Officers & Council of the
Systematics Association

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Officers

President
Dr J. Brodie Dept. of Botany The Natural History Museum Cromwell Rd London SW7 5BD	This Council member has not yet supplied a biography.
Secretary
Dr P. Wilkie Tropical Forest Botanist Royal Botanic Garden 20A Inverleith Row Edinburgh EH3 5LR	Peter's main research interest is the tropical trees of South East Asia. He is particularly interested in the families Sapotaceae and Malvaceae (subfamily Sterculioideae) and is currently focused on producing monographs of species rich genera in the Sapotaceae and on producing regional floras in Malaysia. A key aspect of his research is the production of molecular data to provide robust phylogenies of Sapotaceae to aid generic delimitation and support monographic research. Peter is currently developing the Sapotaceae Resource Centre which provides access to important data for monographic studies. This will help connect Sapotaceae researchers from around the world and provide a valuable research tool for monographers from countries that are species rich but resource poor.
Meetings Secretary
Dr J. Cotton Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, Wellcome Trust Genome Campus, Sulston Building Hinxton, Cambridge. CB10 1SA	James is a staff scientist, working on comparative and population genomics of parasites. These topics are central to making sense of the large amounts of data coming from genome sequencing projects, by placing this information in its evolutionary context. He has a background in phylogenetics and molecular evolution.
Grants & Awards Secretary
Dr T.A. Richards School of Biosciences University of Exeter Stocker Road Exeter EX4 4QD	This Council member has not yet supplied a biography.
Membership Secretary
Dr J. Bennett St Pauls School Lonsdale Road London SW13 9JT	Jon is currently a member of the biology department at St. Paul's School, London (www.stpaulsschool.org.uk). Before moving into teaching he worked as a post-doc on various research projects including a worldwide monograph of the large genus Solanum (www.nhm.ac.uk/solanaceaesource) at the Natural History Museum, London and an investigation of the evolution of photoreceptors in the parasitic plant family Orobanchaceae in the lab of Dr Sarah Mathews, Harvard University. His interest in the systematics of the Lamiales began during his PhD studies on the taxonomy of Strobilanthes (Acanthaceae) in Oxford. Jon still retains an interest in the taxonomy of Acanthaceae and is also the book review editor for the Linnean Society.
Treasurer
Dr P. Olson Dept. of Zoology The Natural History Museum Cromwell Rd London SW7 5BD	Pete's research interests involve the evolution of the parasitic flatworms, and in particular the evolution of segmentation in the tapeworms. His approaches include descriptive and pattern-based studies employing morphological and molecular systematics and phylogenomics, as well as process-based studies including Hox gene expression and trans-splicing mechanisms of gene translation. He plays an active role at the NHM in helping to define best practices relating to collections intended to archive genetic biodiversity.
Editor in Chief
Dr D. Gower Dept. of Zoology The Natural History Museum Cromwell Rd London SW7 5BD	David is a collections-based vertebrate biologist working on the natural history of amphibians and reptiles. Much of his work is taxonomic and phylogenetic, for which he draws on a wide range of evidence (morphology, molecules, fossils). Current focal taxa are caecilian amphibians, burrowing and aquatic snakes, and Triassic archosaurian reptiles.
Newsletter Editor
Dr R.A. Jenner The Natural History Museum Cromwell Rd London SW7 5BD	Ronald is currently a postdoctoral researcher working on the phylogeny of malacostracan crustaceans. However, his research interests range from the deep history of the Metazoa to conceptual and historical aspects of comparative biology. He is a regular essayist for the Palaeontological Association Newsletter.
Webmaster
Mr R.G. Wilson Science & Advice Royal Horticultural Society Garden Wisley Woking Surrey GU23 6QB	After gaining his first degree in Botany from the University of Reading, Rupert remained in the Herbarium of the School of Plant Sciences for 13 years, where he developed his database skills, putting the Herbarium online. In 2001, he moved to the Royal Horticultural Society Garden at Wisley, where he took over running the RHS Horticultural Database, expanding his role in 2005 to cover management of all horticultural data within the Science and Learning division of the RHS. Rupert maintains a keen interest in evolving technologies and their possible applications in botany and horticulture.

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Council members retiring in 2010

Dr S. Mayo Royal Botanic Gardens kew, Richmond Surrey TW9 3AE

This Council member has not yet supplied a biography.

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Council members retiring in 2011

Dr D. Bass Dept.of Zoology The Natural History Museum Cromwell Rd London SW7 5BD	This Council member has not yet supplied a biography.
Professor S.E. Evans Cell & Developmental Biology University College University of London Gower St London WC1E 6BT	This Council member has not yet supplied a biography.

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Council members retiring in 2012

Dr Gemma L.C. Bramley Herbarium, Library, Art & Archives Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew Richmond TW9 3AE, UK	Gemma works in the Herbarium, Library, Art & Archives department at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. She manages the curation of the Lamiaceae (Mint family) and Verbenaceae (Verbena family), on which her research is focused. Gemma is currently revising the genus Callicarpa for the Flora Malesiana project, which aims to document and describe the flora of Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, Singapore and Brunei Darussalam. She is also interested in the systematics of the Lamiaceae in general, and worked with others to produce an Interactive Key to the family (link). Another group of interest is the Gesneriaceae (African Violet Family) and the genus Cyrtandra: Gemma is involved in collaborative research with the Gesneriaceae research group at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, and the Marie Selby Botanic Garden, Florida. In recognition of the need for scientists to take a more active role in public engagement with science, Gemma is half way through a part time MSc in Science Communication at Imperial College, London.
Professor David L Hawksworth CBE The Natural History Museum Cromwell Rd London SW7 5BD	David has positions in the Universidad Complutense de Madrid and the Natural History Museum in London, is a former President of the International Union of Biological Sciences (IUBS), an Honorary President of the International Mycological Association (IMA), and was the last Director of the former International Mycological Institute (1983-97). He is currently Chair of the IUBS/IUMS International Committee on Bionomenclature (ICB), and Editor-in-Chief of Biodiversity and Conservation. His research focuses on the systematics of fungi (including lichens) using traditional and molecular phylogenetic approaches. Also known for studies on the bioindication of air quality and the use of fungi in the forensic investigation of serious crime, he has introduced over 800 new scientific names, including 74 genera new to science. He served the Systematics Association as Treasurer (1972-81) and Editor-in-Chief (1981-84, 1986), and is the editor or co-editor of eight volumes in the Association's Special Volumes series. His latest book, Terms Used in Bionomenclature; the naming of organisms (and plant communities) (2010) can be downloaded free of charge and interrogated through the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) website.
Julia Day	This Council member has not yet supplied a biography.
Bente Klitgaard	This Council member has not yet supplied a biography.
Ellinor Michel	This Council member has not yet supplied a biography.
Lukas Ruber	This Council member has not yet supplied a biography.
Jon Todd	This Council member has not yet supplied a biography.

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Last updated: 22 February 2010
Webmaster: Rupert Wilson (click here to give feedback)