ABSTRACT
Advances in genomics and bioinformatics have now made natural history museums (NHMs) and their diverse collections even more valuable resources for biodiversity conservation. This chapter provides an overview of the roles that NHMs have played in conservation. It focuses on collections-based work, including the long history of NHM expeditions and the contemporary trend toward museum-based genomics and bioinformatics. It discusses innovative ways in which museums are able to contribute to conservation today, through diverse, interdisciplinary partnerships and conservation-oriented programming. Natural history museums have played a role in confronting societies' greatest ecological challenges, from species loss to tracking and responding to the impacts of climate change. The chapter illustrates how they can lead society's approach to conservation issues into the future. It addresses the global natural history collections which contain information on biodiversity from almost three billion specimens, all with great promise to be leveraged for wildlife conservation if remaining challenges.
