Dr. Pedro E. Leon Azofeifa from rhe School of Medicine at 

 the University of Costa Rica received the second George E. 

 Burch Fellowship to study the evolution of regulatory gene 

 clusters in vertebrates. 



In the Smithsonian-wide Scholarly Studies Program, 22 

 grants wete awarded to provide up to two years of research 

 support in Smithsonian disciplines. 



Office of International Relations 



Franc ine C. Berkouitz, Director 



Since its inception, the Smithsonian has been an international 

 organization. To limit the scope of the Smithsonian "to one 

 city, or even to one country," argued the Institution's first Sec- 

 retary, Joseph Henry, "would be an invidious restriction" of 

 the terms of founder James Smithson's bequest. Over the 

 course of the last 150 years, then, Smithsonian researchers have 

 ranged the globe, conducting research, assembling museum 

 collections, and participating in cooperative museum pro- 

 grams in almost every country of the world. 



Thirty years ago this year, the Smithsonian first established 

 an international office, in order to provide diplomatic support 

 for its increasingly complex programs abroad and to assist 

 with the technical details of the international exchanges of 

 museum collections and personnel. The Office of Interna- 

 tional Relations (OIR) today serves as the point of contact and 

 channel of communications for the Smithsonian with foreign 

 institutions or individuals, with international organizations, 

 and with government agencies. The OIR provides coordina- 

 tion for the various interests abroad of the different parts of 

 the Institution, and maintains the Smithsonian's central refer- 

 ence source for information on the international activities un- 

 dertaken by its museums, research institutes, and program 

 offices. Grants for research in a limited number of countries 

 abroad are provided through the Smithsonian Foreign Cur- 

 rency Program, which is administered by rhe OIR. 



During 1995, OIR obtained nearly 200 foreign visas for 

 Smithsonian travelers, and provided U.S. visa documentation 

 for almost 190 foreign researchers and interns working at 

 Smithsonian and at other kindred institutions in this country. 



The office handled arrangements tor more than 90 official 

 government visits to the Smithsonian during the past year, in- 

 cluding those of the Queen ofThailand, the President of Cape 

 Verde, the President of the Polish Academy ot Sciences, and 

 the South African Minister of Arts, Culture, Science, and Tech- 

 nology. During 1995, OIR assisted in the drafting of several in- 

 ternational agreements and arranged for research and 

 specimen export permits in a number of foreign countries 

 where Smithsonian staff conducted research. 



Staff of the OIR represented the Institution at international 

 meetings and conferences in South Africa, Ghana, India, Mo- 



rocco, and Norway. The OIR served as host at the Smithso- 

 nian for events honoring a U.S. -Slovak physicist, a Danish- 

 American photographer, an Indian poet, and a Cape Verdean 

 artist. 



The December 1994 opening of the Cape Coast Castle Mu- 

 seum in a former slave-trade fortress in the West African na- 

 tion of Ghana marked a milestone in international 

 cooperation tor the Institution. With assistance from several 

 Smithsonian divisions, and funding support from USAID, the 

 OIR coordinated an effort to train Ghanaian staff in museum 

 techniques, and assist in the development of the opening exhi- 

 bition there on the African diaspora. Work is currently under- 

 way further down the coast ot Ghana on the restoration and 

 exhibition development at another World Heritage site, 

 Elmina Castle. 



Office of Smithsonian Institution Archives 



Edie Hedlin. Director 



The Office of Smithsonian Institution Archives spent this year 

 preparing for the Smithsonian's 150th anniversary. The Institu- 

 tional History Division developed research tools, programs, 

 publications, and presentations on the history of the Smithson- 

 ian and its workers. The Archives Division made substantial 

 progress on its enlarged and revised Guide to the Smithsonian In- 

 stitution Archives and received a grant from the Atherton 

 Seidell Endowment Fund to publish the new edition during 

 the anniversary year. The National Collections Program ex- 

 panded its annual Collection Statistics report and plans a special 

 issue for 1996. 



The Archives Division opened a cold storage facility for spe- 

 cial media on the grounds of the National Zoological Park's 

 Conservation and Research Center in Front Royal, Virginia. 

 The facility provides a steady, cool, and dry environment for 

 the long-term storage of microfilm, motion picture film, 

 audiotape, and videotape. 



The Archives Division, on behalf of the Archives and Spe- 

 cial Collections Council and with support from the James 

 Smithson Society, published an updated and expanded bro- 

 chure, Archival. Manuscript, and Special Collection Resources. 

 which outlines the many documentary collections maintained 

 throughout the Smithsonian. 



The Institutional History Division produced two 

 databases — a bibliography and a chronology — that support re- 

 search into Smithsonian history. Beth databases are available 

 online through the Smithsonian Institution Research Informa- 

 tion System and are accessible on the Internet. Staff members 

 are working on other databases, including a historical photo- 

 graph database expected to come online in 1996, and organiz- 

 ing several exhibits for the 150th anniversary year. During 

 1995, rhe Joseph Henry Papers Project staff completed text ed- 



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