Welcome to the Department of Earth Sciences Richard W. Hutchinson Geoscience Collaborative Suite!

The Department of Earth Sciences at Western University is trustee and curator of national-caliber collections of Earth Materials. The Richard W. Hutchinson Geoscience Collaborative Suite houses our Dana Minerals and Suffel Ore Deposit Collections. These Collections are invaluable for scientific research, but are also resources for industrial partners in the mineral and petroleum sectors, tools in undergraduate and graduate education, and are on exhibit for public outreach. These collections are of regional, national and international importance as they encompass specimens from every continent, with the exception of Antarctica, and are invaluable as a large portion of the specimens have been collected from mines that are now permanently closed or are inaccessible. The Richard W. Hutchinson Geoscience Collaborative Suite was an initiative of Resource Geoscience Western to establish a curatorial facility to allow maximum access and use of these unique collections, for both research and outreach. The Hutchinson Geoscience Suite features a curatorial research work space, a visiting scientist’s office for guest investigators, and a gallery for teaching and outreach. It has been over twenty years since the collections have had a proper home, and this collaborative suite allows for greater access to the collections by faculty, staff, students, alumni, industry and the general public. Our Geoscience Collections Curator, Dr. Alysha McNeil, curates our collections, manages the suite and organizes public outreach events once a month, known as our Public Afternoons at the Hutchinson Suite. Please visit our website regularly for updates on events and initiatives taking place at the Hutchinson Geoscience Suite.