6 Project plan
6.1 State of the art
4.2 The Board of Experts (BoE)
4.3 The Scientific Unit (SCNAT)
Institutions and organisations involved
The following milestones and actions are planned for SwissCollNet between 2021 and 2024. They
all contribute to reach sustainability for the conservation, curation and future development of
natural history collections, to promote their physical and digital access to research, education and
society and to be compatible and connected with the international initiatives.
6.2.1 Governance
On January 22nd 2021, SwissCollNet Steering Board has started operating with a kick-off meeting.
The Steering Board is in charge of formalising the aims and the functioning of the initiative into
several documents: the rules of procedure (the interactions of the different governance bodies, the
funding regulations (allocation of funds) and the calls for project proposals (content and
regulations for each call).
6.1.1 Governance
A group of experts representing the organisations described earlier together with experts from
public collection-holding institutions was mandated by the SCNAT to prepare the
construction/integration phase of SwissCollNet (2021–2024).
In December 2020, the Executive Board of SCNAT has adopted a mandate defining the
collaboration rules with SwissCollNet governance bodies and has elected the first members of its
Steering Board (see Appendix III).
6.1.2 National strategy for Natural History Collections 2025–2035
In 2020, musnatcoll circulated a questionnaire to its members, to which 26 collection-holding
institutions responded. This first consultation allowed to identify some key elements that would be
needed in a national strategy to create a country-wide approach to natural history collections,
especially their management, enhancement, scientific use, and financial upkeep. It laid the
foundations of a platform of coordination, communication and collaboration that will ensure the
sustainability of SwissCollNet in the long-term. This bottom-up approach will continue to develop
and finalise a 2025–2035 strategy (see 5.2.2).
6.1.3 Survey on natural history collections
In 2018, a survey on the natural history collections in Switzerland was conducted in collaboration
with GBIF.ch. A total of 56 public and non-profit institutions provided global information about their
collections, such as the number of objects – in total and per discipline (zoology, botany and
mycology, palaeontology, geology and mineralogy), the percentage of objects of Swiss or
international origin, the number of species with types, as well as the degree of digitisation of the
objects.
These results were published in a SCNAT report in 2019 (Swiss Academies of Arts and Sciences,
2019), representing a first needed overview of the natural history collections hosted in the Swiss
public institutions. This first survey will be refined to improve the collective understanding of the
hosted collections and provide international visibility to their richness (see 5.2.3).
6.1.4 Standards for object and data storage, interoperability and organisation
The “Handbook on natural history collections management – a collaborative Swiss perspective”
(Frick and Greeff, 2021) was published in early 2021 and is SwissCollNet’s first contribution to
support the exchange of knowledge among Swiss collections on object and data management.
Written by experts and collection managers from the Swiss natural history institutions, it contains an
overview of the current management practices and recommendations to maintain and modernise
the collections of preserved biological materials and geological samples.
6.2 Milestones SwissCollNet 2021–2024
6.2.2 National Strategy for Natural History Collections (2025–2035)
The first version of the National Strategy for Natural History Collections, based on a questionnaire
that was sent to collection-holding institutions, was drafted by a sub-group of the Board of Experts.
This document lists several strategic priorities such as standardized management practices,
databasing and digitisation of specimens, unifying digital specimen data, giving physical and virtual
access to biological and geological specimens, increasing the scientific use of natural history
collections, enhancing the collections, developing training, education and societal impact,
fostering collaborations, supporting networking between institutions, consolidating and managing
funding and strengthening international connectivity.
This first version will be discussed and developed in close collaboration with the collection-holding
institutions and other stakeholders, such as representatives from research institutions,
representatives of higher education as well as representatives of science funding bodies. Several
workshops will be run in order to refine the strategy, before being reviewed and commented by
the Swiss natural history institutions.
The goal is to have a final document by 2024, ready for endorsement by the participating
institutions and for the first steps of its implementation.
6.2.3 Survey on natural history collections
A priority of SwissCollNet is to make visible the diversity, the quality and the importance of the
natural history collections of Switzerland. In order to get more detailed information about each
collection, the survey on natural history collections in Switzerland carried out in 2018 will be
updated in partnership with GBIF.ch. It will follow the structure of the Registry of Scientific
Collections run by GBIF (GrSCiColl), connected with Index Herbariorum, and will allow each
institution to connect their collection data with their institution record in the registry, thus following
international identifiers, indicators and standards. All collection-holding institutions will be warmly
encouraged to participate, and all collections benefitting from SwissCollNet funds will be asked to
be registered on GrSciColl.
The public availability of the survey results will provide a detailed picture of the Swiss collection
landscape, give it an international visibility, strengthen the national network of collection-holding
institutions and facilitate the future orientations of SwissCollNet.
6.2.4 SVNHC
A centralized virtual infrastructure for sharing and accessing specimen data and images of the Swiss
natural history collections, referred to as the Swiss Virtual Natural History Collection (SVNHC), is a
priority goal of SwissCollNet for 2024. Several technical solutions are possible and will be explored
within the community, to ensure its adequacy and sustainability after 2024.
The Swiss landscape of the natural history collections is very heterogeneous, with respect to the
number of collection-holding institutions, the size of their collections and their degree of
digitisation (databasing as well as imaging of specimens). In a first step (preproject), the current
situation and the requirements of the institutions have to be evaluated in parallel with the technical
solutions best adapted for the SVNHC (usability, costs, collaboration and coordination with similar
data repositories, sustainability model). Solutions for data standards and normalisation, minimal
core requirements for data transfer as well as interoperability with other data repositories will be
sought with the existing European or international organisations. The outcome of these analyses
will constitute the reference for the development of the SVNHC.
6.2.5 Modernisation and digitisation of the Swiss natural history collections
To ensure the long-term preservation of natural history collections held in Switzerland, they should
be curated to the best possible standards and stored in adequate conditions, as outlined in the
“Handbook on natural history collections management – a collaborative Swiss perspective” (Frick &
Greeff, 2021). With the compilation of the handbook, knowledge and collected experiences are
illustrated and allow for the development and coordination on a national scale of management
standards, storage standards, emergency planning practices, pest management policies and risk
mitigation.
Projects funded by SwissCollNet will rely on and implement the recommendations published in the
handbook, with an emphasis on three fields: collection management, databasing/digitisation and
training.
Collection management focuses on conditioning and integrating specimens into the collections
and their databases, with an emphasis on un-accessioned objects or collections of particular
national or international importance. It also includes the revision of existing databases and
collections to modernise the scientific collections and facilitate data transfer with the SVNHC.
The long-term accessibility of the scientific community to the specimens held in the collections,
both the physical objects and the digital information associated to them, requires their ongoing
curation, databasing and digitisation. The focus lies on making specimen data digitally available
and interconnected.
Implementing state-of the-art quality standards for collection management, taxonomic revisions,
modernisation and digitisation requires training opportunities for the collection managers and
collection staff. The relevant training occasions may take place within specific projects in the Swiss
collection-holding institutions as well as within the framework of exchange programmes with
leading international museums.
6.2.6 Network development
Networking, engagement and exchange between natural history institutions is a very efficient and
precious method to accomplish modernisation of natural history collections. In Switzerland,
networking among natural history museums and botanical gardens is endorsed by musnatcoll.
Together with musnatcoll, SwissCollNet has promoted collaborations and networking of persons
being responsible for the collections in these institutions. A result of such activities at the national
level is the “Handbook on natural history collections management – a collaborative Swiss
perspective” (Frick and Greeff, 2021). This collective approach has worked towards the
standardisation of workflows and harmonisation of specimen data during the digitisation process as
well as on the challenges of specimen management.
Of similar importance are exchanges between the Swiss community and international programs. At
the European level, networking, engagement and exchange between natural history collections
take place via the Consortium of European Taxonomic Facilities (CETAF), which was founded in
1996 and now contains 71 member institutions from across EU and associated member states,
including three from Switzerland. With its 25-year experience, CETAF concentrates a lot of
expertise, plays an active role in several European projects and is developing knowledge in
working groups on topics of interest for SwissCollNet such as collection management, specimen
digitisation, data standards or taxonomy.
Based on the CETAF community, and currently under development for implementation in 2024 is
the European programme Distributed System of Scientific Collections (DiSSCo, part of the
European Research Infrastructure Roadmap). The aim of this research infrastructure is, based on
national level membership and financial backing, to mobilise digital data from national history
collections and to unite it to ensure that it is available for scientific research. Alignment of digital
specimen and collection data with this developing infrastructure is an important goal for
SwissCollNet as it will ensure interoperability.
SwissCollNet will continuously promote networking on a national and international level despite the
latest political developments between Switzerland and the European Union, as participation of
Switzerland in European projects and initiatives remains crucial for the Swiss research community.
On a national level, SwissCollNet will stay in close contact with the executive board of musnatcoll
and organise conferences on a yearly basis that deal with specific questions, or that advance
scientific understanding based on activities in natural history collections. For instance, knowledge
exchange between collection-holding institutions about training opportunities implementation of
quality standards for collection management, internal revisions and for expanding collections as
well as the exchange of highly specialised taxonomic expertise and aligning with international
developments in the field, may be subjects of such conferences.
On an international level, SwissCollNet will stay in close contact with the specialised working
groups of CETAF to strengthen collaboration and knowledge exchange between Swiss institutions
and the CETAF community. Furthermore, SwissCollNet will interact with members of DiSSCo to
closely follow the different steps of implementation of this infrastructure and exchange experiences
and knowledge.
6.2.7 Long-term sustainability of the Swiss Virtual Natural History Collection
SwissCollNet has received funding from the Swiss Government to establish the SVNHC and to
support the conditioning, modernisation and digitisation of natural history collections from 2021 to
2024. Successful project applicants will contribute to the initiative with an equal amount of money
to match the received funds on a 1:1 ratio. A central mission of SwissCollNet during this four-year
period is to ensure the sustainability of the initiative, through the identification of an institution or a
consortium that will take over with the necessary financial means. This is interdependent with the
development of the SVNHC since the choice of the data repository or aggregation structure will
influence the business model for its future management.
Several options have been discussed and will be evaluated in parallel with the development of the
SVNHC. The main scenarios are described below, the solution that SwissCollNet will develop and
implement may consist in a combination of those.
Scenario 1, GBIF.ch, as the national biodiversity data aggregator, or other data centres (Info
Species):
GBIF.ch, the national data node of GBIF international, is supported by the Confederation as part of
their membership obligations. Substantial investments have been made to develop the Swiss node,
its role as the national data aggregator for biodiversity and as the conduit for data from Switzerland
to GBIF international. The processes and infrastructure that have been put in place to deal
principally with observation data manifest similarities to those needed to aggregate specimen data.
The current system could be adapted to allow institutions without their own internal database to
enter their data via the GBIF.ch platform. This would request restructuration and expansion of the
GBIF.ch platform to adopt it for collection data. Furthermore, the platform would need to be
developed and opened for data from geoscientific collections such as rocks, minerals and
meteorites. Building a specimen aggregation capacity onto an existing system may be more cost-
effective than starting something from the beginning. This may also facilitate the regrouping of all
biodiversity data on both Swiss and global biodiversity held within Switzerland and with including
also geodiversity data increase accessibility to important knowledge for environmental sciences.
The SVNHC would also be facilitated, as long as the data connectivity (aggregation processes) is
put in place with natural history objects in mind. Many Swiss collection-holding institutions already
collaborate with this platform.
Scenario 2, public institution/organisation or a consortium of institutions/organisations:
It is possible that a single institution/organisation may decide to take on the responsibility to
SVNHC for Switzerland. This model however implies that the costs would be supported by a single
institution, and the sustainability model is more precarious. A likely alternative would consist in the
creation of a consortium of institutions/organisations to integrate their current institutional
database systems and existing collections catalogues together to form a nation-wide platform. The
institutional database may also be extended to allow institutions without their own internal
database to enter data on their collections and thus make them available via the SVNHC.
musnatcoll may play a pivotal role in this scenario, as most collections are members and
musnatcoll recently has directed its focus on collections and has established a unit for collections.
The implementation of SwissCollNet will be the following and is summarised in the figure below.
A. Governance structure
SwissCollNet governing bodies have been put in place and have become operational in the first
quarter of 2021. The regulation documents needed to run the initiative will be validated by the
Executive Board of SCNAT and the SERI by 30th September, 2021.
Annual planning (AP) and project reporting (PR) to the SERI are scheduled every year.
B. Two calls for project proposals
A first call for project proposals will be launched in October 2021, with the earliest start of the
funded projects in April 2022. A second call for project proposals will follow in May 2022 with an
earliest start of the funded projects in November 2022. All projects will have to be finished at the
end of December 2024. In the case that essential elements for the success of the initiative are not
covered with projects resulting from the two calls, the Steering Board may consider allocations of
the budget to specific projects or to an additional call for project proposals.
C. Development of the SVNHC
The development of the SVNHC will be implemented in four phases: 1/ a preproject in the second
semester of 2021 to identify the available options and select the best solution, 2/ the emission of a
call for tenders to implement the infrastructure in early 2022, 3/ the implementation of the
infrastructure (until mid 2024) and 4/ the first steps of operation with data transfers from the
collections.
Within SwissCollNet, two types of projects and two funding schemes are provided for:
1. Projects for infrastructure implementation will be designed by the governance bodies of
SwissCollNet (top-down). Funding will be regulated with service level agreements.
Institutional or inter-institutional projects will be competitive and be chosen upon evaluation
during two calls for project proposals, using criteria defined by the SB.
2.
Swiss public and non-profit institutions holding natural history collections are invited to submit
project proposals which aim at conditioning, modernizing and digitizing their collections. A strong
emphasis should be put on transversal aspects and collaborations. The integration of small
collections into projects with transversal objectives is highly recommended.
Scenario 3, SwissBioCollection via support from institutions of higher education, swissuniversities:
Under the development of the Biology Roadmap for Research Infrastructures 2025–2028 by the
Swiss Biology Community a proposal to create the SwissBioCollection has been developed. This
initiative joins natural history collections and non-medical biobanks (DNA, tissues, seed-banks), with
the aim of creating a common infrastructure to support the scientific use of collections in and across
Switzerland. The SVNHC could become part of this initiative, if it was supported by an institution of
higher education and accepted onto the future federal Roadmap.
7 Implementation calendar
6.3 Type of projects and funding schemes
D. Collection survey
The survey on natural history collections will be prepared and tested during the first two quarters of
2021. The collections will be asked to fill in the survey starting in September 2021 with the goal to
have returns from as many collections as possible at the end of 2021, beginning of 2022. The
received information will be uploaded on the international collection registry of scientific
collections of GBIF (GrSciColl) and published on the SwissCollNet website in early 2022.
E. Network development
A yearly workshop or conference will be organised. Collection-holding institutions will be invited to
exchange knowledge on themes or key topics linked with the missions of SwissCollNet, as well as
network among themselves and with international partners. Exchanges with international consortia
and programs such as CETAF and DiSSCo will take place regularly during the entire period of
SwissCollNet.
F. National strategy 2025-2035
The National Strategy for Natural History Collections 2025-2035 will be discussed and finalized in
2024.
G. Long-term sustainability of the SVNHC
A strategy for long-term sustainability of SwissCollNet will be developed during the first three years
of the initiative and implemented in 2024.
Figure 2: implementation calendar of SwissCollNet (AP = Annual planning; PR = progress report;
PC = project controlling; FR = final report; Prep = preparation; C =c all; E = evaluation)
The Federal contributions are divided into annual rates, as defined in the budget of the pluriannual
plan of the Academies of Arts and Sciences, and into the categories SwissCollNet management,
collection conditioning, databasing and digitisation, formation and training, as defined in the
Zusatzprotokoll signed between the SCNAT and SERI. Projects conducted by SCNAT (survey,
strategy, workshops and conferences) are included in the SwissCollNet management category, the
construction of the SVNHC is included in the category of databasing and digitisation. In total, the
amount of CHF 9.43 Mio will be accredited to two calls of project proposals for bottom-up projects
submitted by Swiss collection-holding institutions.
Table 1: fund allocation of the federal funding
Projects that will be financed by SwissCollNet will contribute with an equal amount of cash and/or
in-kind investments in their projects. Furthermore, numerous experts from collection-holding
institutions and institutions of higher education will participate in projects led by SwissCollNet
directly, such as the collection survey, the national strategy for natural history collections, the
construction of the SVNHC, and training activities. Their contributions are calculated as defined (see
Appendix IV). Currently, CHF 238’500.— additional matching funds have to be looked for to match
the federal contributions with an equal amount of money. This is partially due to the fact, that it is
not yet known in what way the SVNHC will be built. Once defined (by the end of 2021), matching
funds for the construction of the SVNHC will be determined (in cash/in-kind).
8 Budget
8.2 Matching funds
8.1 Federal contributions
SwissCollNet
Budget 2021 - 2024
SwissCollNet Management
Management, coordination
Workshops and conferences
Collection strategy
Collection survey
Collection conditioning
Projects of calls
Databasing and digitisation
SVNHC data-repository
Projects of calls
Formation and training
Projects of calls
Total
2021
208000
5000
2000
2000
1000000
96000
1147000
570000
3030000
2022
634900
5000
2000
4000
812500
304000
917600
570000
3250000
2023
582’ 100
10’ 000
627000
300’ 000
1085400
645500
3250000
2024
465’ 000
10’ 000
10000
810500
300’ 000
750000
494500
2840000
Total 21-24
1’ 890’ 000
30’ 000
14’ 000
6’ 000
3’ 250’ 000
1’ 000’ 000
3’ 900’ 000
2’ 280’ 000
12’370’000
Table 2: matching contributions
The SwissCollNet initiative is an incredible opportunity for Switzerland to develop and modernise
its natural history collections. The mobilisation of specimen data, the development of the Swiss
Virtual Natural History Collection (SVNHC) and the integration of the information into international
biodiversity data aggregators will enhance research on biodiversity as well as favour environmental
and climatic change studies. Workshops and training projects will increase networking activities
and collaborations of institutions, thus creating opportunities for knowledge exchange on
collection management and taxonomic expertise. Finally, by the endorsement of a National
Strategy for Swiss Natural History Collections, Swiss institutions will unite their strengths and
expertise to develop the use of the collections in their charge, promote interoperability of the data,
ensure physical and digital access to the collections by Swiss and international researchers, thus
contribution to scientific research and excellence.
9 Conclusions
Matching funds Institutions and Experts
Budget 2021 - 2024
2021
SwissCollNet Management
Management (SB + BoE)
Workshops and conferences
Collection strategy
Collection survey
Long-term SVNHC
Collection conditioning
Projects of calls
Databasing and digitisation
SVNHC data-repository
Projects of calls
Formation and training
Projects of calls
Expert group
Total
274000
20000
48000
418200
24000
1000000
70000
1147000
570000
20000
3591200
2022
371200
20000
120000
32200
24000
812500
70000
917600
570000
20000
2957500
2023
274000
20000
120000
24550
24000
627000
70000
1085400
645500
20000
2910450
2024
338800
20000
120000
24550
24000
810500
70000
750000
494500
20000
2672350
Total 21-24
1’ 258’ 000
80’ 000
408’ 000
499’ 500
96’ 000
3’ 250’ 000
280’ 000
3’ 900’ 000
2’ 280’ 000
80’ 000
12’131’500
musnatcoll, GBIF.ch, the Swiss Society of Systematics and Info Species are represented in the
Steering Board and/or the Board of Experts. So far, 36 collection-holding institutions have signed a
letter of support for the initiative SwissCollNet:
AG Naturama Aargau
BE Botanischer Garten, Universität Bern
BE Naturhistorisches Museum Bern
BL Museum.BL
BS Botanischer Garten, Universität Basel
BS Naturhistorisches Museum Basel
FR Musée d’histoire naturelle, Fribourg
FR Botanischer Garten der Universität Freiburg
GE Conservartoire et Jardin botaniques, Ville de Genève
GE Muséum d’histoire naturelle et musée d’histoire des sciences, Ville de Genève
GR Bündner Naturmuseum
JU Jurassica
LU Natur-Museum Luzern
NE Muséum d’histoire naturelle, Ville de Neuchâtel
NE Musée d’histoire naturelle, Ville de La Chaux-de-Fonds
NE Jardin botanique, Ville de Neuchâtel
SG Naturmuseum St.Gallen
SH Museum zu Allerheiligen, Schaffhausen
SO Naturmuseum Olten
SO Naturmuseum Solothurn
TG Naturmuseum Thurgau
TI Museo cantonale di storia naturale, Lugano
VD Musée cantonal de zoologie, Lausanne
VD Musée cantonal de géologie, Lausanne
VD Musée et jardins botaniques cantonaux
VS Musée de la Nature, Canton du Valais
ZH Universität Zürich & ETH Zürich, Vereinigte Herbarien
ZH ETH Zürich, Entomological Collection
ZH ETH Zürich, Fachgruppe Georessourcen Schweiz
ZH Zoologisches Museum, Universität Zürich
ZH Sukkulenten-Sammlung, Stadt Zürich
ZH Institut für Systematische und Evolutionäre Botanik, Universität Zürich
ZH Paläontologisches Museum, Universität Zürich
ZH Kulturama
ZH Sauriermuseum Aathal, Aathal
ZH Naturmuseum Winterthur
Appendix II – Institutions and organisations involved
Based on Article 10, paragraph 5 letter h of the Statutes and Article 2 paragraph 7 of the Rules of
Procedure of the Swiss Academy of Sciences (GO SCNAT), the Executive Board confers the
following mandate1:
Article 1 Purpose and integration within SCNAT structures
1 The Swiss Natural History Collections Network (SwissCollNet) is a national infrastructure for the
preparation, digitisation and provision of access to natural science collections in Switzerland for
the benefit of research and other uses. As part of the 2021–2024 ERI Dispatch of the Swiss
Confederation, SCNAT is tasked with building this infrastructure and ensuring its long-term
future.
2 A working group of the SCNAT Executive Board under the name "Steering Board SwissCollNet"
is entrusted with this task.
The Steering Board supports achievement of objectives by:
3
– allocating funds to projects that serve to achieve the objectives.
– supporting the establishment of an institution that is capable of maintaining and further
developing SwissCollNet in the long term.
Article 2 Bodies
1 The bodies that make up SwissCollNet are the “Steering Board” (hereinafter SB) and the “Board
of Experts” (hereinafter BoE).
2 Overall responsibility for SwissCollNet is assigned to the SB by the SCNAT Executive Board, and
the SB is authorised to represent SwissCollNet externally.
The BoE advises the SB on compliance with technical requirements by the projects supported
by SwissCollNet.
3
Article 3 Composition, election, term of office and compensation of the boards
1 The SB, including the President, consists of 9 to a maximum of 11 persons with knowledge of the
Swiss and European collections landscape, the Swiss natural science research landscape, digital
data collections and Swiss politics. The election of the SB members and President, and the term
of office to be served, are based on the GO SCNAT. The Chair of the BoE takes part in Steering
Board meetings ex officio in an advisory capacity. A delegate of the SCNAT Executive Board
attends the meetings of the Steering Board in an advisory capacity.
The BoE consists of up to 9 persons with sound knowledge of the requirements for collections
and their digitisation, including in the context of comparable international initiatives, plus
extensive practical experience in relation to collections. They are appointed by the SB, with no
limit to the term of office. The SB appoints a Chair of the BoE. The BoE may call upon individuals
or groups of individuals with the relevant specialist qualifications for support in dealing with
specific issues in its work at any time.
SB and BoE constitute themselves internally (e.g., nomination of deputies and specific
responsibilities).
2
3
4 Members of these boards do not receive a salary. Expenses incurred in the execution of their
duties as members of these boards may be reimbursed.
Appendix III – Mandate of SwissCollNet
Implementation Plan 2021–2024
The salaries of the staff employed or hired in the institution(s) can be eligible as matching funds (in
kind) for the part of their activities that will be spent on implementing the project supported by
SwissCollNet.
In the budget submitted in the project proposal, the effective costs of the salaries have to be
indicated including social charges (20%) and overheads (15% of salary costs including social
charges).
These salary costs cannot exceed the maximal amounts indicated in the following table.
Table 1: maximum eligible salary rates for personnel (cost covered by SwissCollNet or in kind
contribution)
Max costs applicable*
[kCHF]
Function
Leading position
(professor, director, head, …)
Senior collaborator with leading function
(assistant professor, curator, collection manager,…)
Scientific collaborator
(researcher fellow, postdoc, curator, collection manager, …)
Junior collaborator
(research fellow, assistant collection manager, assistant curator, …)
Senior technician
(IT, taxidermist, collection technician, …)
Junior technician
(IT, taxidermist, collection technician, …)
270
200
170
150
130
100
Doctoral student 60
Internship/temporary staff (IT, collection, civil service…) Effective costs only
* = effective salary + 20% social charges + 15% overhead services, infrastructures. To be calculated
pro rata.
Appendix IV – Maximum salaries eligible as matching funds
