GBIF Implementation Plan 2017-2021 and Annual Work Programme
2018
Overview
This document serves both as the 2018 revision of the GBIF Implementation Plan for theperiod 2017-2021 and also as the GBIF Annual Work Programme 2018. Both elements are
based upon the GBIF Strategic Plan for 2017-2021.
The relationship between these documents is represented by the following graphic.
The Strategic Plan (agreed in 2015 at GB22) established five priorities for GBIF’s work.
The Implementation Plan presented here in this document identifies 22 activities which
GBIF must undertake to address these priorities during the five-year period (and a set of
specific tasks under each activity).
Each year, GBIF reviews progress against these activities and available resources (including
Secretariat staff and other uses of core and supplementary funding, as well as resources
committed by GBIF Participants). Using this information, an Annual Work Programme isdefined for the following year. Each Annual Work Programme identifies a prioritised set oftasks for work during the year. Annual Work Programmes in the second and subsequent
years also report on progress against the plan.
The Implementation Plan is reviewed and refined each year.

The Implementation Plan is presented here with updates reflecting progress during 2017 andplanned activities for 2018 (the 2018 Annual Work Programme).
The Annual Work Programme 2018 is summarized below. The revised Implementation Plan
begins on page 8.
GBIF Implementation Plan 2017-2021 and Annual WP 2017

GBIF Annual Work Programme 2018
Information on activities planned for 2018 is included under each of the Activity sections
included in the Implementation Plan, beginning on page 13.
For convenience, this information has also been collated on page 4 as an overview of theitems for which approval is sought from the Governing Board at GB24.

Financial situation
At GB23, a budget for 2017 was agreed based on Participant expectations regarding theirannual contributions. The expectation at that time was that income for the year would bemuch lower than the agreed target, at around €2,635,626. As a result, a relatively limited
work programme was agreed for 2017
In fact, although even by August 2017, only around 81% of the budgeted contributions for2017 have been received, GBIF’s financial situation has improved significantly. There areseveral reasons for this:••••Canada, Poland and Switzerland have become Voting Participants and together
contribute around €450,000 to the budget.
The UK has contributed around €110,000 more than predicted at GB23.
Argentina and Mauretania made payments totaling €26,500 for contributions delayed
from previous years.
The European Commission gave approval for the GBIF Secretariat to offset a greaternumber of staff hours using funds from the BID programme, representing an
additional €50,000 in income for 2017.

Additionally, Sweden, the US and SBNO have made supplementary contributions totaling€77,000 to cover activities which were originally excluded from the 2017 Work Programmeowing to lack of funds (Ebbe Nielsen Challenge, Young Researchers Awards and Global
Nodes Meeting).
As a result of these factors, and careful expenditure in a number of areas, GBIF expects to
end 2017 with a balance of around €1,125,000, around €775,000 higher than projected at
GB23.
As a result of this, we propose to expand expenditure in a number of key areas during 2018.
It remains prudent, however, to retain a higher balance than the agreed minimum of€250,000, owing to continuing uncertainties around future contributions from several
participants.

Secretariat staffing
Staff changes in recent years have enabled the Secretariat to maintain a steady level ofservice with lower salary costs than in the past. The Secretariat is now structured as four
teams, as follows:••

Participation and Engagement (six staff, plus CAS visiting scientist) 1
o Direct support and guidance for GBIF participants and Nodeso Capacity enhancement activities
o Documentation and communication
Data Products (four staff)o Technical support and helpdesk for data publishers and userso Data quality and fitness-for-use

1
The Chinese Academy of Science has funded Maofang Luo spending a year working with theParticipation and Engagement team

Page 2 | 62••Informatics (six or seven staff) 2
o Software developmento Operation of GBIF IT infrastructureo Standards
Administration (five staff, plus student support) 3
o Support for Governing Board and Committee activities
o Administration of calls for proposals and contract processeso Organisation of meetings and travelo Financial management

The leader of each of these teams reports directly to the Executive Secretary.

Planned expenditure
Funding is reserved in the Work Programme 2018 for the following activities:•

Regional Nodes Meetings: €60,000 (Revised from €30,000 following GB24)
Funds to provide partial support for organisation of regional nodes meetings. See:
Activity 1f - Plan implementation.

•

Global Biodiversity Informatics Outlook follow-on workshop: €50,000
Funds (requiring co-funding from other sources) to organise a follow-on workshop to
the 2012 Global Biodiversity Informatics Conference (GBIC) event. GBIC led to thedevelopment of the Global Biodiversity Informatics Outlook (GBIO), which provided ahigh-level vision for major required components in a globally interconnectedbiodiversity data infrastructure. The goal of the new workshop will be to develop
agreement, including a governance strategy and funding options, for a project officeto assist biodiversity data infrastructures and projects in contributing to a joined-up
solution. See: Activity 1f - Plan implementation.

•

Capacity Enhancement Support Programme (CESP) call: €80,000
Funds for the 2018 call for projects to support the development and activity of GBIF
Participant nodes. See: Activity 1g - Coordinate resources.

•

Deliver Names Infrastructure: €80,000
Funds to support the GBIF component (with partial funding from NLBIF) of thesecond year of joint development with Catalogue of Life, funded by NLBIF. See:
Activity 2b - Deliver names infrastructure.

•

Five-year Review of GBIF Progress: €30,000
Funds to support an external review of GBIF operations – the last such reviews took
place more than five years ago. See: Activity 5d - Assess impact.

In recent years, the Informatics this team has included six developers. This has allowed for steady
maintenance of the systems but has left a significant legacy of deferred or delayed work on data
quality, data presentation, and tools for data publishers, users and nodes. Accordingly, we plan toexpand this team by one member.
3
The Administration team lost a staff member during the last year. This position has not been filled,
but the Secretariat is making use of a part-time student worker to supplement capacity.
2

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The complete budget proposal for 2018 may be summarised as follows (revised following
GB24, see GBIF Draft 2017 Budget for more detail):
Opening balance€1,126K

Participant contributions 4€3,000K

Secretariat supplementary income€140K

Total available funds€4,266K

Secretariat salaries€2,401K

Governance costs€101K

Operating costs 5€553KWork programme expenditure€300K

Total expenditure€3,345K

Closing balance€921K

Overview of 2018 Work Items
This following is a summary of all 2018 Work Items proposed in the 2018 update of the
Implementation Plan below. It is intended to summarise the work items for which approval issought from the Governing Board at GB24. Accordingly, it does not include the additional
commitments made and reported by Participants. These are described in the Activity
sections within the body of the document below.

Activity 1a - Focus on people••••

Enable users to associate ORCIDs with their GBIF.org accounts and to identify withwhich datasets they are associated. This will enable individuals to track citations
through both the ORCID and DOI systems.
Allow users to link their information to events and projects and declare their areas ofexpertise (e.g. Darwin Core, IPT, taxonomic groups) within GBIF activities.
Retire the GBIF community site and replace with a discussion forum integrated into
GBIF.org and with appropriate use of alternative platforms (e.g. Facebook, LinkedIn).
Review current use of digital badge system in BID, align with skills training offered bypartner networks, and expand to more generic application in capacity programmes.

Activity 1b - Strengthen skills
•

•
•

4
5

Adapt current BID data mobilization training modules into a more generic curriculum
able to be picked up in future programmes by external trainers (including a proposed
BIFA workshop in 2018), and including a larger element of self-instruction.
Extend BID training modules to incorporate key skills around data application anduse, with first demonstration at the BID Africa workshop in February 2018
Complete set of explainer texts in multiple languages, as well as video explainers on
key aspects of GBIF participation

Including €23,000 from Copenhagen University towards Secretariat IT costs.
Including banking costs.
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•Develop BID helpdesk and mentoring processes for more general application acrossthe network, including a mechanism to assign specific ‘focal point’ mentors to all newnodes and projects

Activity 1c - Equip Participant nodes
•

•

•
•
•

Review and further development of nodes guidance materials, including additional
material on engaging citizen science, private sector, research and policy
communities
Retire the unmaintained community site of GBIF and replace with a more modern
solution. A review of the functionality desired and needed will be conducted with thecommunity, and one or more solutions put in place, including forums for direct
discussion and helpdesk on GBIF.org and promotion and use of already commonlyused tools such as Facebook groups.
Review use of national self-assessment tool with a view to possible enhancements
and guidance on future use
Continue webinars and adapt based on feedback after first year, expand to wider
audience including e.g. publisher and user communities
Development of a role for members of the GBIF network and interested researchers
to serve as ‘GBIF science ambassadors’ to promote understanding and use of GBIF
data and services

Activity 1d - Equip data publishers••

Review of the IPT product and conduct a consultation with community on necessarychanges beyond maintenance and bug fixing.
Maintain cloud based IPT installations (updates, backups, helpdesk) and deploy
further instances as required.

Activity 1e - Expand national participation••

Further development of multilingual content on GBIF.org to support wider
participation
Annually-updated review of global participation based on regional and sub-regional
representation, to support engagement strategies to be led by existing GBIF regions.

Activity 1f - Plan implementation•

Develop plans and coordinate funding for a workshop to develop a shared plan for a
project office for coordinating biodiversity informatics activity and to develop draft
roadmaps for collaborative delivery of some of the GBIO components.

•

Organise regional Nodes meetings - €60,000 (revised following GB24) reserved inbudget to support organisation of these meetings in regions lacking necessary funds

Activity 1g - Coordinate resources•••

Build on BID and BIFA programmes to seek additional funding for aligned capacity
enhancement activity
Operate the 2018 Capacity Enhancement Support Programme call with an allocatedbudget of €80,000.
Operate the 2018 Ebbe Nielsen Challenge and Young Researchers Awards, with afunding of €30,000 from the Governance allocation within the 2018 Budget.

Activity 2a - Modernize data standards••

GBIF will participate in the joint meeting of TDWG and SPNHC (Society for the
Preservation of Natural History Collections) to be held in Dunedin, New Zealand (25August – 2 September 2018).
Implementation of recommendations from TDWG Biodiversity Data Quality Interest
Group.
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Activity 2b - Deliver names infrastructure•

Deliver public prototype and solicit community feedback on comprehensive
nomenclature and checklist using clearing-house model.

Activity 2c - Catalogue collections•

Develop joint action plan with GRSciColl for joint delivery and maintenance of thecatalogue of collections.

Activity 3a - Identify priority gaps••

Synthesize outcomes of recent activities (including Ebbe Nielsen Challenge 2016) tovisualize and measure data gaps and to offer data mobilization targets
Encourage additional research communities to provide feedback on possible
improvements to GBIF data management and presentation to meet their needs – thismay be delivered following the fitness-for-use group model.

Activity 3b - Expand data streams••

Work with BHL to incorporate literature-based occurrence data.
Work with BOLD and others to incorporate sequence-based occurrence data.

Activity 3c - Engage data holders••

Engagement with data holder communities relies on effective national scale
coordination. The GBIF Secretariat will revise guidance for Participant Nodes on
engagement with citizen science groups, private sector environmental impact
consultants, etc.
Material will be added to GBIF.org to summarize guidance and best practice relating
to data mobilization from environmental impact assessment. The GBIF Secretariat
will continue to engage with the International Association of Impact Assessment,
World Bank, International Finance Corporation, World Economic Forum, etc. topromote open data publication through GBIF.

Activity 3d - Rescue datasets•

Establish a repository and processes for hosting, curating, publishing and endorsing
datasets suggested for rescue.

Activity 3e - Liaise with journals•

Develop communications with journals around GBIF DOI-based data management,
data downloads and data citation policy. Encourage journals, editors and authors topractise responsible data citation.

Activity 4a - Ensure data persistence•

Establish ongoing detection for future orphan data sets and processes to ensure
persistent hosting and management.

Activity 4b - Assess data quality
•
•

•

•

Engage with TDWG Data Quality group to define and document the rules andflagging required to assess data quality.
Engage with the ALA team specifically, and others where possible, to ensure thatsystems treat data consistently, and use the same software libraries. The GBIF /ALA ingestion processes should become the reference implementation for a TDWG
standard.
Accumulate and present dataset quality statement metrics for the dataset, publisher
and national level on GBIF.org to help direct all parties to address data issues andprioritise effort.
Evaluate options to incorporate expert review as an element in GBIF data
management.

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Activity 4c - Enable data curation•

Connect more systems to receive direct annotations from GBIF.org users. Symbiota
and Specify communities have expressed interest.

Activity 5a - Engage academia••

A BID workshop will be held in Africa during February 2018 to assist projects withengaging users in applied use of mobilized data
New brochures will be produced to highlight the relevance of GBIF for researchers(multiple languages).

Activity 5b - Document needs•

Address recommendations from 2015-2016 data fitness for use groups.

Activity 5c - Support biodiversity assessment••

Explore possible enhancements to GBIF data management to optimize access todata in formats which are appropriate for constructing species distribution andpopulation abundance EBVs.
Further discussion is required to integrate GBIF data into IUCN Red List processes.

Activity 5d - Assess impact•••

Extend collection of GBIF use cases to include grey literature and other non-research
applications of data
Commission value proposition study – extra funding will be required.
Contract external review of GBIF operations and deliverables - €30,000 allocated.

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GBIF Implementation Plan 2017-2021
The GBIF Strategic Plan 2017-2021 presents five broad overlapping priorities for the GBIF
network. Each of these priorities sets a direction and guides activities for the coming period.
This document here presents an Implementation Plan to enable the GBIF community as awhole to make significant progress in each priority area. It establishes the framework for
GBIF’s Annual Work Programmes over the period of the Strategic Plan.
The following notes provide context for the activities outlined here.

DeliverySome activities in this plan will be led or coordinated by GBIF Secretariat staff, using core or
supplementary funds. Other activities may be led or coordinated by GBIF Participants withparticular interest or expertise in the areas in question.
Combining energies across the whole network within the framework of this plan will enable
GBIF to progress the set of activities identified in this document more rapidly. Each Annual
Work Programme in the period 2017 to 2021 will build on progress in past years and will
focus available resources on remaining priorities identified in this document.

Structure of GBIF
GBIF operates on three primary levels:•••

Global – GBIF is an international activity and works at the global level to increase
standardization and adoption of best practices, to facilitate sharing of expertise andresources and to offer an integrated global dataset and associated informatics
infrastructure.
Participant – GBIF Participants, including the nodes that they establish, haveprimary responsibility for engaging stakeholder communities, mobilizing andcurating data, providing support and training, and ensuring that national researchers
and agencies gain maximum benefit from GBIF. GBIF regional networks provide aframework for national and organizational stakeholders to collaborate more closely,
particularly when addressing challenges and opportunities they share.
Data Publisher – Data-holding institutions, agencies and individual researchers are
the foundations on which GBIF depends. GBIF has a responsibility to ensure thatdata publishers have access to the tools and support that they need and that theyreceive recognition for their work and contributions.

This Implementation Plan seeks to address needs at all three of these levels while aiming toreinforce the value of GBIF for stakeholders at each level. It is highly desirable to increase
coordination and feedback between these levels. The 2018 version of the document includes
reports from a few GBIF Participants on their 2017 activities and 2018 plans. It would be
most beneficial to receive inputs from a wider range of Participants to give a clear picture ofeverything occurring in the network and to assist the Secretariat and all Participants with
better alignment and reuse.
A particular requirement is for the GBIF network to maintain and coordinate software to
support each of these levels and to ensure that the publication, integration, management
and use of data are as efficient as possible.
At the global level, GBIF focuses on delivery of GBIF.org as a software platform to support
both human users and tools (via web services). Many of GBIF’s goals depend on being able
to deliver a fully integrated view of all data from all sources in the best possible forms.
At the data publisher level, GBIF maintains the Integrated Publishing Toolkit (IPT) as its
default tool for sharing GBIF-compatible data. Ongoing enhancements are required toPage 8 | 62

increase both the usability of this tool and the value that its services provide to data
publishers. At the same time, GBIF seeks to support GBIF-compatible data publishing via
other tools such as collection management systems and citizen science platforms.
At the Participant level, several efforts have been made to deliver generic portal tools to
assist node managers in their work and to deliver value at the national level. The mostsignificant roles for such a platform would be to:•••

Enable national- or regional-level integration and curation of datasets
Enhance data records to reflect national administrative units and national species
lists
Provide tools that meet the requirements of national or regional researchers,
policymakers and the general publicOver the last few years, a growing number of GBIF Participants have collaborated toleverage Australia’s investment in the Atlas of Living Australia (ALA) and to customize thesetools to deliver their own portals. The Implementation Plan responds to this with a focus on
increasing community development and support to deliver a reusable and sustainable portal
toolkit based on the ALA tools. This approach not only benefits Participants alreadycommitted to using these tools, but also provides a solution for rapid adoption by otherParticipants at national, regional, or even thematic levels. In addition, Belgium has indicatedan interest in exploring the potential for an alternative lightweight solution based on
repository tools such as CKAN.
The vision for the technical aspects underlying this Implementation Plan is that thecomponents developed and offered by the GBIF network at each scale should combine todeliver a robust solution to support GBIF data management and that together they should
continue to evolve to support a leading international data infrastructure. One aspect of thiswill be to ensure that all users can share and reuse common components such as data
validation tests and that GBIF promotes and fosters wider activity around open projects.
GBIF is more than just a technical network, and this Implementation Plan also addresses thecapacity enhancement, networking, communication and reporting activities necessary toadvance GBIF’s work in these areas. Since it is impossible for GBIF to support all aspects of
its network using core funds, this plan focuses on resources which will support the work of
GBIF Participants and data holders everywhere, coordinating the skills, expertise andinvestment of the whole network to maximize benefits to all stakeholders.

Timeline
None of the priorities, or the more specific goals identified for each priority, can be achievedin a single year; each will require coordinated effort across multiple annual work
programmes. This document describes the set of activities currently recognized as important
to deliver the Strategic Plan over the five-year period. It will be revised and expanded as
required each year to address changes in the landscape in which GBIF operates.
This Implementation Plan was presented for approval by the Governing Board at GB23. It
was accompanied by the Annual Work Programme for 2017. Both components wereapproved at the meeting.
Additional commitments from GBIF Participants or others to contribute or deliver particularelements will be welcomed throughout the five-year implementation period.

Resources
GBIF has a range of resources for use in delivering its programme of activity, including corefunding from annual Participant contributions, supplementary funds (including BID and BIFA
and funds received for activities within other projects), and investments by GBIF
Participants.

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These resources combine as follows:•••

Core Fundingo Supports GBIF Governance structures (Governing Board, committees)o Supports staffing and operation of GBIF Secretariat to coordinate global
activity, including: Delivery of global-level IT infrastructure (GBIF.org)
 Coordination of delivery of software components to support
Participants and Data Publishers
 Coordination of capacity enhancement activity and informationmaterials for Participants, Data Publishers and Users
 Coordination of supplementary-funded activity and Participant
investments in shared GBIF activity
 Monitoring and reporting usage and benefits Administrative support for GBIF activities
 Communication, outreach and partnership activities
o Limited funds to support workshops, capacity enhancement anddevelopments to expand or enhance GBIF
Supplementary Fundingo Additional funds to support workshops, capacity enhancement anddevelopments to expand or enhance GBIFo Funding to support Participants and Data Publishers with content mobilisation
or development of national Biodiversity Information Facilities
Participant Investmentso Operating GBIF nodeso Engaging with and supporting data publishers and users
o Curating data from Data Publishers
o Additional funds or staffing to support workshops, capacity enhancement anddevelopments to expand or enhance GBIF

In past years, Annual Work Programmes have been developed to reflect the use of Core
Funding, but this Implementation Plan is intended to offer a framework for GBIF Participants
and other stakeholders to take leadership in delivering some of the identified activities andtasks. Where possible, Participants are encouraged to seek funds or allocate staff time toenable progress in areas beyond those for which Core Funding is adequate.
All such commitments reported by GBIF participants have been included within the 2017
Annual Work Programme and will be reported as part of GBIF’s work during the year.
Additional Participant commitments will be most welcome at any stage in the implementationof the 2017 Annual Work Programme and for inclusion in subsequent Annual Work
Programmes. Examples of such commitments include (but are not limited to):
•
•

•
•
•

Organization of workshops to develop required new standards or best practicerecommendations
Capacity enhancement and training at regional or global levels, in particular forworkshops and projects in regions which are not addressed by current
Supplementary Funding sources
Development of tools or software components to advance GBIF’s work
Representation of GBIF in international fora
Recruitment of additional GBIF Participants

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Please advise the Secretariat at the earliest possible opportunity of any such proposedcommitments. A form is made available for this purpose.

Implementation Plan structure
The Implementation Plan is structured around the five priorities identified in the GBIF
Strategic Plan 2017-2021. These are presented here in reverse order from their sequence in
the Strategic Plan, and numbered accordingly. This reordering allows the Implementation
Plan to place its initial focus squarely on the global network of GBIF Participants and data
publishers, building on these foundations to address in turn GBIF’s informatics, content
mobilization, curation and delivered products.
For each of the five priorities, the plan presents a series of numbered Activities. These are
the major areas where GBIF needs to develop further in the coming period. A rationale andimplementation approach is presented for each Activity.
Based on the implementation approach, each Activity includes a series of Tasks. These
Tasks are the items that the Annual Work Programmes need to address. They are presented
here as a table, at the end of each section describing the Activity.

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Overview of Priorities and Activities
Priority 1 – Empower Global Network ............................................................................... 13
Activity 1a - Focus on people ............................................................................................ 13
Activity 1b - Strengthen skills ............................................................................................ 15
Activity 1c - Equip nodes ................................................................................................... 18
Activity 1d - Equip data publishers .................................................................................... 20
Activity 1e - Expand national participation ......................................................................... 22
Activity 1f - Plan implementation ....................................................................................... 24
Activity 1g - Coordinate resources .................................................................................... 26
Priority 2 – Enhance Biodiversity Information Infrastructure ......................................... 29
Activity 2a - Modernize data standards ............................................................................. 29
Activity 2b - Deliver names infrastructure .......................................................................... 32
Activity 2c - Catalogue collections ..................................................................................... 35
Priority 3 – Fill Data Gaps .................................................................................................. 37
Activity 3a - Identify priority gaps ....................................................................................... 37
Activity 3b - Expand data streams ..................................................................................... 39
Activity 3c - Engage data holders ...................................................................................... 42
Activity 3d - Rescue datasets ............................................................................................ 44
Activity 3e - Liaise with journals ........................................................................................ 46
Priority 4 – Improve Data Quality ...................................................................................... 48
Activity 4a - Ensure data persistence ................................................................................ 48
Activity 4b - Assess data quality ........................................................................................ 50
Activity 4c - Enable data curation ...................................................................................... 52
Priority 5 – Deliver Relevant Data ...................................................................................... 54
Activity 5a - Engage academia .......................................................................................... 54
Activity 5b - Document needs ............................................................................................ 57
Activity 5c - Support biodiversity assessment ................................................................... 59
Activity 5d - Assess impact ................................................................................................ 61

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Priority 1 – Empower Global Network“Ensure that governments, researchers and users are equipped and supported to share,
improve and use data through the GBIF network, regardless of geography, language or
institutional affiliation.”

Activity 1a - Focus on people
Rationale

GBIF is the result of work by thousands of people in agencies and institutions worldwide.
This network’s long-term sustainability depends on demonstrating the value of suchcontributions and justifying continued investment of effort.
The GBIF Secretariat can enhance efforts to develop capacity within the network and build
an effective distributed help desk system that acknowledges and showcases relevant skills
and experience that people across the network possess. Users of GBIF data products would
also benefit from showcasing the network’s indispensible human resources and their impact
on assessing and improving biodiversity data.
For these reasons, the next round of improvements to GBIF.org should enhance the
network’s capacity to serve as a hub for the GBIF community by identifying its active
contributors, integrating information on their relevant GBIF activities, and supporting broader
knowledge exchange and skill development.

Approach
The key task is to enhance GBIF.org to connect and display information on its contributors
and other users of the site. This may include contact details (subject to individual control),formal roles (e.g. within participant delegations; in connection to publishing/improving
datasets; based on training experience) and online participation in help desk discussions.
Whether through the use of existing social or commercial platforms or through custom web
application development, GBIF.org should absorb activity currently handled through theseparate GBIF community site. GBIF should also build on experience during 2015-2016 inusing digital badges to identify skills held by individuals. Such community functions will
support the operation of GBIF Task Groups, externally funded projects like BID, andengagement of expert groups to curate GBIF data.

Tasks
1.a.i

Develop mechanisms to support and reflect the skills, expertise and experience ofindividual and organizational contributions to the GBIF network (including revision ofidentity management system and integration of ORCID identifiers)

1.a.iiConsolidate use of digital badges to record skills and contributions

Progress
Capacity enhancement activities through the BID programme continued to develop
mechanisms to recognize and communicate the roles and skills of individuals involved in the
GBIF community. In particular, project teams have access through the BID grantseekers’ site
to a growing pool of mentors who volunteer their services and provide information about theirareas of expertise; and two further capacity enhancement workshops, in the Caribbean andPacific regions, have awarded digital badges to trainees recognizing basic and advanced
skills in data mobilization.
The new GBIF.org website has improved the linking of multiple roles that individuals hold in
GBIF governance (e.g. national delegations, nodes, regional representatives), demonstrating
how individual profile information could be further developed in future.
The new site also links published datasets with research publications that cite data
downloads through use of Digital Object Identifiers (DOIs), opening up further opportunities
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to link individual roles in data mobilization with the re-use of data in research, for example byassociating GBIF user accounts with ORCIDs (see also activity 5d, Assess impact).
GBIF UK has implemented Data Sharing Badges during 2016 and 2017 for all data
contributors to the National Biodiversity Network (NBN).

2018 Work Items••••

Enable users to associate ORCIDs with their GBIF.org accounts and to identify withwhich datasets they are associated. This will enable individuals to track citations
through both the ORCID and DOI systems.
Allow users to link their information to events and projects and declare their areas ofexpertise (e.g. Darwin Core, IPT, taxonomic groups) within GBIF activities.
Retire the GBIF community site and replace with a discussion forum integrated into
GBIF.org and with appropriate use of alternative platforms (e.g. Facebook, LinkedIn).
Review current use of digital badge system in BID, align with skills training offered bypartner networks, and expand to more generic application in capacity programmes.

See Also
•
•
•
•
•
•

1b. Strengthen skills - help desk and training activities build on community portal
functions
1c. Equip nodes – GBIF.org should highlight role of node managers and staff
1d. Equip data publishers – proper credit should be given for data publishers
3c. Engage data holders – stronger community support and help desk to support
data publishing4c. Enable data curation – a community structure is required before GBIF can
support engagement with experts as data curators
5d. Assess impact – citation of data use in research literature will link directly toindividual data publishing roles through use of DOIs and ORCIDs

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Activity 1b - Strengthen skills
Rationale
The strengthening of personal skills through international collaboration has been one of thegreat successes of the GBIF global network. During this implementation period, GBIF mustbuild on this past experience (including the support mechanisms developed for the BID
programme) to reinforce efficient training and capacity enhancement across the network.
Central to this is the development of a collaborative help desk capability and the alignment ofrelevant aspects of national training initiatives with a global curriculum to facilitate direct
reuse of resources.

Approach
To strength key skills, GBIF needs to develop and maintain a comprehensive set of clear
reference information and training materials that support all GBIF audiences. During 2016,
the Secretariat has been upgrading documentation to deliver this comprehensive resource,
first via concise explanatory text materials (including numerous translations by network
members into French, Portuguese, Spanish, Chinese, Japanese and Russian). By the end of
2016, some of these text materials will be supported by short videos that present key
functional and operational aspects of GBIF. The aim is to deliver a structured set of short,
clear, current and complete documents that enable GBIF stakeholders to gain anunderstanding of relevant aspects of GBIF’s work quickly, including formal Participation,
establishing a national or thematic node, planning digitization, mobilizing data, discovering
and using data, citing data, among others. This work complements significant activity among
Participants to produce information and training materials relevant to particular audiences.
GBIF will organize all these materials to form a curriculum that builds and supports the skills
and activities identified in GBIF’s self-assessment tools for nodes and data holders. A core
set of these resources should provide new stakeholders with an effective introduction to
GBIF’s structure, roles, approachs and solutions. Other more technical resources will
provide the additional detail needed by those working in specific areas like digitization, data
publishing and use of GBIF-mediated data. The Secretariat will coordinate ongoing
maintenance and updates to this curriculum with contributions and translations from the
network.

Tasks
1.b.i

Develop collaborative help desk capability – including discussion groups, support
materials and FAQs

1.b.ii Articulate training and capacity enhancement activities around a single, global
curriculum for GBIF
1.b.iii Deliver explainer texts and videos to support self-directed instruction and learning

Progress
Capacity enhancement activities through the BID programme have enabled the Secretariat
to develop well-functioning collaborative helpdesk services incorporating a combination of
direct support from Secretariat staff and brokering access to mentors through a community
mailing list.
In addition, a set of training modules in the basic skills of data mobilization, created for the
first BID capacity enhancement workshop in Africa in 2016, has been adapted and re-used
for subsequent workshops in the Caribbean and Pacific in 2017, using an e-learning platform
provided by GBIF Spain. These modules, including multi-lingual elements whereappropriate, will be further applied at a second BID Africa workshop in December 2017.

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The new GBIF website provides clearer introductory text explaining the key elements of
GBIF participation including use of data standards, data publication and online hosting ofdatasets, with links to more detailed resources.
GBIF France, GBIF Spain, GBIF Argentina and VertNet contributed capacity for training
and mentoring activities under the BID programme.
GBIF Spain has established a new e-learning platform (http://elearning.gbif.es/), which hosts
the training modules for the GBIF BID programme and is expected also to support the needsof other GBIF Participants.
GBIF Spain and GBIF Colombia have prepared an animated promotional video on GBIF
data sharing (as part of the CESP project “Facilitating the engagement of Ibero-American
community” 6) – this will be premiered at GB24. Additional short videos showcase
experiences in both countries in managing and publishing biodiversity data.
2018 work items
•

•
•
•

•
•
•

Adapt current BID data mobilization training modules into a more generic curriculum
able to be picked up in future programmes by external trainers (including a proposed
BIFA workshop in 2018), and including a larger element of self-instruction.
Extend BID training modules to incorporate key skills around data application anduse, with first demonstration at the BID Africa workshop in February 2018
Complete set of explainer texts in multiple languages, as well as video explainers on
key aspects of GBIF participation
Develop BID helpdesk and mentoring processes for more general application acrossthe network, including a mechanism to assign specific ‘focal point’ mentors to all newnodes and projects
GBIF Spain will work with GBIF Argentina to make training materials from Argentina
accessible through the Spanish e-learning platform
GBIF Spain and GBIF Colombia will disseminate their promotional videos andassess impact
GBIF UK has recruited a Technical and Data Support Officer and expects to be able
to contribute to the collaborative GBIF help desk.

See Also
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•
•
•
•
•
•

6

1a. Focus on people - acknowledgement of skills and contributions in the area of
training and capacity
1c. Equip nodes - capacity enhancement and support directed to nodes teams
1d. Equip data publishers – documentation and help desk must support data
publishing
1e. Expand national participation – improved information materials will assist with
communicating benefits of national participation
3c. Engage data holders – improved information materials will assist withengagement of new data holders
4b. Assess data quality – GBIF data quality approaches must be clear and well
documented
4c. Enable data curation – as GBIF seeks to engage experts to curate data,processes and tools must be clear and well documented

http://www.gbif.org/project/2016-ibero-american-engagement
Page 16 | 62• 5a. Engage academia – broader engagement with academic bodies, universities
and libraries will require clear standalone information resources

Page 17 | 62

Activity 1c - Equip Participant nodes
Rationale
By coordinating national, regional and thematic networks, Participant nodes play anessential role in helping GBIF engage the broadest possible community of institutions,
initiatives and individuals engaged in biodiversity informatics. GBIF must provide learningmaterials and tools to support nodes efficiently as they work to mobilize biodiversity data,
promote the reuse of available data and support users by improving data management andquality. Preferred approaches enable any one node to invest in developing tools andcapacity that others can easily leverage for the benefit of the whole community. The skills
and experience of the node managers and other team members are recognized as uniquelyvaluable in helping new Participants establish their nodes and allowing the community todevelop together.

Approach
GBIF promotes capacity self-assessment as a tool to help nodes with planning and tracking
progress at all stages in the development of national biodiversity information facilities. The
results of these assessments can also identify important capacity needs to address withlearning materials, tools and collaborative projects. The reuse and adaptation of the Atlas of
Living Australia’s open-source software tools by a growing community of nodes between
2013 and 2016 is an example of successful collaboration based on the mutual needs of thecountries involved. Additional support for this international partnership will allow still morenodes to benefit from the collective resources and expertise to build websites that provide
biodiversity data and services to a range of national and regional user communities. The
nodes’ teams will also engage in collaborative helpdesk activities to enable them to shareknowledge across the scientific and technical domains handled by the nodes.

Tasks
1.c.i

Perform ongoing nodes capacity self-assessment

1.c.ii

Build reusable national/regional platform tools centred on ALA software

1.c.iii Develop online collaboration through GBIF.org helpdesk to assist and mentor nodemanagers
1.c.iv Explore alternative options for lightweight national portal solutions, e.g. CKAN

Progress
The national capacity self-assessment tool has helped some regions to assess the relative
strengths and weaknesses of national participant nodes, and has provided baseline
information for national projects within the BID programme from which to measure theimpact of funded activities.
The collaboration around re-purposing of the Atlas of Living Australia portal tools has
continued to expand as a significant focus of node activity. This has included the launch of
the National Biodiversity Network (NBN) Atlas platform in the UK, as well as the selection of
three separate projects under the 2017 Capacity Enhancement Support Programme related
to the Living Atlases collaboration. This will include developing installations of the tool in
Canada and Benin, as well as a workshop in 2018 on advanced application of the ALA tools
involving participants from 10 countries. Interest in this collaboration has also come from the
Caribbean, Asia and the Pacific.
To improve coordination and communication across the network, the Secretariat initiated aseries of bimonthly webinars aimed at node managers and staff. These included four editions
between January and August 2017, with the last two held at two separate times daily toaccommodate different time zones. Secretariat staff have used the webinars to provide
updates on key developments, canvass views and answer questions from nodes, and each
Page 18 | 62

webinar has also included guest presentations from selected nodes. The webinars have beenwell-received by the Nodes Steering Group, and feedback has been universally positive.
GBIF Spain is developing a portal based on the ALA software for GBIF Andorra, planning an
ALA portal for Catalonia, and advising GBIF Uruguay, GBIF Chile and GBIF Luxembourgon the technology. GBIF Spain is also assisting GBIF Chile and GBIF Ecuador with data
publication.

2018 Work Items
•

•

•
•
•

•

Review and further development of nodes guidance materials, including additional
material on engaging citizen science, private sector, research and policy
communities
Retire the unmaintained community site of GBIF and replace with a more modern
solution. A review of the functionality desired and needed will be conducted with thecommunity, and one or more solutions put in place, including forums for direct
discussion and helpdesk on GBIF.org and promotion and use of already commonlyused tools such as Facebook groups.
Review use of national self-assessment tool with a view to possible enhancements
and guidance on future use
Continue webinars and adapt based on feedback after first year, expand to wider
audience including e.g. publisher and user communities
Development of a role for members of the GBIF network and interested researchers
to serve as ‘GBIF science ambassadors’ to promote understanding and use of GBIF
data and services
Many GBIF Participants will continue to work and seek funds for wider deploymentof the ALA software for national portals

See Also
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•
•
•
•
•

•
•
•
•

1a. Focus on people - acknowledgement of roles and contributions of thoseengaged in the nodes’ teams
1b. Strengthen skills - resources to support the learning of members of the nodes’
teams that can also be adapted for reuse within their networks
1e. Expand national participation – better tooling and support for nodes is an
incentive for broadened participation
1f. Plan implementation – implementing this plan requires strong nodes to takeleadership and build national capacity
1g. Coordinate resources - programmes supporting the development of fundable
collaborative projects and capacity exchange and between the nodes
2c. Catalogue collections – nodes are central to understanding and cataloguing
national collections
3c. Engage data holders – nodes lead in engagement with data holders, includingcollections, citizen science groups, consultants, universities, government agencies,
etc.
4c. Enable data curation – data curation mechanisms need to build on nodes
capacity and engage with national bodies
5a. Engage academia – nodes are the primary interface between GBIF and national
academic bodies and universities
5b. Document needs – nodes contribute to understanding data requirements andbest practices and may take leadership in new fitness-for-use investigations
5d. Assess impact – understanding and presenting GBIF’s impact will support
nodes in demonstrating the value of engagement and data publishing

Page 19 | 62

Activity 1d - Equip data publishers
Rationale
Data publishers are an essential component of the GBIF network as they share their content
through the common infrastructure. More than 800 data publishers actively distributedatasets through GBIF.org, and their ranks increase steadily. Publishers from different partsof the world often face unique challenges, though common themes emerge. These problems
range from lack of data publishing experience or skills, lack of equipment, language barriers,
difficulties in managing data hosting facilities, and the inability to publish high-quality data or
curate data into the future. The Integrated Publishing Toolkit (IPT) requires ongoing
improvements and enhancements, including the establishment of hosted instances that
reduce the technical burden on data publishers.

Approach
Following the model of the self-assessment tool for node managers, the Secretariat hasdeveloped a self-assessment tool for data publishers as part of the support for the BID
programme, which will guide the work with collection managers and other data holders toassess and prioritize areas for capacity enhancement or investment. The Secretariat alreadyoperates instances of the IPT that data publishers lacking their own infrastructure may use,and Participants are encouraged to deploy instances of the IPT or other GBIF-compatible
data publishing software to support data holding institutions. Planned enhancements to the
IPT will simplify publishing pathways using spreadsheet templates as an alternative for theless advanced data publishers. GBIF will improve reporting to data publishers on both quality
aspects of their data and uses of data documented through download DOI citations.

Tasks
1.d.i

Promote and support capacity self-assessment for data holders

1.d.ii Promote publication of collection metadata
1.d.iii Simplify data publication pathways (spreadsheet-level publishing)
1.d.iv Manage IPT feature upgrades
1.d.v Operate hosted IPT infrastructure
1.d.vi Consolidate NSG-led endorsement process
1.d.vii Develop online collaboration through GBIF.org helpdesk to assist and mentor data
publishers
1.d.viii Provide clear online reporting of the use of data for data publishers
1.d.ix Promote data management plans as key tool for data publishers (Added 2018)

Progress
Data holding institutions, including BID project partners, have been encouraged to use theself-assessment tool for data holders 7 to evaluate and plan mobilization activities.
The new version of GBIF.org includes enhancements to simplify the process and increaseusability for new data publishers.
The GBIF Secretariat now operates a cloud-based installation of the IPT 8, particularly tosupport BID projects. During the remainder of 2017 and 2018, the Secretariat will explore thebest approach to expand such support on behalf of other data publishers. The goal is to78

http://www.gbif.org/resource/82785
https://cloud.gbif.org/bid
Page 20 | 62ensure that all data holders have an appropriate channel for sharing their data, without
undercutting existing Nodes activities and endorsement processes.
The IPT underwent a maintenance and bug fix release (2.3.4) in March 2017.
Data publishers can now use a service in GBIF.org to discover publications citing use of theirdata. The Secretariat actively monitors and documents journal publications, with the resultthat linkages can be made between citations of DOIs for GBIF downloads (in place since2016) in publications and the contributing datasets.
Development is already under way to offer a revised data validation service. Users will beable to submit a dataset through GBIF.org or via the API and carry out a full interpretation of
the data before registering and publishing a new or updates dataset. The API layer
development is complete and the user interface will be finished during Q4 2017. This
service will also be integrated within the IPT, and could be used as part of a broader prepublication peer review process.
GBIF Spain organized a data publishing workshop in April 2017, including a whole day on
metadata publishing and data papers. GBIF Spain also plans to deliver a service reporting
to data publishers on usage of their datasets.

2018 Work Items•••

Review of the IPT product and conduct a consultation with community on necessarychanges beyond maintenance and bug fixing.
Maintain cloud based IPT installations (updates, backups, helpdesk) and deploy
further instances as required.
GBIF Spain will repeat its workshop from April 2017

See Also
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•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

1a. Focus on people – GBIF.org needs to give credit to data publishers and support
them through the help desk
1b. Strengthen skills – documentation and help desk for data publishing
2a. Modernize data standards – improvements are required to clarify and simplify
key aspects of representing biodiversity data
2b. Deliver names infrastructure – data publishers would benefit from a morerobust and comprehensive taxonomic framework
2c. Catalogue collections – cataloguing collections will highlight opportunities todigitize collections and mobilize their data
3a. Identify priority gaps – identified gaps may support efforts to mobilize data
3b. Expand data streams – GBIF should ensure tools and documentation support
all relevant sources of data
3c. Engage data holders – tools and documentation will assist with convincing dataholders to publish data
3d. Rescue datasets – community assistance is a mechanism to support data
publishing
3e. Liaise with journals – better visibility for data in research publications
4a. Ensure data persistence – assistance with long-term management of data
4b. Assess data quality – includes feedback to publishers on potential
improvements
4c. Enable data curation – opportunities for broader involvement in improving data
5d. Assess impact – visibility for the important role of data publishers

Page 21 | 62

Activity 1e - Expand national participation
Rationale
GBIF’s national membership has remained largely static in recent years. Active participationin the network is confined to a limited number of regions, with the most dynamic activity innode collaboration and data publication focused in Western Europe, North America, Latin
America, Oceania, increasingly sub-Saharan Africa and limited parts of Asia. Thus,
significant parts of the world have little or no direct involvement in GBIF’s activities, which
poses a risk to the long-term credibility of GBIF as a global collaborative network. Secretariat
staff and existing Participants constantly engage potential new members through ad hoc
contacts, but the situation calls for a more strategic approach to expand membership.

Approach
The Secretariat will compile and maintain an up-to-date register of the status of GBIF
engagement and relevant contacts in all countries, providing the Governing Board with anannual review that analyses progress and remaining gaps in membership across eachregion. Following the development of a coordinated engagement plan for each region,
Participants and regional groups with strong contacts to relevant agencies in othergovernments may take the lead in engagement. The Secretariat will continue to develop
strategic engagement through the CBD and other intergovernmental networks, as well as
through the BID programme and other capacity-related activities. Adapting the GBIF.org
interface to support key content in multiple languages will seek to address language barriers
to national expansion, with targeted translation carried out both through external contracts
and in-kind services provided by Participants.

Tasks
1.e.i

Ensure GBIF.org interface and key content supported in relevant languages

1.e.ii Improve coordination and mechanisms for engaging new countries
1.e.iii Provide Governing Board with annual review and progress assessment for GBIF
status and engagement in all countries

Progress
Switzerland, Canada, Poland and Central African Republic have moved from Associate to
Voting Participant status, and Mali has joined GBIF as an Associate Participant. The BID
programme has generated new interest in joining GBIF among countries in Africa, theCaribbean and the Pacific Islands regions, and an extended regional meeting in Asia hashelped engagement in the region with specific interest shown from Vietnam and Bhutan in
joining GBIF. Development of an active community of data publishing institutions in Russia
has led to significant data mobilization from a country that has represented a major gap incoverage, as well as potential collaborations in several Former Soviet Union countries.
The new website provides an opportunity to include multilingual version of key content thatwill support further engagement with unrepresented regions.
GBIF Argentina, GBIF Belgium, GBIF France, GBIF Portugal, GBIF Spain, GBIF Togo
and VertNet all contributed translations for training materials used in the 2017 BID
workshops.
GBIF Australia contributed presentations as part of the Asia and Pacific regional meetings.

2018 Work Items••

Further development of multilingual content on GBIF.org to support wider
participation
Annually-updated review of global participation based on regional and sub-regional
representation, to support engagement strategies to be led by existing GBIF regions.
Page 22 | 62

See Also
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•
•
•
•

1b. Strengthen skills – clearer documentation, tools and basic information will assist
with engaging national stakeholders
1c. Equip nodes – support for establishing nodes will reinforce case for engagement
1f. Plan implementation – all GBIF stakeholders to work together to plan andsupport engagement with additional countries
1g. Coordinate resources – Secretariat to coordinate activity by GBIF Participants
to engage national governments
5a. Engage academia – increased national participation will enable linkages withadditional academic communities• 5d. Assess impact – demonstrating GBIF’s impact will support approaches to new
countries

Page 23 | 62

Activity 1f - Plan implementation
Rationale
Implementing this plan hinges on effective coordination with the plans of individual GBIF
national and organizational Participants. GBIF must also ensure that node activities are wellrecognized and integrated with other biodiversity research and informatics initiatives atnational, regional and organizational levels.

Approach
To make national-scale implementation more central across the GBIF network, theSecretariat will consult with the Governing Board on models for unifying aspects of the workof the Nodes Committee into Governing Board meetings. The Secretariat also seeks funds
to increase the scope of nodes meetings to include work to develop proposals for fundable
activities aligned with this Implementation Plan, particularly by addressing regional priorities.
The GBIF Secretariat will also engage organizational Participants to develop specificmemoranda of cooperation in key areas and to identify and support alignments with thisImplementation Plan and opportunities for joint organization of meetings and workshops.

Tasks
1.f.i

Develop better integration between nodes activities and Governing Board processes

1.f.ii

Expand regional meetings to serve as GBIF community Implementation Planning
conferences and opportunities to develop fundable programmes of work

1.f.iii

Increase alignment between GBIF work programmes and activities of each GBIF
Organisational Participant and Affiliate

1.f.iv Explore increased alignment and joint organisation of workshops with other networks
such as TDWG, SPNHC, GEO BON, RDA, etc.

Progress
This Implementation Plan is a first attempt to include information on the work programmes ofindividual GBIF Participants as part of an integrated view of the work of the GBIF
community. Participants are encouraged to provide information at an appropriate level ofdetail on their planned activities and to update on these in future years.
The GBIF Secretariat has organized a series of webinars during 2017 to provide better
communication with its Participant Nodes. Webinars have taken place on four dates and are
now repeated early and late in the day in Copenhagen to simplify access for all parts of the
GBIF network. These webinars are used to update GBIF stakeholders on progress anddevelopments. All presentations are archived and available online.
GBIF regional meetings play an important role in helping Participants to coordinate theiractivities and develop shared vision for projects and engagement with other countries.
Regional Nodes meetings have taken place during 2017 in Asia (with funding from Japan
under the BIFA programme), Europe and North America. The Asian meeting in particularincluded representatives from countries which are not yet GBIF Participants.
Additionally, the BID-funded kick-off meetings for the Caribbean and the Pacific in July 2017
offered an opportunity to explore regional-scale engagement. In each case, existing GBIF
Participants contributed to the meetings.
A workshop on Exploring Synergies and Sustainability for Biodiversity Information Systems
was held at the Senckenberg Research Institute, Frankfurt, Germany. One of therecommendations arising from this workshop was to explore ways for GBIF to evolve todeliver a project office supporting the coordination of international biodiversity informatics
activities and projects, and to develop the vision represented by the Global Biodiversity

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Informatics Outlook (GBIO) 9. A possible model for this would be for the GBIF Secretariat or
a GBIF Participant to host two dedicated staff with responsibility for working withinternational organizations and projects to document existing best practices, develop
roadmaps and delivery plans for convergent development of each of the GBIO components,
and to coordinate activities to secure the required funding. An additional role could be toprovide pre-submission comments on project proposals to encourage reuse of existing tools,
standards and best practices and to support better alignment of projects within a public
framework of GBIO roadmaps.
Clearly, GBIF does not currently have the required funding to include such a role within its
mission. A possible starting-point would be to secure funding for a workshop to build on the2012 Global Biodiversity Informatics Conference (GBIC). This conference could focus ondeveloping a vision and funding strategy for establishing such a project office. It could also
include working streams to develop draft exemplar roadmaps for two or three of the GBIO
components. Such a conference could serve to develop a community vision and to create asuitable plan against which to secure the required funding.
An allocation of €50,000 towards organization of this workshop is included in the 2018budget. The GBIF Secretariat would be pleased to hear from any Participants interested incontributing to the organization or costs for such a conference, or to hosting a GBIF Project
Office for Architecture and Standards.

2018 Work Items•

Develop plans and coordinate funding for a workshop to develop a shared plan for a
project office for coordinating biodiversity informatics activity and to develop draft
roadmaps for collaborative delivery of some of the GBIO components.

•

Organise regional Nodes meetings - €60,000 (revised following GB24) reserved inbudget to support organisation of these meetings in regions lacking necessary funds
GBIF Spain aims to develop close coordination with LifeWatch at the national level.

•

See Also
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•
•
•
•
•
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•
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9

1c. Equip nodes – reinforce mechanisms for nodes planning and implementation
1e. Expand national participation – work together to seek new Participants
1g. Coordinate resources – shared planning supports better alignment of resources
2a. Modernize data standards – aligning plans with other informatics activities
depends on clearer data models
2b. Deliver names infrastructure – requires joint plans with other projects andorganisations
2c. Catalogue collections – requires joint plans with other projects andorganisations
3a. Identify priority gaps – prioritisation is a key stage in planning implementation
3b. Expand data streams – requires broad shared strategy
5b. Document needs – needs should help to determine implementation
5c. Support biodiversity assessment – requires joint plans with other projects andorganisations

http://www.gbif.org/resource/80859
Page 25 | 62

Activity 1g - Coordinate resources
Rationale
Among its other roles, the GBIF Secretariat coordinates efforts to expand the scale andscope of GBIF activity beyond the levels achievable using only annual core Participant
contributions. GBIF Participants commit to establish and operate nodes which serve as
significant centres for GBIF activity. Some nodes have sufficient resources to contributeskills and developments which advance GBIF’s work, while others may require external
support to become fully active. A limited amount of funding has been allocated each year
under the GBIF work programme to support capacity enhancement for GBIF nodes. GBIF or
individual Participants may also secure supplementary funds to contribute to particular areasof GBIF work. Improved coordination of these various resources will assist GBIF to advance
more rapidly at all scales.

ApproachThis Implementation Plan itself provides a framework for organising information on
Participant and supplementary fund resources to complement GBIF’s core funding. The
GBIF Secretariat seeks information from all Participants on planned activities andcommitments which may help to advance the work of other Participants or GBIF globally –examples may include funding for workshops; committed resources to develop tools,
standards or best practices; mentoring actions; etc. These will be recorded as part of theoverall GBIF Work Programme and updates will be presented in the GBIF annual report. A
shared Implementation Plan also offers the opportunity for GBIF (either the Secretariat orParticipants) to develop concept notes to seek supplementary funding to target currently
unfunded or underfunded areas. The annual Capacity Enhancement Support Programmebudget includes only limited funds, but existing supplementary funds (in particular BID andBIFA) align with these funds and leverage CESP tools and processes. Future supplementary
funds should follow a similar model.

Tasks
1.g.i

Secretariat to coordinate participant-led activities aligned with Work Programme(process and models to support participant commitments)

1.g.ii Development of concept notes/proposals for supplementary funding at regional or
global scales
1.g.iii Operate annual Capacity Enhancement Support Programme (CESP) with core funds,aligned with supplementary investments
1.g.iv Ensure that BID programme and other supplementary funds align with and reinforce
CESP and GBIF community, online resources and infrastructure
1.g.v Align Ebbe Nielsen Challenge and Young Researcher Awards with GBIF priorities

Progress
GBIF continues to operate with core funding levels at the bottom of the range consideredviable by the Governing Board, and a relatively small proportion of contributions are received
each year by the specified target date (31 March). By early August 2017, only around 81% of
the committed annual contributions for 2017 had been received.
This pattern of payments, along with restricted financial reserves, places GBIF undercontinual risk that cuts to planned activities may become necessary, and significantly limits
our ability to offer leadership and accelerate delivery.
Supplementary funding and alignment of distributed activity through this shared
Implementation Plan have therefore been critical for enabling GBIF to progress its mission.

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The Biodiversity Informatics for Development (BID) 10 programme, funded by the European
Union, and the Biodiversity Information Fund for Asia (BIFA) 11 programme, funded by the
Ministry of Environment of the Government of Japan, have both served significantly to
expand the scope of GBIF’s capacity enhancement activities. The GBIF Secretariat has
used this opportunity to develop reusable templates and processes which have streamlined
calls for proposals and contract development and, with assistance from volunteer trainers
and mentors, to run repeatable training workshops in multiple regions. Relevant staff
activities have been funded directly via these programmes. These advances not only serve
the BID and BIFA programmes themselves, but also allow GBIF to operate its own Capacity
Enhancement Support Programme (CESP) calls more efficiently. As a result, GBIF now
offers an even more cost-effective framework for capacity enhancement activity using
supplementary funds. The GBIF Secretariat is ready to work with Participants to seek further
funding for such aligned programmes.
The funding provided by NLBIF for improvements to the names infrastructure offered by
GBIF and the Catalogue of Life, has also included partial payment for a GBIF developer towork on this activity.
The Chinese Academy of Science has funded a year’s work by Maofang Luo as visiting
scientist working with Secretariat Participation team. She has contributed significantly toengagement activities within the Asian region.
Participants at GB23 identified their support for the Ebbe Nielsen Challenge, the Young
Researchers Award and the biannual Global Nodes Meeting, which had all been identified
as exceeding the 2017 core budget. We gratefully acknowledge the contributions received
from the following Participants and collaborators to enable these three activities to takeplace:
1. The Swedish Research Council supplied €20,000 to support the 2017 Ebbe Nielsen
Challenge
2. Stichting ter Bevordering van Natuurwetenschappelijk Onderzoek (SBNO) supplied€10,000 to support the 2017 Young Researchers Awards, with in-kind support from
Pensoft Publishers through waiving of publication charges.
3. The US National Science Foundation made €50,000 available to support organization
and attendance at the 2017 Global Nodes Meeting.
4. Finland waived the €10,000 normally supplied by GBIF to support the organization of theGoverning Board Meeting.
In 2017, the Ebbe Nielsen Challenge has targeted the mobilisation of currently incompatible
data held within online repositories. This is a direct contribution to the development of
Activity 3d - Rescue datasets within this Implementation Plan.
Representatives from GBIF Argentina, GBIF Colombia, GBIF Costa Rica, GBIF Norway,
GBIF South Africa, the Chinese Academy of Science and VertNet, and a large number ofexternal experts, contributed to the assessment and evaluation processes for BID funding
calls.

2018 Work Items
•
•

10
11

Build on BID and BIFA programmes to seek additional funding for aligned capacity
enhancement activity
Operate the 2018 Capacity Enhancement Support Programme call with an allocatedbudget of €80,000.

http://www.gbif.org/programme/bid
http://www.gbif.org/programme/bifa
Page 27 | 62••Operate the 2018 Ebbe Nielsen Challenge and Young Researchers Awards, with afunding of €30,000 from the Governance allocation within the 2018 Budget.
GBIF Spain is seeking long-term funding to strengthen the international community
around the use of ALA software (currently around 20 countries).

See Also••••

1c. Equip nodes – nodes are the primary focus for use of nationally aligned GBIF
activity
1e. Expand national participation – coordinate GBIF resources to seek new
country Participants
1f. Plan implementation – plans underpin coordinated activity
5d. Assess impact – understanding impact will assist with future coordination

Page 28 | 62

Priority 2 – Enhance Biodiversity Information Infrastructure“Provide leadership, expertise and tools to support the integration of all biodiversity
information as an interconnected digital knowledgebase.”

Activity 2a - Modernize data standards
Rationale
The GBIF network participants are able to reliably exchange data thanks to their adherence
to a set of standards. As GBIF looks to grow in capability, enable exchange of richer content
and improve the quality of data, the standards must be revised and evolve accordingly.
Current standards adopted by GBIF are not yet adequate to accommodate the needs
expressed by many potential and existing data publishers. Weaknesses in the model have
led to ambiguous or over-complex data representations and unclear documentation, leading
to difficulties in data integration and use. The main issues relate to uncertainties around theuse of Darwin Core record types, the basisOfRecord element, and the use of Core andExtension vocabularies. Reviewing and updating the core domain model, tightening up the
vocabularies and documentation and adopting more robust exchange standards will result inan easier to use, and a wider reaching GBIF data exchange network.

Approach
GBIF will work with TDWG and other key stakeholders to review existing solutions for acommon domain model, working towards agreement on a model to adopt with key partners.
This conceptual model should cover the main components of biodiversity information (thedomain “classes” such as Specimen, Collection, TaxonName, TaxonConcept, Publication,
Sequence) and document the mandatory and recommended properties expected for eachcomponent and the vocabularies that should control the properties. A review of existing
vocabularies and their current uses will be undertaken and revisions and new vocabularies
will be proposed where necessary. A revision of the Darwin Core Archive mechanism andsupporting tools, such as the publishing toolkit (IPT) and the data validator, will be
undertaken to accommodate the richer content model and the new recommendations fromthe W3C CSV on the Web working group. GBIF should continue discussions with other key
global biodiversity data infrastructures to develop comprehensive catalogues to support
discovery and normalisation of instances of the most critical domain classes (particularly
TaxonName, TaxonConcept, Collection, Specimen, TaxonOccurrence).
In addition to completing this knowledge graph, GBIF should be equipped to link between
people, datasets, cited use and funding agencies through the correct attribution chains using
e.g. Digital Object Identifiers (DOIs) and Open Researcher and Contributer ID (ORCID) as
potential mechanisms.

Tasks
2.a.i

Promote development of a shared domain model for sharing and linking allcomponents of biodiversity information

2.a.ii Lead a review of the Darwin Core vocabulary and associated extensions to ensure
consistency and full alignment with a shared domain model
2.a.iii Explore opportunities to increase accessibility of biodiversity data through evolution of
Darwin Core Archive formats to W3C CSV on the Web formats
2.a.iv Explore models to enable GBIF and other biodiversity infrastructures to delivercomprehensive global catalogues of instances of key data classes
2.a.v Improve management of trait data of relevance to GBIF

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Progress
Multiple engagements during 2017 highlighted the need for GBIF to continue to play aleading role in the development and advancement of data standards and community
coordination for biodiversity informatics. In addition to those discussed under Activity 2b Deliver names infrastructure and Activity 2c - Catalogue collections, these included:
Distributed System of Scientific Collections (DiSSCo) 12 – a European consortium is
proposing a new long-term research infrastructure, based on natural history
collections. The GBIF Secretariat contributed to the development of the Technical
Design for this proposal. GBIF and other key infrastructures would develop to offer
integrative cataloguing services to enable the collections together to deliver a
combined linked open data graph.
• Workshop on Exploring Synergies and Sustainability for Biodiversity Information
Systems at Senckenberg Research Institute, Frankfurt, Germany – Senckenberg
hosted this workshop to explore current challenges and opportunities for increased
coorination and alignment between biodiversity informatics projects.
• Linking Environmental Data and Samples workshop 13, Canberra, Australia – thisworkshop opened up discussion relating to common metadata for both geologicaland biological samples, use of persistent resolvable identifiers for collection samples,and representation of provenance in data derived from samples. In particular, theworkshop indicated opportunities for GBIF and the biodiversity informatics community
to learn and benefit from progress made by geological scientists around theInternational Geo Sample Number (IGSN) as a standard identifier for their samples.
• Sampling event data and Humboldt Core – the Darwin Core sampling event standard
allows GBIF rapidly to expand the information accessible from many field-based data
sets. Ideally, however, complementary standards would be in place to support
cataloguing of sampling protocols and capture of essential metadata about these in a
structured, semantically-enabled standard. A proposal is in place to develop such a
metadata standard (Humboldt Core) 14. GBIF has been involved in a number ofdiscussions, particularly with Map of Life and in the context of GEO BON, aroundprogressing this concept.
• TDWG Biodiversity Data Quality Interest Group 15 – this group met in Canberra during
2017 to advance standardization of data quality checks for Darwin Core data and to
explore more consistent implementation of such checks by biodiversity datarepositories and tools. GBIF will work during the rest of 2017 and 2018 to implement
some of these ideas, and to increase consistency between GBIF data handling anddata handling by e.g. ALA and iDigBio.
It is difficult for GBIF to provide the kind of coordinated and detailed input that is required in
all of these processes. Secretariat staff members participate in key workshops, but currently
all Secretariat teams are fully occupied with existing non-standards activities and cannot
dedicate the necessary time to advance each of these to production-ready standards.
•

2018 Work Items••

GBIF will participate in the joint meeting of TDWG and SPNHC (Society for the
Preservation of Natural History Collections) to be held in Dunedin, New Zealand (25August – 2 September 2018).
Implementation of recommendations from TDWG Biodiversity Data Quality Interest
Group.

http://dissco.eu/
https://csiro-enviro-informatics.github.io/environmental-data-symposium-2017/14
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/ecog.02942/abstract
15
https://github.com/tdwg/bdq
1213Page 30 | 62

•GBIF UK is carrying out a review of Darwin Core, particularly in the context ofnational particulars, such as standard map references, and will contribute to ongoing
review of the standards.

See Also
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

1d. Equip data publishers – improvements to standards can simplify and improve
tools and documentation
1f. Plan implementation – changes will require coordinated activity with TDWG andother partners
2b. Deliver names infrastructure – should reflect broader standards model
2c. Catalogue collections – should reflect broader standards model
3b. Expand data streams – expansion to new categories of occurrence and sample
data should offer clarity around provenance and evidence type
4b. Assess data quality – improvements will simplify and enhance quality
processing
4c. Enable data curation – data curation should build on clear data standards
5c. Support biodiversity assessment – depends on clear standards for underlying
evidence

Page 31 | 62

Activity 2b - Deliver names infrastructure
Rationale
The most significant challenge to improving the quality of aggregated occurrence data is thecontinuing need for a comprehensive checklist of known species, and even for acomprehensive list of published scientific names. Interpreting and mapping names depends
on the quality and completeness of these resources. Even in cases where names inoccurrence records are incorrect or misspelled, better names infrastructure can assist byincreasing confidence that fuzzy match algorithms or human intervention is required.
Delivering these resources is the focus of a number of GBIF Participants and otherstakeholders, including the Catalogue of Life partnership, WoRMS, nomenclators (IPNI,
Index Fungorum, ZooBank) and many national, regional or taxonomic databases. A
comprehensive resource for scientific names and taxon concepts organized at least as aworkable reference classification (but with support for additional classifications as
appropriate) would also benefit other infrastructures, including Encyclopedia of Life,
Biodiversity Heritage Library, Barcode of Life and GBIF nodes, and improve interoperability
between data from these infrastructures. It would also be beneficial to accommodate
vernacular names, informal names for undescribed species and other identifiers such as
Barcode Index Numbers.

Approach
GBIF and many other partners have worked on this challenge and much progress has been
made, but we are still far from a comprehensive shared solution. GBIF has been in
discussion with Catalogue of Life, EOL, BHL, BOLD Systems, nomenclators and others
about pooling resources to deliver the best possible complete nomenclator and catalogue ofall species, along with improved tools to enable the taxonomic community to own andmaintain these resources more effectively. The challenges are not primarily informatics
issues. The most important requirement is to understand the constraints and needs ofexisting content holders and the features that are required from an infrastructure that can beembraced by the majority of taxonomists. The solution must build on existing initiatives andgive sufficient credit and benefit back to those who have invested in developing data. It must
be flexible enough to accommodate existing well-managed datasets without disrupting theiractivity and to accommodate more open mechanisms to support wide community input for
taxa which need more work. In the longer term, it should support evolution towards
ownership of curation responsibilities by international taxonomic societies or other bodies
recognized by researchers for each group. The infrastructure should include processes toreview and interpret unrecognized name strings found by GBIF and others in aggregateddata. Once these requirements have been resolved, implementation must rapidly follow tooffer these resources as open public datasets for use by all.
The Netherlands has coordinated a significant commitment for 2017 and 2018, led by NLBIF
and including resources both from Species 2000 and Naturalis. This funding will enable
GBIF and partners to direct significant effort to this area over the period.

Tasks
2.b.i

Partner with other biodiversity informatics initiatives and taxonomic database holders
to plan and deliver a comprehensive nomenclatural dataset and working consensus
classification for all life

2.b.ii Promote publication of species checklists through GBIF network
2.b.iii Explore potential use of checklists to assist with data validation or derive augmented
data products
2.b.iv Explore integration of Linnaean nomenclature of formally described taxa with
provisional names and species hypotheses and OTU naming
Page 32 | 62

Progress
The project funded by GBIF Netherlands (NLBIF) started with a workshop in Leiden 16 in
November 2016, attended by representatives of the Catalogue of Life partners, holders ofnomenclatural data, and a selection of national and regional checklist activities. Participants
unanimously agreed that renewed focus is required on rapid delivery of a comprehensive
nomenclator and Catalogue of Life.
Following the workshop, NLBIF recruited Olaf Bánki to act as project manager for the activity
and provided partial funding for the GBIF Secretariat to contract Markus Döring to continue
work on GBIF taxonomic data management.
In July 2017, a project plan was agreed by the GBIF Secretariat, Catalogue of Life Team and
NLBIF, and communicated with the major nomenclatural data holders. The plan aims to reengineer both the GBIF taxonomic backbone and the Catalogue of Life as a shared clearinghouse for species names and concepts, with GBIF ultimately assuming responsibility to hostthis shared infrastructure. This model will allow Catalogue of Life to offer a comprehensive
working checklist of all species, linked to the nomenclators as primary references for all
species names, and for GBIF and other infrastructures to benefit from a consistent andshared resource for interpreting all scientific names.
Ideally, the solution to be developed should combine with the work of the World Flora Online(WFO) 17 to deliver a single, consistent, community-managed plant list. GBIF and Catalogueof Life aim to explore this in more detail alongside the WFO Council meeting to be held inParis in November 2017.
In preparation for task 2.b.iv, the GBIF Secretariat has tested presentation of species
concepts based on Barcode of Life Data Systems (BOLD) barcode index numbers (BINs).
This will lead to recommendations on the use of Darwin Core terms in such situations.
Encyclopedia of Life (EOL) has carried out work to incorporate elements of the GBIF
backbone taxonomy into its new EOL working hierarchy. This will open opportunities forbetter integration of EOL trait data with GBIF data.

2018 Work Items
•
•
•

•
•
•

Deliver public prototype and solicit community feedback on comprehensive
nomenclator and checklist using clearing-house model.
GBIF Netherlands has provided two years of funding and staff time for the project todeliver a comprehensive nomenclator and checklist.
GBIF Mexico will promote publication of checklist datasets, in particular those used
for data validation within CONABIO, and proposes to collaborate with the GBIF
community to standardise methods for using checklists to validate specimen records.
GBIF Mexico is also working on mechanisms for handling data records which are notassociated with formally published names, or for species of incertae sedis.
GBIF Spain plans to work on a comprehensive species checklist for its territory.
GBIF UK is using its national species lists for automated data validation and will be
reviewing the associated rule sets.
Encyclopedia of Life (EOL) proposes to work with GBIF during 2018 on
improvements to the management, representation and interoperability of taxonomic
checklists.

See Also••
16
17

1d. Equip data publishers – key tool to support data publishers in improving data
1f. Plan implementation – requires joint activity with multiple partners

http://www.gbif.org/newsroom/news/species-names-in-november-workshop
http://www.worldfloraonline.org/
Page 33 | 62

•
•
•
•
•
•

2a. Modernize data standards – part of broader standards revision
3a. Identify priority gaps – complete taxonomy would assist with evaluatingtaxonomic coverage
3c. Engage data holders – benefits for data holders in linking to consistentframework
4b. Assess data quality – lack of complete checklist a limit on quality processing
4c. Enable data curation – curation of taxonomic framework and taxonomic aspectsof other data
5a. Engage academia – need to engage effectively with taxonomic societies andnomenclatural codes• 5c. Support biodiversity assessment – taxonomic organisation of data
fundamental

Page 34 | 62

Activity 2c - Catalogue collections
Rationale
Natural history collections are the largest source of data on biodiversity outside nature itself.
Collectively the worlds natural history collections number about 3 billion specimens anddocument over 300 years of active human exploration of biodiversity on earth. In addition thefossil remains provide us with glimpses into the very far past before humans existed. The
collections and their ancillary materials (images, collectors’ notes, sequences,measurements, etc.), contain colossal amounts of data that should be digitized and shared.
Only about 10% of the world’s collections have been digitized and only a portion of digitizedcollections are shared publicly through the internet. A large number of current GBIF
publishers comprise natural history museums and herbaria. The Secretariat will work with
Participants to deliver the most comprehensive catalogue possible of collections, including
metadata to publicize undigitized collections as a first step towards their digitisation andmobilisation.

Approach
GBIF will collaborate with existing biodiversity collection registries such as GRBio to develop
a rich collections catalogue to facilitate the discovery and use of the world’s collections.
Collections will be guided and facilitated to publish metadata-only datasets by drawing on
the recommendations of the GBIF task force on accelerating the discovery of bio-collections
data. The generation of a collection catalogue through metadata assessments will help
establish roadmaps for further digitization of the collections.

Tasks
2.c.i

Partner with other biodiversity informatics initiatives to deliver a single,
comprehensive catalogue of the world’s natural history collections

2.c.iiUse collection metadata as a first stage in content mobilisation from natural history
collections, including identification or development and adoption of necessary data
standards

Progress
The GBIF Secretariat has engaged in discussions with GRSciColl 18 regarding the possibilityof GBIF hosting and taking responsibility for the registry of scientific collections. This makes
excellent sense for GBIF, since good management of metadata relating both to digitized andundigitized collections will improve GBIF's ability to clean and improve existing specimen
records, and also can underpin broader effort to seek funding for collection digitization and tobuild a global virtual natural history collection.
More work is required. This can most readily proceed following the cut-over to the new
GBIF.org site.
GBIF Mexico has a reviewed catalogue of the main collections and institutions which
contribute data to the national information facility, SNIB.

2018 Work Items••

Develop joint action plan with GRSciColl for joint delivery and maintenance of thecatalogue of collections.
GBIF Spain is using its national collection metadata catalogue to help mobilize newdata into GBIF.

See Also•
18

1c. Equip nodes – nodes contribute to and benefit from data on collections

http://grscicoll.org/
Page 35 | 62

•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

1d. Equip data publishers – assisting collections in publicising their holdings is aroute towards seeking funding for digitisation
1f. Plan implementation – need to coordinate with GRBio and other catalogues
2a. Modernize data standards – catalogue should build on common data standards
3a. Identify priority gaps – knowledge of collections can assist with identifying
digitisation opportunities
3c. Engage data holders – catalogue can assist with engagement of collections as
publishers
5a. Engage academia – catalogue should be an operational tool for researchers
5b. Document needs – fitness-for-use groups may identify priority collections formobilisation
5d. Assess impact – catalogue can measure progress in global digitisation

Page 36 | 62

Priority 3 – Fill Data Gaps
“Prioritize and promote mobilization of new data resources which combine with existing
resources to maximize the coverage, completeness and resolution of GBIF data, particularly
with respect to taxonomy, geography and time.”

Activity 3a - Identify priority gaps
Rationale
GBIF has a range of tools, including fitness-for-use groups, other community consultations,feedback channels, direct communication with authors of scientific studies, and societal
demands, to identify and collect data needs. The Ebbe Nielsen Challenge for 2016 focuses
specifically on tools and algorithms to identify significant gaps. These gaps may relate todifferent facets of the data, including geography, taxonomy, time periods, and coverage ofparticular ecosystems or land units. Addressing these gaps may require focus on gaining
additional occurrence records, targeting data areas missing from published records, or
getting additional metadata elements. By consolidating and prioritising demands for data
content, in the context of already accessible data and knowledge of resources which are not
yet available as open data, GBIF will be positioned to inform collection and data holders,funding institutions and political decision makers of the most worthwhile and cost-effective
ways to extend the available knowledge base.

Approach
The GBIF Secretariat will harmonize and document data mobilization demands from different
sources. Simple tools are required to support needs capture, including informative
documentation and justification for such demands. Automated assessment and reporting of
gaps will be included where this proves possible and valuable. This combined information
can support transparent decision making and target setting for gap-filling efforts, allowing allinterested actors to step in at appropriate levels. GBIF will coordinate with efforts through theIntergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) to identify andaddress significant knowledge and data gaps, including outreach and funding strategies for
gap-filling . A thorough, regularly updated overview of data coverage in gbif.org both makes
it easier to identify gaps, and to monitor progress and efficiency of mobilization efforts overtime. GBIF should offer (e.g. annually) a brief report of significant gaps which need to beaddressed. Such a report may be valuable to Participants and funding bodies to stimulate
and evaluate digitisation and mobilisation options.

Tasks
3.a.i

Organize and integrate requirements identified by fitness-for-use groups

3.a.ii Establish open mechanism for researchers and users to document specific dataneeds
3.a.iii Develop assessments and visualisations of strengths and weaknesses of GBIF datain key dimensions (taxonomic, geographic, environmental, temporal)
3.a.iv Maintain well-publicized GBIF priorities for data publishing, incorporating needs of
IPBES and other networks
3.a.v Provide Governing Board with annual review and progress assessment for digitisationof major natural history collections
3.a.vi Provide GBIF Participants with actionable priorities and targets for content
mobilization

Page 37 | 62

Progress
The 2016 Ebbe Nielsen Challenge 19 targeted solutions for exploring and presenting
information on gaps in GBIF data. The Secretariat will seek to integrate some of these ideas
into its tools as part of the next stage in enhancing the GBIF.org portal. Following the 2016
Challenge, Map of Life has developed a proposed indicator based on GBIF data coverage. 20
This will provide a foundation for GBIF to maintain a set of annually updated content
mobilization priorities and to develop tools to enable Node Managers and others to address
known issues and weaknesses in existing data. The Secretariat has started this approachby highlighting three general priority areas for 2017: mobilization of data relating to thecountries with the lowest density of existing data; continued mobilization of data from natural
history collections (the major source for the widest possible range of species data); andmobilization of sampling event data (the major source for comparative data on species
distributions and abundance). In 2018 and onwards, these priorities will be refined and used
as measures for progress in content mobilization.
The requirements from the GBIF fitness for use working groups on agrobiodiversity, species
distribution modeling and invasive species are being compiled into requirements for
implementation and uptake both by GBIFS and other actors. Some of these requirements
will be addressed as part of a 2018 focus on improved and more transparent data quality
checks during indexing. Publication of national lists by the Global Register of Introduced andInvasive Species (GRIIS) 21 will enable other recommendations from the group on invasive
species data to be implemented. A GBIF CESP project, co-funded by the Portuguese
Instituto Superior de Agronomia, has progressed the work of the group on agrobiodiversity
by designing a training course on the use of such data from GBIF. 22

2018 Work Items••

Synthesize outcomes of recent activities (including Ebbe Nielsen Challenge 2016) tovisualize and measure data gaps and to offer data mobilization targets
Encourage additional research communities to provide feedback on possible
improvements to GBIF data management and presentation to meet their needs – thismay be delivered following the fitness-for-use group model.

See Also
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

1d. Equip data publishers – priorities can assist with planning or funding digitisation
1f. Plan implementation – implementation should respond to critical gaps
2b. Deliver names infrastructure – taxonomic framework important for identifying
gaps in taxonomic coverage
2c. Catalogue collections – support identification and targeting of undigitizedcollections
3b. Expand data streams – prioritize sources of data to address gaps
3c. Engage data holders – highlight value of targeted mobilisation
3d. Rescue datasets – additional justification for mobilisation
5a. Engage academia – communicate priority needs
5b. Document needs – fitness-for-use priorities should be included• 5c. Support biodiversity assessment – addressing gaps will be critical to providing
high-quality data for assessments

http://www.gbif.org/newsroom/news/2016-ebbe-nielsen-winners
https://mol.org/indicators/coverage/background21
http://griis.org/
22
https://demo.gbif.org/project/82833/agrotraining-proofing-gbif-use-on-agrobiodiversity-throughneeds-assessment-and-training
19
20

Page 38 | 62

Activity 3b - Expand data streams
Rationale
GBIF serves as an integration point for any source of evidence of the recorded occurrence ofspecies in time and space. A primary role for the GBIF infrastructure is to serve as acomprehensive single point of access for discovery, access, use and curation of all such
evidence. Several classes of data are already well-supported within the GBIF network.
These include collections data, observations from field research, and many categories ofcitizen science data. However, there are other new and developing streams of data whichshould be accommodated if GBIF is to serve as the platform for supporting comprehensive
data assessment and modelling (e.g. for GEO BON Essential Biodiversity Variables, IPBES
assessments, Red List assessments, etc.). These include efforts to mine historical data
records from literature, genomics activities and particularly barcode-driven surveys, andpotentially species-level data from remote-sensing systems. More work is also still needed toengage with the full spread of research activities delivering sampling event data of various
kinds. GBIF needs to ensure that it provides simple, effective and beneficial ways forresearchers to share these and other streams of Darwin Core compatible data.

Approach
Existing GBIF models include support for occurrence records and for sampling-event
datasets which organize occurrence records as sets of observations deriving from a single
field sample (which make provision for GBIF to accommodate “absence data” from surveys
which did not record a particular species despite searching). These approaches are core to
all potential streams of data to be added. GBIF therefore needs to ensure that existing tools
and documentation are clear and usable for relevant research communities and that GBIF
sufficiently understands existing data management by these communities to avoid proposing
unnecessary additional work. During 2016, GBIF is coordinating a consultation which builds
on past engagements with genomics activities such as the Global Genome Biodiversity
Network. Recommendations from this consultation are expected to guide improvements in
GBIF tools, documentation and communications to support publishing of molecular data informats which can be integrated within GBIF. Several projects are working on automated or
human mining of data records from literature. GBIF needs to learn from these initiatives andensure that its tools support integration in a simple way. GBIF should also seek exemplar
projects for bringing occurrence records from remote sensing into the network.

Tasks
3.b.i

Promote use of sampling event data model for ecological and monitoring datasets

3.b.ii Partner with BHL and others to support integration of species occurrence records
based on literature
3.b.iii Work with bioinformatics initiatives and databases to form robust bidirectional
linkages with molecular data
3.b.iv Explore opportunities to integrate species-level data from remote sensing

Progress
GEO BON, the Group on Earth Observations Biodiversity Observation Network 23, haspromoted mobilization of sampling event data as a priority for monitoring and representing
biodiversity patterns, particularly within the framework of Essential Biodiversity Variables(EBVs). A GEO BON/iDIV/GBIF symposium on sampling event data was held in Leipzig
during June 2017, with 60 attendees. This meeting set goals and a timeline to grow volumesof sampling event data from a current baseline of around 13 million records to 100 million
23

http://geobon.org/
Page 39 | 62

sampling event records by 2020, via a campaign targeting the data management of
networks, journals and publishing houses, individual data holders and research centres.
GEO BON is also exploring development of EBV data from remote sensing, and isorganizing a workshop in Twente in September, in which the GBIF Secretariat will participate
to explore opportunities to mobilize occurrence and sampling-event data from remotesensing systems.
BHL and GBIF are seeking external funding to prototype extraction and publishing ofoccurrence data from historical literature using the existing OCR and name discovery
functionality of BHL, enhanced using gazetteers and publication metadata.
Several activities have furthered exploration of solutions to integrate molecular (DNA) data
both as evidence of species occurrence and to enrich and improve GBIF's taxonomic
backbone, including: 1) enhancements to the representation of occurrence data derived from
GenBank sequences; 2) exploration with iBOL of steps necessary to integrate data first frombarcode sequences associated with binomial names and subsequently from othersequences assigned to Barcode Index Numbers (BINs) 24; and 3) sandbox tests ofintegration and representation of informal species concept names from UNITE and BOLD
within the GBIF taxonomic backbone.
The GBIF infrastructure does not currently support the data extensions developed jointly by
GGBN and GBIF, but combining this standard with the sampling event model offers apossible route for effective mobilisation of metagenomics / eDNA data, to the joint benefit ofboth networks.
Overall, there are many opportunities for GBIF to integrate significant additional streams of
data, and the Secretariat does not have the resources to engage fully in all of these areas.
We welcome interest from Participants in leading such engagements.

2018 Work Items••

Work with BHL to incorporate literature-based occurrence data.
Work with BOLD and others to incorporate sequence-based occurrence data.

See Also
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

1d. Equip data publishers – support for data publishers is fundamental for thisactivity
1f. Plan implementation – broad GBIF planning and engagement is required towork with all potentially relevant data communities
2a. Modernize data standards – improvements to data standards will ensure thatthe underlying characteristics of the evidence for GBIF data are clear
3a. Identify priority gaps – new data streams may address gaps in existing
coverage
3c. Engage data holders – support and tools are inadequate without engaging
communities to prioritize sharing data
3d. Rescue datasets – mechanisms to liberate historical data will also benefit fromsupport for a broader range of data sources
3e. Liaise with journals – journals are important channels for coordination andpromotion of research data publishing
5a. Engage academia – support from key research bodies and field studies
5b. Document needs – requirements from users may assist with prioritising new
data streams

24

http://www.boldsystems.org/index.php/resources/handbook?chapter=2_databases.html&section=bins
Page 40 | 62

•5c. Support biodiversity assessment – some new streams may have high value
for delivering comparable data for monitoring and assessment

Page 41 | 62

Activity 3c - Engage data holders
Rationale
GBIF has tools and support mechanisms in place to enable publication of several categories
of biodiversity data. The key requirement is for increased engagement with, and support for,the communities of institutions and individuals who hold these data. Such engagement isnormally most effective at the national level, although international networks also have an
important role to play.

Approach
The primary need is for national Participants to engage with the broadest possible spread ofdata holders within their countries, for organisational Participants to share relevant data andfor the whole GBIF network to promote the importance and value of sharing data. The GBIF
Secretariat will focus on enhancement to documentation and tools and on highlighting
priorities for complementing existing data and addressing gaps. Data holders should be
encouraged and assisted in sharing data in the richest form appropriate for the data inquestion (sampling event data where relevant elements are available, occurrence data forother spatially explicit data, checklists otherwise) and with the most open data licencespossible. As well as natural history collections, Participants should identify opportunities tobuild partnerships with citizen science groups and promote the value of open access to datafrom environmental impact assessments and monitoring. GBIF should argue the case foropen data as part of the policy for funding agencies, research councils, industry bodies,licensing authorities, development banks and other stakeholder groups.

Tasks
3.c.i

Engage with natural history collections not yet publishing to GBIF

3.c.iiWork with national citizen science groups

3.c.iii Promote national policies and platforms to enable publishing of environmental impact
and monitoring data
3.c.iv Promote importance of data sharing to funding bodies, licensing authorities andindustry bodies
3.c.v Address the tropical data gap

Progress
Support materials for data publishers have been updated and reorganized on the new web
site, including information on sampling events 25 and the general publishing guide, and a newaccess point for information on citizen science 26.
Both digitization of natural history collections (3.c.i) and mobilization of sampling event data(including 3.c.ii and 3.c.iii) are identified within the 2017 content mobilization priorities for the
GBIF network.
GBIF data sharing goals and procedures were publicized at the 2017 Citizen Science
Association (Minnesota, U.S.) and the International Association for Impact Assessment
Conference, (Montréal, CA), and via various communications with the European Citizen
Science Association.

2018 Work Items
•

25
26

Engagement with data holder communities relies on effective national scale
coordination. The GBIF Secretariat will revise guidance for Participant Nodes on

https://demo.gbif.org/sampling-event-data
https://demo.gbif.org/citizen-science
Page 42 | 62

•engagement with citizen science groups, private sector environmental impact
consultants, etc.
Material will be added to GBIF.org to summarize guidance and best practice relating
to data mobilization from environmental impact assessment. The GBIF Secretariat
will continue to engage with the International Association of Impact Assessment,
World Bank, International Finance Corporation, World Economic Forum, etc. topromote open data publication through GBIF.

•

See Also
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

1a. Focus on people – GBIF must give visibility to the efforts of data publishers
1b. Strengthen skills – documentation and support materials must be as clear andsimple as possible
1c. Equip nodes – nodes are the main agent for engaging data publishers
1d. Equip data publishers – GBIF must focus on delivering tools and processes
which are intuitive and effective for data holders to use
2b. Deliver names infrastructure – better names management and integration will
be a benefit for data publishers
2c. Catalogue collections – a collections catalogue will assist with engaging
collections as data publishers
3a. Identify priority gaps – knowledge of key gaps will assist with prioritising focus
on particular data holders and may assist them with securing necessary funds
3b. Expand data streams – GBIF needs to support the widest possible range of
relevant data sources
3d. Rescue datasets – processes to assist data holders to publish data even if they
themselves have limited capacity
3e. Liaise with journals – work with journals to promote and prioritize data
publishing
4a. Ensure data persistence – provide robust and stable support for published data
4c. Enable data curation – offer benefits to data publishers through community
collaboration in improving data

Page 43 | 62

Activity 3d - Rescue datasets
Rationale
Many researchers hold potentially valuable data which are not yet in a suitable digital format
for integration into GBIF. Historical publications are a similar source of valuable data which
remain inaccessible. This offers an opportunity to establish a community platform to capture
information on such datasets where the researcher or owner lacks the time or capability tomake the data available as a GBIF-compatible dataset, and to enable interested individuals
to volunteer time to collaborate with the owner to publish a dataset, potentially in conjunction
with a data paper credited to all parties. Such a model may address a key bottleneck inbringing valuable data online.

Approach
The GBIF Secretariat, or an interested Participant, should develop a test environment to
explore this model. The model should support identification of basic information on datasets
which may be rescued, including details of ownership, etc. Volunteers may be required toundergo some training or demonstrate some knowledge of GBIF data publishing and thetaxa concerned prior to adopting a dataset for mobilisation. Mobilisation should be include
consultation or partnership with the owner and should deliver quality metadata and a valid
mapping of the original information. Opportunities should be explored for publication of
resulting datasets as data papers as an incentive to all parties.

Tasks
3.d.i

Develop tools for reporting potential data sources for integration into GBIF

3.d.ii Develop support materials (including accreditation) for collaborative data preparationand mapping datasets in GBIF
3.d.iii Develop site and support mechanisms for users to adopt and map datasets
3.d.iv Review and update definitions of data publisher within GBIF to reflect collaborative
data publishing
3.d.v Develop partnerships with data journals to support data papers for rescued datasets

Progress
During 2017, a tool has been deployed to allow users to suggest datasets 27 for mobilization
into GBIF. This captures information on suitable datasets in GitHub 28 (63 data targets in July2017) with country and taxonomic tags.
During 2018, the Secretariat will work with interested Participants and repositories todevelop support tools and processes to enable such datasets to be preserved in a form
which can contribute to GBIF’s mission. The required solution should build on existing stable
trusted repository solutions, include good support for mapping diverse formats into
structured data standards such as Darwin Core, and should align with GBIF endorsement
processes, possibly recast as peer review quality checks. Ideally, datasets published using
this pipeline should also be ready for description via data papers.

2018 Work Items
•

27
28

Establish a repository and processes for hosting, curating, publishing and endorsing
datasets suggested for rescue.

https://demo.gbif.org/suggest-dataset
https://github.com/gbif/data-mobilization/issues
Page 44 | 62

See Also
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

1d. Equip data publishers – a process for data rescue would serve as an additional
tool to support data publishers
3a. Identify priority gaps – priority gaps may motivate sharing and rescue of data
3b. Expand data streams – data rescue processes will benefit from other support
for additional data sources
3c. Engage data holders – data rescue will reduce the work for some data holders
in making their data accessible
3e. Liaise with journals – supplementary materials include datasets which may be
rescued4c. Enable data curation – linkages between data rescue and curation communities
5a. Engage academia – additional mechanism to support work with researchers

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Activity 3e - Liaise with journals
Rationale
Journals are the traditional established avenues for scientific communication. They not only
disseminate research findings and other scholarly communications but are increasingly
helping to disseminate research data. These data may be provided as supplementarymaterials or deposited in biodiversity data repositories as a precondition for publication of thepaper. However, such data publishing data does not necessarily facilitate its integration withother related data or make the data discoverable and reusable. In order to benefit from data
disseminated through journals, the Secretariat will lead or coordinate activity to engage
directly with publishing houses, journal editors and authors to promote GBIF-compatible
approaches to publication and the use of GBIF-operated repositories as accepted or
preferred destinations for supporting data.

Approach
GBIF Secretariat will engage with relevant journals in developing and promoting bestpractices and publishing workflows that reduce the effort required to publish data to GBIF.
The aim will be to publish data once but be able to cite it as supporting data for a journal
paper and where appropriate produce a data paper as an additional product. The Secretariat
will use its experience with Pensoft Publishing where a workflow and a dedicated data paper
publishing tool is established.

Tasks
3.e.i

Develop scalable approach to support research journals and data journals inpublishing to GBIF network

3.e.ii Produce relevant support materials to justify benefits and explain processes topublish primary data
3.e.iii Integrate support for data journals into hosted IPT infrastructures and data rescue
processes

Progress
Since GBIF started associating data downloads with digital object identifiers (DOIs), there
has been a steady growth in citation of these DOIs within research publications. Every time
this occurs, GBIF is able to establish a link between the published research and theindividual datasets which contributed records to the data download.
By the time of the GBIF Science Review 2017, more than 100 scientific publications 29 hadcited GBIF data downloads. This information is now made visible on the associated GBIF
dataset pages and can be shared with other infrastructures which graph the connections
between researchers, their projects, publications, funders and datasets (e.g. OpenAIRE 30).
This development will enable GBIF to deliver increased value both for data users (throughsimplified tools for citing data and increasing reproducibility) and for data publishers (throughgreater visibility of the uses to which their data contribute).
To accelerate uptake during 2018, the GBIF Secretariat will enhance documentation andcommunication materials, and will seek support from relevant journals to promote bestpractices on data archival and data citation.

29
30

https://www.gbif.org/resource/search?q=gbifDOI&contentType=literature
https://www.openaire.eu/
Page 46 | 622018 Work Items•

Develop communications with journals around GBIF DOI-based data management,
data downloads and data citation policy. Encourage journals, editors and authors topractise responsible data citation.

See Also•••••

1d. Equip data publishers - hosted IPT infrastructure to support journal datasets
3b. Expand data streams – support for additional data sources will increase value of
GBIF as a data repository for use by journals
3c. Engage data holders – data holders may be motivated by increased visibility inconjunction with published research
3d. Rescue datasets - engage community assistance in mapping research data into GBIF
5a. Engage academia – bidirectional opportunities to build GBIF visibility andinfluence• 5d. Assess impact – increase citation levels for GBIF-hosted data

Page 47 | 62

Priority 4 – Improve Data Quality“Ensure that all data within the GBIF network are of the highest-possible quality andassociated with clear indicators enabling users to assess their origin, relevance andusefulness for any application.”

Activity 4a - Ensure data persistence
Rationale
There exists a significant portion of data available through GBIF.org that is not actively
curated by a data host. In some cases, there are no resources or desire to make further
edits to the datasets. These datasets are effectively orphaned and the GBIF.org version of
the dataset is often the last remaining version available on the internet. As GBIF develops
mechanisms to provide feedback to data publishers and support curation of datasets, weneed to consider that these orphaned datasets will not be updated with corrections or
migrated to adhere to modern data standards.

Approach
The task is to ensure that all datasets have a primary version available on the internet whichacts as the source for GBIF.org to index. Orphaned datasets will be identified, extracted
from the GBIF.org index and loaded into the most suitable data repository supporting
versioning: either run by a GBIF participant or a central cloud installation of an IPT. As
issues are identified anyone will be able to volunteer to correct the source data, upload a
new version into the data repository, document the changes applied and follow editor
guidelines. Once republished GBIF.org will reflect the updated data, and the provenance ofchanges will be traceable through the repository versioning system. Policies for editors,
including attribution and the settlement process for disputes will be documented. This entire
activity could be led and implemented by a GBIF Participant.

Tasks
4.a.i

Identify and verify datasets within GBIF network without current owners

4.a.ii Publish reference instances of these datasets within hosted IPTs
4.a.iii Develop processes and mechanisms for adoption of orphaned datasets by suitableagencies or experts

Progress
The GBIF Secretariat has identified datasets in the GBIF data index for which there is no
currently accessible online source and for which there is a story of failed indexing attempts.
These datasets have been identified as apparently “orphaned”.
Following this, consultation and collaboration began with GBIF Participants in February
2017, aiming to re-activate as many of those datasets as possible, and to clarify
responsibilities for further action on the rest.
Where possible, orphaned datasets are transferred for hosting by a Participant node. Where
this option is not available, hosting will temporarily be established on a cloud-based IPT
instance managed by GBIFS, allowing for later transfer to another host or re-activation by
the original publisher.
Policies for reactivation, adoption and curation are currently being drafted.

2018 Work Items•

Establish ongoing detection for future orphan data sets and processes to ensure
persistent hosting and management.

Page 48 | 62

•GBIF Spain expects to take over hosting for around 100 Spanish datasets which are
not currently in an IPT instance.

See Also•••

1d. Equip data publishers – ensure sustainable benefits from data publishing3c. Engage data holders – greater security for data holders that data publication
brings long-term benefit
4b. Assess data quality – data persistence is a key aspect of data quality• 4c. Enable data curation – data can only be curated if a stable reference copy
existsPage 49 | 62

Activity 4b - Assess data quality
Rationale
Assessing data quality includes applying data validation tools to capture and monitor
suspected and confirmed errors and ambiguities in data, highlighting useful areas for
additional information (metadata and qualifiers) that would improve usability and enhance
processing options, and documenting completeness and standardisation of information bothwithin a dataset and within aggregated data. A number of validation tools exist in the wider
community, and should be brought together to mutually profit from investments and to more
efficiently plan future distributed development efforts. This will benefit data publication
frameworks as well as individual data holders, giving concrete feedback on best gains indata management.

Approach
Consolidation requires an overview of existing data validation tools, their goals andapplication areas, building on existing community work to produce an annotated tools
catalogue (including work by TDWG and the GEO BON “Bon in a Box”). To make best useof development resources, GBIF will support collaboration between networks to bring thosedevelopments together and harmonize efforts, so that further development can more
efficiently concentrate on new priority areas. Consistent tests and reports will both inform
users of the suitability of data for their use, provide feedback to publishers on their holdings,
provide a measure for the overall state of the network, and help to prioritize improvement
options. Ideally, the most common reporting measures and formats are agreed and unified toa degree that allows publishers an easy cross-walk between and integration of data quality
reports supplied by different services and aggregators.

Tasks
4.b.i

Develop extensible data validation tools framework in partnership with ALA, TDWG
and other networks (e.g. Symbiota, iDigBio, VertNet)

4.b.ii Integrate consistent data validation tools in GBIF.org, national/regional portals, IPT
and elsewhere
4.b.iii Improve presentation and reporting of data validation results
4.b.iv Develop regular data set reports for data publishers and nodes

Progress
A new data validation service will shortly be released on the GBIF website and is in final
development. The service allows for users to upload a dataset and run full datainterpretation as if it were being indexed, but without actual registration of data. It will beavailable through both the API and through web forms for users to upload datasets. The API
service will be embedded into the IPT and encouraged for use in other platforms to help
enable pre-publication data review and fit into a data peer-review process.
The underlying data validation libraries of this process are the same as used in GBIF.org
and in part already used in the ALA data products. An agreement has been reached
between GBIF and ALA to further align the data management processes by combining thesource code and early discussion around what this entails is underway. This activity will
start late 2017 and continue into 2018. Once complete, data will be treated consistently:
through the pre-publication review and then subsequent indexing by ALA and GBIF.
Capacity to maintain and advance these routines will be increased as everyone will becontributing to a common project.
The TDWG data quality interest group have progressed the thinking towards a standardized
set of terms for describing data quality and the necessary statements. A workshop was held
in Canberra alongside an ALA symposium to progress the validation rules required. This will
Page 50 | 62

provide useful additions for the GBIF / ALA progress but is currently not sufficiently complete
to be fully implementable. GBIF needs to fully engage with that process and lead areference implementation during 2018 to ensure the implementation and associatedstandards are aligned.

2018 Work Items
•
•

•

•
•

Engage with TDWG Data Quality group to define and document the rules andflagging required to assess data quality.
Engage with the ALA team specifically, and others where possible, to ensure thatsystems treat data consistently, and use the same software libraries. The GBIF /ALA ingestion processes should become the reference implementation for a TDWG
standard.
Accumulate and present dataset quality statement metrics for the dataset, publisher
and national level on GBIF.org to help direct all parties to address data issues andprioritise effort.
Evaluate options to incorporate expert review as an element in GBIF data
management.
GBIF Spain will use tools from GBIF.org to report to Spanish data publishers on useof their datasets.

See Also
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

1b. Strengthen skills – documentation and training materials must give clear
guidance on quality
1d. Equip data publishers – tools and processes must reinforce focus on quality
2a. Modernize data standards – data provenance and semantics are key to quality
2b. Deliver names infrastructure – gaps in the names infrastructure hinder quality
assessment and improvement
4a. Ensure data persistence – persistence is a key aspect of quality
4c. Enable data curation – curation processes should focus on measurable
improvement to quality
5a. Engage academia – support researchers in publishing high quality data andcollaboration to improve data
5b. Document needs – gather requirements which can improve quality management
at all stages• 5d. Assess impact – overall quality metrics for GBIF data

Page 51 | 62

Activity 4c - Enable data curation
Rationale
In a global network, curation of the shared data pool is increasingly becoming a joint
responsibility of aggregators, publishers, experts and data users. The goal is to integratecorrections, improvements, additional information and analysis results in a timely manner,with better visibility to all network participants and data users. Expanding the existingknowledge base requires improved communication channels and workflows for collaboration
between all actors, tools to capture and rapidly display new or improved information,commentary and data, and not least tools, credit systems and support to engage expert
activities.

Approach
The main task is to provide tools and mechanisms that make it easy for users and experts tocontribute knowledge to the available pool of data. Building on existing data filtering anddata improvement workflows in the community, GBIF tools and mechanisms are to support
the identification of relevant data, their cleaning and preparation for specific purposes, andthe sharing of the results of such processes with the wider community. Input collected
through existing feedback mechanisms (Jira feedback on gbif.org, AnnoSys, ...) is to beraised to a visibility level that supports and drives the usefulness of the published data.

Tasks
4.c.i

Develop network-wide approach to handling and processing annotations andfeedback

4.c.iiEnhance IPT to offer dataset-level peer review and commentary mechanisms andrecord-level annotations

4.c.iii Develop mechanism and tools within GBIF.org for sharing cleaned and annotateddatasets based on GBIF downloads (“reference datasets”)
4.c.iv Develop GBIF data workbench tool (within GBIF.org and possibly also as standalone)
for cleaning and filtering network data (e.g. in red list assessments)
4.c.v Develop strategy and support mechanisms for expert communities to curate sectionsof GBIF data

Progress
As part of the updates to GBIF.org, modifications have been made to the processes forusers to offer feedback. Users are asked first to identify the nature of feedback – content
issues, software bugs, an idea or a request for help. Where issues relate to content, a user
is encouraged to submit feedback via the channel which is most appropriate for the data
publisher in question. Where data comes from an active online community, such as
iNaturalist a user is encouraged to use the existing discussion forums on the originating
portal. Similarly where records come from taxonomic databases connected through
BioCASe, the AnnoSys annotation system is suggested. The approach can be expanded toallow any connected system to self-identify the preferred method of receiving feedback. This
will continue through 2018 with more systems being connected.
Similarly, GBIF has identified that a significant number of datasets lack anyone to maintainthem and respond to data issues, which accordingly will never be addressed. A community
process is underway to identify these datasets and to move them into a centralized IPT
installation which will allow anyone with sufficient interest to contribute to maintaining andcorrecting the data. Such an approach will enable a wider community to actively fix issues
rather than simply identifying them.

Page 52 | 622018 Work Items•

Connect more systems to receive direct annotations from GBIF.org users. Symbiota
and Specify communities have expressed interest.

See Also
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

1a. Focus on people – give credit for contributions to data improvement
1b. Strengthen skills – documentation and training materials to guide data curation
1c. Equip nodes – nodes will be key in engaging expert communities
1d. Equip data publishers – ensure that data curation processes bring benefits topublishers
2a. Modernize data standards – a common data model underpins effective curation
2b. Deliver names infrastructure – normalising names and taxonomy is a key
aspect of curation
3c. Engage data holders – data holders need to be able to respond to curation
actions
3d. Rescue datasets - integration of new but previously uncurated data sources
4a. Ensure data persistence – curation depends on persistent datasets
4b. Assess data quality – understanding issues with data quality can drive futuretools and guidance for curators
5a. Engage academia – collaborate with taxonomic societies and other expert
communities
5b. Document needs – incorporate end user requirements in curation processes

Page 53 | 62

Priority 5 – Deliver Relevant Data
“Ensure that GBIF delivers data in the form and completeness required to meet the highestpriority needs of science and, through science, society.”

Activity 5a - Engage academia
Rationale
The most significant user community for GBIF is academic researchers. Even policy-related
uses of GBIF often derive from the work of such individuals. It is accordingly important for
GBIF to understand the needs of researchers and academic societies and to communicate
clearly regarding the tools and services GBIF can deliver. Communication should include
information and support materials for students and early-career researchers, on bothpublication and use of data, including citation, use tracking and data papers. University
faculties and libraries may be important channels for this information. In addition, GBIF
needs to engage more closely with taxonomic societies and other academic bodies which
could be key collaborators in curating and improving data. Achieving such an outcome
depends on understanding how GBIF can become a more central tool for their work, so thatwork on digital knowledge directly benefits those who contribute.

Approach
GBIF Participants may be well-positioned to lead in engaging with taxonomic societies andother interested research groups, including assuming responsibility to serve as ambassadors
for GBIF within particular communities. Particular focus should be given to opportunities to
explore models for such communities to assist GBIF with data curation. Few university
programs include clear guidance and promotion for open data sharing. GBIF should make use of
its own documentation materials and of curriculum materials from throughout the GBIF
community to engage with biological science faculties and university libraries to share
information on GBIF tools and resources and practices.

Tasks
5.a.i

Promote biodiversity informatics curriculum, support training of the users

5.a.ii Publicize GBIF as data tool via university libraries and faculties
5.a.iii Develop online collaboration through GBIF.org helpdesk to assist and support data
users
5.a.iv Represent GBIF at the relevant science fora, esp. at the frontier directions such as
ecology and molecular research

Progress
GBIF has been represented or will be represented, either by Secretariat staff or by relevant
representatives from Participants, at a significant number of biodiversity and researchworkshops and conferences, including:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

Computer Science Meets Ecology seminar (Dagstuhl, Germany, February 2017)
International conference on “The use of modern information technologies in botanicalinvestigations” (Apatity, Russia, March 2017)
ForBio Annual Meeting (Trondheim, Norway, April 2017)
Linking Environmental Data and Samples conference (Canberra, Australia, May
2017)
Inaugural Digital Data in Biodiversity Research Conference (Ann Arbor, USA, June
2017)
International Botanical Congress (Shenzhen, China, July 2017)
TDWG conference (Montreal, Canada, October 2017)
Page 54 | 62••International Barcode of Life Conference (Kruger NP, South Africa, November 2017)
BES/GFÖ/NecoV/EEF Ecology Across Borders conference (Ghent, Belgium,
December 2017)

At three of the larger of these conferences, GBIF operated as an exhibitor, as well as
promoting data publishing and use through symposia and talks.
The Science Committee and Nodes Steering Group have reviewed and responded positively
to a proposal for GBIF to promote a role for GBIF science ambassadors, establishedresearchers with an interest in promoting data publishing and use of GBIF data throughconference talks, organising local symposia, etc.
The Secretariat has streamlined and improved processes for tracking GBIF-relevantscientific literature in order to deliver the Science Review 2017. As part of this activity,
authors were contacted directly to gain more detailed information on the number of records
used, and to explain and promote use of DOIs for data downloads. This year, for the firsttime, GBIF has become able to illustrate direct links between research papers and GBIF
datasets on which the research is based.
The Young Researchers Award 2017 will reward researchers for publication of sampling
event data.
During 2017, it has become clear that current GBIF brochures are not sufficiently clear andeffective for communicating the value of GBIF to researchers. A key publicity goal for 2018 is
to deliver more appropriate materials for distribution at scientific conferences and elsewhereon the data products offered by GBIF, the need for researchers to share their data, and thebenefits associated with data citation.
GBIF Spain reports that information on GBIF is included as part of Biology andEnvironmental Sciences degrees in at least seven Spanish universities.

2018 Work Items•••

A BID workshop will be held in Africa during February 2018 to assist projects withengaging users in applied use of mobilized data
New brochures will be produced to highlight the relevance of GBIF for researchers(multiple languages).
GBIF Spain will work to contact additional universities on use of GBIF within lessons
and courses.

See Also
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

1b. Strengthen skills - broader engagement with academic bodies, universities andlibraries will require clear standalone information resources
1c. Equip nodes – nodes are key to engaging national research councils andacademic societies
1e. Expand national participation – engagement with academic societies may
support further national engagement
2b. Deliver names infrastructure – taxonomic societies should be key partners indelivering names infrastructure
2c. Catalogue collections - catalogue should be an operational tool for researchers
3a. Identify priority gaps – communicate priority needs with academia
3b. Expand data streams – work with research communities to incorporate
additional sources of data
3d. Rescue datasets - additional mechanism to support work with researchers
3e. Liaise with journals - bidirectional opportunities to build GBIF visibility andinfluence
Page 55 | 62

•
•
•
•

4b. Assess data quality – work with research communities to improve data quality
4c. Enable data curation – engage research communities to oversee and improvedata
5b. Document needs – engage relevant academic groups as fitness-for-use working
groups5d. Assess impact – published research is a key measure of GBIF impact

Page 56 | 62

Activity 5b - Document needs
Rationale
GBIF data are aggregated from many sources and are consequently heterogeneous, varying
in fitness for various uses. During 2015-2016, GBIF established three task groups on data
fitness-for-use, in agrobiodiversity research, in distribution modelling and in research oninvasive alien species, to document how these communities use GBIF data and tounderstand their data quality demands. The resulting reports inform data mobilization, dataprocessing and improvements to GBIF.org. During 2017, GBIF will expand this work toincorporate more key areas of use, provisionally focussing on: 1) Phylogenetic and(continuation from 2016 work) DNA evidence for names and occurrences, 2) human healthand vectored diseases and 3) marine biodiversity. Depending on resources, these groups
will operate through a combination of face-to-face meetings and online or remotecollaboration.

Approach
The DNA work will continue from 2016 through online meetings and e-mails. Human healthand vectored disease fitness for use group will be formed and will operate using the basicmodel with two in-person meetings. Work on fitness for use in marine research will continue
depending on the availability of marine data from OBIS. Participants are encouraged toorganize working groups in additional areas to review the state of GBIF data relevant toparticular domains and themes and to provide recommendations on critical gaps,
improvements in recommended metadata or data elements, minimum criteria for usable
data, etc. The GBIF Secretariat will compile these recommendations and, where possible,
develop query profiles to support rapid access and monitor progress by the network indelivering data suited for the needs of these domains.

Tasks
5.b.i

Prioritize areas for fitness-for-use assessments

5.b.ii Support fitness-for-use groups

Progress
As part of the upgrades to the GBIF.org site, the GBIF Secretariat is enhancing processing
and data validation for individual data records and for datasets. This will include integrationof recommendations from the 2015-2016 data fitness for use groups on agrobiodiversity,
distribution modelling, and alien and invasive species.
Further fitness-for-use groups have been deferred until these mechanisms are in place.
Nevertheless, the GBIF Secretariat is keen to receive recommendations from Participants
and offers to organise and run additional working groups to identify ways to support
particular research communities.

2018 Work Items•

Address recommendations from 2015-2016 data fitness for use groups.

See Also•••••

1c. Equip nodes – nodes may coordinate requirements gathering in particular areas
1f. Plan implementation – GBIF plans should respond directly to needs
2c. Catalogue collections – comprehensive knowledge of collections will serve as abasis for identifying collections particularly important for digitisation
3a. Identify priority gaps – needs feed into assessing gaps in data
3b. Expand data streams – additional data sources may address needs

Page 57 | 62

•
•
•
•
•

3c. Engage data holders – work with data holders to improve quality and address
gaps
4b. Assess data quality – needs may determine quality checks which can be
performed and metrics to report
4c. Enable data curation – assistance with setting curation priorities
5a. Engage academia – work with research communities to define needs
5c. Support biodiversity assessment – requirements for assessment are a key
aspect of needs

Page 58 | 62

Activity 5c - Support biodiversity assessment
Rationale
One of GBIF’s key roles is as organizer or global evidence for species distribution, based on
point records for species in time and space. Expansion of data publishing to accommodate
sampling event data enables this evidence base also to mobilize and organize basic data on
species populations and abundance. As a result, GBIF is positioned to serve as a criticalresource for supporting biodiversity assessment at all scales. In particular, GBIF should
serve as the data foundation for GEO BON to deliver Essential Biodiversity Variables (EBVs)
for species distribution and population abundance. These EBVs represent a continuum frommodelled representation of species occupancy (presence-only) in defined units of space andtime through to richer assessment of species abundance in those units. GEO BON should
serve as a forum for addressing the challenges of modelling such variables and interpolating
sensibly between existing data points. This includes determination of appropriate scale atwhich modelled variables are adequately supported by current data. GBIF needs to ensurethat it delivers the data foundations required for these activities, thereby supporting therequirements of IPBES, species Red Listing through IUCN and national authorities, the CBD
and the Aichi Targets and Sustainable Development Goals.

ApproachThis activity depends on the activities defined for all goals, in order to improve thecomprehensiveness, coverage and quality of data accessed through the GBIF network. An
additional area for enhancement will be GBIF.org search interfaces and presentation (viamaps and other visualisations) of sampling event data. Such interfaces should ensure that
researchers can properly evaluate and assess data suitable for biodiversity assessment
activities. Additionally GBIF needs to be active within GEO BON to ensure that there is closealignment and evolution between the concepts and implementation of EBVs and the dataand services offered by GBIF.

Tasks
5.c.i

Enhance GBIF.org presentation of sampling event data

5.c.ii

Support development of species distribution/population abundance EBVs

5.c.iii Showcase tools and practices for use of GBIF in Red Listing and other species
assessment processes

Progress
The GEO BON 31 community is working closely with GBIF as the key global repository foroccurrence and sampling event data, and is promoting the importance of sampling event
data as a generalised approach to bring together large amounts of information on species
abundance and distribution. The joint GEO BON/GBIF/iDiv Symposium on the Mobilizationof Structured Biodiversity Data 32 was particularly important as a tool to build a joint visionand to secure the engagement of a number of key data holders.
This partnership positions GBIF as a critical infrastructure in support of two of the proposed
Essential Biodiversity Variables 33 for Species Distribution and Population Abundance.
Workshops under the EU-funded GLOBIS-B 34 project have made progress in defining theparameters for these inter-linked variables, and GLOBIS-B has funded workshops to explore
the use of data from GBIF and the ALA to construct such variables.

http://geobon.org/
http://geobon.org/a-roadmap-for-the-mobilization-of-structured-biodiversity-data/33
http://geobon.org/essential-biodiversity-variables/monitoring/34
http://www.globis-b.eu/
31
32Page 59 | 62

As the work on EBV develops, GBIF must support best practice for mobilising andintegrating data for constructing the best and most fine-scale representations possible ofevidence for species occurrence and abundance for any area or time period. Achieving thiswill require continued improvements in data quality checks and enhancements both to GBIF
data indexes and to access and visualisation tools to support EBV workflows.

2018 Work Items••

Explore possible enhancements to GBIF data management to optimize access todata in formats which are appropriate for constructing species distribution andpopulation abundance EBVs.
Further discussion is required to integrate GBIF data into IUCN Red List processes.

See Also
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

1e. Expand national participation – assessment is a need and motivation for
national agencies
1f. Plan implementation – delivering high quality global and regional datasets insupport of assessment will require coordinated action
2a. Modernize data standards – improve information on data provenance andsemantics
2b. Deliver names infrastructure – names are key to organising data from multiple
sources3a. Identify priority gaps – assessment needs will contribute to prioritisation
3b. Expand data streams – ensure that all relevant data sources are included
5b. Document needs – requirements for assessment are a key aspect of needs
5d. Assess impact – many governments, along with intergovernmental
collaborations, expect GBIF to deliver solutions in support of assessment activities

Page 60 | 62

Activity 5d - Assess impact
Rationale
GBIF Participants require clear evidence of the benefits arising from investments in nationalscale content mobilisation and from GBIF global activity. At present, the main source ofevidence presented derives from monitoring of published literature to identify uses of GBIF
within research. This activity has been reported through annual GBIF Science Reviews andclearly demonstrates growing use of GBIF in research. Monitoring the literature in this way istime-consuming, and becomes more so as the relevant literature increases. A sustainableapproach is required for future monitoring of this kind. GBIF now issues and promotes
Digital Object Identifiers for data downloads and expects that these can be used both tosimplify discovery and to improve the detail offered to Participants and data publishers onsome uses of data. Participants also require more information on non-research uses of GBIF
infrastructure, particularly in various kinds of government or industry assessments. A
broader review of costs and benefits arising from GBIF investment would be valuable forParticipants arguing continued engagement within GBIF and other countries considering
Participation.

Approach
The GBIF Secretariat will lead a consultation with Participants on the level of detail desiredfrom literature tracking and possible approaches to maintain this as a shared task across the
network. GBIF.org will be enhanced to present known uses of GBIF DOIs and to ensure thatdata publishers receive information on such uses. Within the BID programme, GBIF is
already seeking reports from funded projects on non-research applications of data. A
general model is required to enable Participants easily to contribute examples of such usesand for these to be integrated into GBIF’s overall reporting on usage. Several countries haverequested information on known costs and benefits from GBIF investment. The Secretariat
wishes to identify one or more Participants interested in leading case study investigations tovalue GBIF benefits at national scale and to assist with developing generalrecommendations for a suitable way for GBIF to track and report this value.

Tasks
5.d.i

Develop sustainable approach to literature tracking

5.d.ii Automate detection and reporting of use of GBIF DOIs
5.d.iii Provide mechanisms to report and track uses of data and grey literature
5.d.iv Develop a valuation for the services delivered by the GBIF network

Progress
The Secretariat has significantly improved and streamlined the process of tracking researchuses of GBIF as a data source, with many more examples of data use being summarised
and featured in the annual Science Review and on the new GBIF.org website. Monitoring of
the research literature during 2017 has revealed a significant acceleration in data use, with
the number of peer-reviewed papers citing use of GBIF averaging more than two
publications each day. The new website provides much more agile means of searching andfiltering such examples based on thematic uses, countries (both researchers and geographic
focus of research) and other facets. The growing use of download DOIs in literature citations
has enabled the new website to link published datasets directly with research examples.

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While non-research uses of GBIF continue to be more challenging to identify, specificexamples have included use in national and global Red List processes and identification of
Key Biodiversity Areas.
The Secretariat has scoped approaches for commissioning a value proposition study, andpotential consultancies have been informally approached with a view to launching a tenderfor such a study later in 2017.
GBIF has not contracted an external review of its operations and deliverables since 2010.
Such a review is overdue. €30,000 has been set aside in the budget to allow the Governing
Board to engage a suitable panel of experts to carry out such a review and provide
recommendations, including face-to-face meetings. Ideally such a review should include anaudit and certification of GBIF as an infrastructure and network deliverying repository
services. 35

2018 Work Items•••

Extend collection of GBIF use cases to include grey literature and other non-research
applications of data
Commission value proposition study – extra funding will be required.
Contract external review of GBIF operations and deliverables - €30,000 allocated.

See Also
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1c. Equip nodes – information on impacts will assist nodes in building strong
national networks and nodes will be the key source of information on uses of data
outside peer-reviewed literature
1d. Equip data publishers – data publishers need information on the benefits
arising from use of their data
1e. Expand national participation – information on impacts will increase the casefor GBIF participation
1g. Coordinate resources - understanding impact will assist with future coordination
2c. Catalogue collections – catalogue will serve as benchmark for progress indigitising collections
3e. Liaise with journals – use of GBIF data in published research a key measure of
impact4b. Assess data quality – improvements in quality should be a metric for impact
5a. Engage academia - published research is a key measure of GBIF impact
5c. Support biodiversity assessment - many governments, along withintergovernmental collaborations, expect GBIF to deliver solutions in support ofassessment activities

https://www.rd-alliance.org/groups/repository-audit-and-certification-dsa%E2%80%93wdspartnership-wg.html
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