Museum ethics-more than lip service.

In the past few years, museums around the world have started to grapple with questions about the origins and ethics of their collections. This includes the acquisition and maintenance of natural history specimens. As museums examine their missions and processes, it seemed like a good time to talk to Sean Decatur, the new president of the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) in New York City. He spoke with me (see the full conversation here) about the museum's research and how collaborations between museums and partner nations should aspire to assemble collections that responsibly disseminate information about human cultures, the natural world, and the Universe.