Geoscience Information and Knowledge Exchange Directorate
| Knowledge Exchange

Knowledge Exchange is responsible for the transfer and exploitation of BGS science outputs — especially digital outputs — in the wider community. It does this through a range of communications and outreach (science into society) activities, the BGS enquiry service that responds to public and commercial requests, the web systems team, the sales network and the libraries. Licensing of BGS's growing range of data and information products is managed by the Intellectual Property Rights section.

There are four teams within the Knowledge Exchange programme:

• Communications
  Clive Mitchell
  This team is responsible for public and media relations and educational outreach at BGS. We support our scientific colleagues by facilitating and developing their ability to communicate the results and highlights of their research. We also advise and lead on communications with all our stakeholders. We also promote the understanding of earth sciences to the whole community, particularly within schools.
  
• Information Services
  Chris Luton
  This team offers a variety of services providing BGS information and advice to the public, academia and businesses. The information could be digital geological mapping or data, available for license, or printed maps, books and other publications, available for purchase. It could also be copies of archive information from the National Geoscience Data Centre, such as scanned borehole records. The advice could be geological reports for individual houses or large development sites, available to buy, or simply answers to general geological interest questions, which may not be charged for. The team offers a number of ways to place orders or ask questions, including online shops, email services and a central phone help desk. Visitor services to the data centres at various BGS offices are also offered, for viewing of records information or materials collections (fossils, borehole cores, rock samples).
  
• Research Knowledge Services
  Ken Hollywood
  The team ensures that awareness of our extensive collections of geoscientific research material - books, journals, maps, geological photographs, BGS publications and archives relating to the history of BGS - is disseminated to staff and to external users through our online databases and from our two centres at Keyworth and Edinburgh. We seek to incorporate web developments into our systems to enhance access to our information. We continue to develop, along with other Centres within NERC, our open access repository where our publicly-funded research is made available through the web. Our interaction with the public and professional organisations through co-operation, participation in local and national campaigns and site tours are important in ensuring understanding and knowledge of our services and we continue to expand such activities.
  
• Web Systems
  Patrick Bell
  This team is responsible for the web systems and services that deliver data, information and knowledge to users within and beyond BGS. We further develop the ability to deliver BGS information in line with customer requirements. We facilitate innovative uses of BGS information through the development of our own applications and the provision of data services for consumption by external systems. We respond to advances in web technology and apply these in order to enhance the user experience when interacting with BGS websites.