Institute of Plant Sciences, University of Sindh Jamshoro

The herbarium of the University of Sindh Jamshoro is one of two key components of the Institute of Plant Sciences, the other being establishment of a botanic garden. The herbarium was initiated in the 1950s, primarily as a teaching resource. In 2018, with support from the Higher Education Commission of Pakistan, it is being transformed into a research herbarium. A key part of this transformation has been identifying its primary goals as 1) documentation of the flora of Sindh and adjacent regions of Balochistan; 2) providing instruction in the importance and preparation of voucher specimens in botanical research; and sharing of what is learned with diverse audiences through multiple outlets. In December 2018, the herbarium began sharing its data via OpenHerbarium, a Symbiota network, and, early in 2019, via the Global Biodiversity Information Facility. In 2018, the collection included about 15,000 specimens, essentially all of which are of vascular plants.