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| Centre for Biodiversity Informatics | |
|---|---|
| Name | Centre for Biodiversity Informatics |
| Type | Research institute |
| Location | unspecified |
| Established | unspecified |
| Focus | Biodiversity informatics, digital taxonomy, data standards |
Centre for Biodiversity Informatics is a research entity focused on integrating digital technologies with Charles Darwin's legacy of natural history to support global conservation efforts associated with Convention on Biological Diversity initiatives and Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services assessments. It serves as a nexus linking platforms such as Global Biodiversity Information Facility, Integrated Digitized Biocollections, Encyclopedia of Life and projects like Map of Life to facilitate interoperable species data for stakeholders including United Nations Environment Programme, World Wide Fund for Nature, BirdLife International and regional agencies.
The Centre traces conceptual origins to collaborations around the Global Biodiversity Information Facility launch and digitization movements exemplified by Smithsonian Institution specimen mobilization and Natural History Museum, London databasing. Early influences include the Biodiversity Heritage Library consortium, the Atlas of Living Australia program, and initiatives at Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and California Academy of Sciences. Important milestones intersect with policy events such as the Nagoya Protocol adoption and technology developments like the emergence of Darwin Core standards and Open Geospatial Consortium practices. Partnerships with institutions including Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle, Botanical Research Institute of Texas, Royal Society-led studies, and conferences such as BIO2010 shaped its formation.
The Centre's mission aligns with priorities articulated by United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change dialogues and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change regarding biodiversity-climate linkages, while supporting targets under the Aichi Biodiversity Targets and post-2020 global biodiversity framework discussions. Objectives include standardizing metadata following Darwin Core and Ecological Metadata Language norms, promoting open access consistent with Creative Commons licensing used by Wikimedia Foundation projects, and strengthening capacity in regions represented by Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora signatories. It aims to support monitoring frameworks employed by International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List assessments and national inventories like those coordinated by United States Geological Survey and Environment Agency (England) partners.
Research programs span taxonomy workflows influenced by work at Natural History Museum, London and Smithsonian Institution digitization programs, biodiversity modeling akin to Max Planck Society computational ecology labs, and species distribution modeling comparable to efforts at University of Oxford's Zoology Department and University of Cambridge conservation groups. Programs include training modeled on curricula from Monash University biodiversity informatics units and data science collaborations with Massachusetts Institute of Technology and University of California, Berkeley. Applied studies interface with World Bank environmental safeguards, European Union LIFE projects, and conservation planning used by Conservation International and The Nature Conservancy.
The Centre develops infrastructures interoperable with Global Biodiversity Information Facility, iNaturalist platforms, and barcoding initiatives like International Barcode of Life and Barcode of Life Data Systems. Tools include data pipelines using PostgreSQL best practices, APIs compatible with OpenAPI Initiative standards, and geospatial services using QGIS and ArcGIS-compatible outputs. It contributes to standards work alongside Biodiversity Information Standards (TDWG), integrates with literature digitization in partnership with Biodiversity Heritage Library, and supports specimen imaging workflows used by Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and Field Museum of Natural History.
Key collaborations involve global consortia such as Global Biodiversity Information Facility and research networks including Consortium of European Taxonomic Facilities, with bilateral projects alongside Smithsonian Institution, Natural History Museum, London, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Australian Museum, Museum of Comparative Zoology, Botanical Research Institute of Texas, and universities like University of Oxford, University of Cambridge, Harvard University, Stanford University, and University of California, Berkeley. Partnerships extend to policy bodies such as United Nations Environment Programme, funding agencies like European Commission programs, philanthropic partners including Wellcome Trust and Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, and citizen science alliances exemplified by iNaturalist and eBird.
Governance structures mirror models used by Global Biodiversity Information Facility and Biodiversity Heritage Library with advisory boards drawing expertise from institutions like Natural History Museum, London and Smithsonian Institution. Funding sources are diversified, combining grants from entities such as the European Commission's research programs, National Science Foundation, UK Research and Innovation, philanthropic support from Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation and Wellcome Trust, and project funding linked to World Bank and Asian Development Bank environmental components. Compliance and reporting align with standards used by Charity Commission for England and Wales and oversight mechanisms similar to those of National Institutes of Health.
Notable projects include integrations with Global Biodiversity Information Facility data mobilization campaigns, contributions to the Biodiversity Heritage Library digitization, and tool development paralleling Encyclopedia of Life and Map of Life platforms. The Centre supported large-scale efforts relevant to Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services assessments, contributed datasets used in International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List analyses, and advised on national inventory projects alongside agencies like United States Geological Survey and Environment Agency (England). Its work has been showcased at forums such as Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity and scientific meetings including Society for Conservation Biology and International Congress of Entomology.