THE ESSEX FIELD CLUB
DEPARTMENT OF LIFE SCIENCES
UNIVERSITY OF EAST LONDON
ROMFORD ROAD, STRA TFORD,
LONDON, E15 4LZ
NEWSLETTER NO. 25 May 1998
THE PRESIDENT'S PAGE
Recent President's have left me with a hard act to follow. They have set in train a number
of changes which will be of great benefit to the Club. At the moment we are addressing
the problem of the future of the Club's library and collections. An agenda has been set to
develop relationships with other natural history organisations in the county and also some
well needed house keeping measures concerning our Constitution and defining the role of
our Recorders. Ways to increase membership are being explored. The Essex Naturalist
has been reinvigorated. I feel now that the Club needs to consolidate these initiatives and
bring them to fruition. The President is in post only for one year, too short a period for
many major matters to be discussed, thought out and fully implemented.
Whilst 1 wish to consolidate rather than initiate, one area 1 particularly wish to examine is
the role of the Field Club. In the earlier days of the Field Club, and for many brother and
sister organisations, local recording was very important and stimulated not only local
interest but also helped greatly in the academic development of the natural sciences, such
as botany, zoology, geology and meteorology. Academia has developed and become, on
the whole, specialised, loosening its links with local natural history societies. However,
recording remains vitally important because of its broad nature. Colin Plant at the AGM
gave an example of the drastic reduction in the number of sparrows. The trend which
signalled this is more likely to be detected, at least in the first stages, by local observers.
The recording of temporary geological exposures similarly can have great value, e.g. a
wider pattern of deposition can be discerned by comparison with other exposures.
Another area where the Club's role might need examination is meetings. Attendance is
tending to fall. Are the meetings too high-powered or perhaps too low-brow, should they
be passive and look-see or should they be pro-active and have a purpose, such as
recording biodiversity? Do we get the mix of meetings correct? Should there be more
lecture sessions? Do the Newsletter and Naturalist meet your needs and provide a fair
reflections of the Club's activities and aspirations? Do we need a different type of
publication as well as or instead of these two?
At the first meeting of Council after the AGM (in the future as I write, in the past as you
read) I will be taking stock of where we stand with regard to the initiatives already in
train. Later in the year I will try to address the role of the Field Club.
Peter Allen
President 1998-99
Essex Field Club Newsletter No. 25, May 1998