Participating researchers KEW

William Baker (Steering commitee member)

Ttropical botanist, head of palm research at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. With 14 years experience, baseline plant diversity research, molecular phylogenetic and evolutionary studies of the palm family. He has extensive field experience of palms and co-author of Genera Palmarum (2nd Edition), the benchmark monograph of the palms. In EDIT (FP6-funded NoE European Distributed Institute of Taxonomy), he leads a team of European palm experts who deliver palm biodiversity information via a web portal (www.palmweb.org).

Bob Allkin

(Information projects manager) Team leader of small teams providing information systems (IS) and information systems support for science and interpretation. Scoping and definition of IS components of projects; creation of databases and interfaces for data management, analysis and disemination; maintenance of the same.