Help keep the National Invasive Species Information Center website program up, funded and operational (NISIC)

               I am asking you to help keep the National Invasive Species Information Center website program up, funded and operational. (NISIC) which is a program of USDA-ARS NAL, is under the financial knife and as part of the incessant focus on cutting the federal programs this vital infrastructure is now targeted to help off set deficit spending in other places in the government. The idea that information for the public good should be privatized is wrong on so many levels, but here with invasive species because of the global nature and local consequence, only a public site can provide equal access to all users.

               Please add a comment to this post, and write to the Secretary of Agriculture and the US Congress. If you have time, write to USDA ARS NAL directly. I have rarely asked for anything, but now we have little time. Please add your comments to this posting today. Just a few words...volume is what counts. KEEP NISIC FUNDED is all you have to say, but of course telling them why it is important helps too.

USDA email contact information at: http://www.usda.gov/wps/portal/usda/usdahome?edeployment_action=changenav&navid=FEEDBACK_FORM.  

Tell them to find the money to keep information freely flowing.

               NISIC is the gateway to invasive species information; covering Federal, State, local, and international sources. Most of the work on invasive species has long since been defunded and is now handled by volunteers who valiantly war against novel non indigenous species that are wreaking havoc and altering our ecosystems and the services they provide. The volunteers will be in no position to spend money to access information on early detection, rapid response, control methods, taxonomic, regulatory, and legislative initiatives if we privatize this information, and, because the volunteers have no money, accordingly it will not be offered.

At the NISIC website, you can keep current on the following invasive species issues:

·        Read Current News about Invasive Species

·        Join a Discussion List

·        Read About Emerging Issues

·        Find Press Releases

·        Find Federal Register Notices

·        Read Newsletters

·        Read Success Stories

·        Find a Scientific Journal Article

o   Search the NAL Catalog (AGRICOLA)

·        Find Related Scientific Journals

·        Help Searching for Journal Articles

Also on the NISIC website you can^:

·        Us the A-Z Index or other Helpful Resources

·        Learn About Invasive Species

·        Search Cooperative Extension Sites

·        Find Economic Impact Information

·        Find Databases

·        Find Frequently Asked Questions

·        Find Species Profiles (Animals, Aquatic Species, Microbes, and Plants)

·        Find General Publications and Reports

·        Find USDA Publications

·        Locate Experts

·        Locate Images

·        Locate Invasive Species Lists

·        Ask A Question

·        Find U.S. Information

·        Locate Resources for a State

·        Locate Experts

·        Locate Agencies and Organizations or a Task Force

·        Find International Information

·        Find Federal, State, and International Laws

·        Locate Federal Laws and Acts

o   Read the Executive Order 13112 (established the National Invasive Species Council)

o   Find Congressional Bills

o   Find Hearings and Testimony

·        Find Contacts and Resources (Multistate)

·        Find Invasive Species Declarations and Reports

NISIC is a resource for Students and Teachers:

·        Find Frequently Asked Questions

·        Find Educational Teaching Materials

·        Find Out More About Invasive Species

·        Find Out Why invasive species are a Problem

·        What Can I Do to Help Control Invasive Species

·        Find Outreach Tools to Increase Public Awareness

·        Learn About Invasive Species

·        Learn About Plant Names and Taxonomy (USDA, NAL)

·        Find Species Profiles (Animals, Aquatic Species, Microbes, and Plants)

·        Locate Graduate Programs

·        Ask A Question

And, NISIC is an information source for professionals:

·        See our Manager's Tool Kit resources

·        Attend a Conference

·        Find Conference Proceedings

·        Attend Training for Invasive Species Professionals

·        Locate Graduate Programs

·        Find a Management Plan for a Geographic Area

·        Find a Management Plan for a Species

·        Find a Scientific Journal Article

·        Find Related Scientific Journals

·        Search for Journal Articles

·        Locate Risk Assessments or other Decision Making Tools

·        Read the Executive Order 13112 (established the National Invasive Species Council)

·        Read the National Invasive Species Management Plan

·        Find Information about the National Invasive Species Council

·        Find Outreach Tools to Increase Public Awareness

·        Find Grant Information