DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.18327368
title: Bern Landscape Change Explorer Ecosystem Condition and Potential Results

description: GENERAL INFORMATION

 

1. Title of Dataset: Bern Landscape Change Explorer Ecosystem Condition and Potential Results.    

 

2. Author Information

A. Principal Investigator Contact Information

Name: Isabel Nicholson Thomas

Institution:  Institute for Spatial and Landscape Development, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH)

Address:  HIL H 52.1, Stefano-Franscini-Platz 5 CH-8093 Zürich, Switzerland

Email: inthomas@ethz.ch

 

B. Additional researcher Contact Information

Name: Benjamin Black

Institution:  Institute for Spatial and Landscape Development, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) 

Address:  HIL H 52.1, Stefano-Franscini-Platz 5 CH-8093 Zürich, Switzerland

Email: bblack@ethz.ch

 

  C. Additional researcher Contact Information

Name: Manuel Kurmann

Institution:  Institute for Spatial and Landscape Development, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) 

Address:  HIL H 52.1, Stefano-Franscini-Platz 5 CH-8093 Zürich, Switzerland

Email: mankurma@ethz.ch

 

3. Date of data collection: 2025-06-01 > 2026-01-1 

 

4. Geographic location of data: Switzerland 

 

SHARING/ACCESS INFORMATION

 

1. Licenses/restrictions placed on the data: Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International 

 

2. Recommended citation for this dataset: Nicholson Thomas, I., Black, B., & Kurmann, M. (2026). Bern Landscape Change Explorer Ecosystem Condition and Potential Results (Version 1.0.0) [Data set]. ETH Zurich. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.18327368

 

DESCRIPTION/REPRODUCIBILITX: 

- This dataset contains rasters of ecosystem condition and potential for the Bern Landscape Change Explorer project.

- All rasters are projected in the CH1903+ / LV95 coordinate reference system and share the same extent and resolution (1 hectare).

- For detailed descriptions of the data generation process, raster value interpretation and suggested colour scheme, please refer to the accompanying metadata files:

-  BeschreibungMetadatenOekosystemzustand_Potenzial_DE.pdf

-  BeschreibungMetadatenOekosystemzustand_Potenzial_ENG.pdf

 

This dataset contains raster data on ecosystem condition (EC) and the potential for condition dependent

improvements in selected ecosystem services. The calculations were performed

separately for three ecosystem types: forests, grasslands and alpine pastures, and agricultural land.

The data sets on ecosystem condition are stored as ec_index and separated by ecosystem type.

ec_index_LU_Forest contains the ecosystem condition index for forest areas,

ec_index_LU_GrassPasture for grasslands and alpine pastures, and ec_index_LU_IntensiveAg for

intensive agricultural areas. In all three cases, the pixel value corresponds to the calculated,

composite ecosystem condition index for the respective land use group.

In addition, there is the cluster_EC_all dataset, which represents spatial patterns in ecosystem

condition as classes. The clusters are based on the same indicator layers that were used to calculate

the ecosystem condition index. Each grid cell is assigned a cluster ID, which groups together cells

that have similar characteristics across several indicators, for example, simultaneously high or low

values in the same state characteristics. This allows areas to be delineated that are similar in terms

of the interaction of the state indicators considered.

The potential datasets are named after ecosystem services and end in _gap. CAR_gap describes the

potential for carbon storage, FF_gap for food and feed production, HAB_gap for habitat quality,

POL_gap for pollination, and REC_gap for recreational potential.

The pixel values indicate the difference between theoretical and effective provision, i.e., the

additional amount that could be achieved with an improved ecosystem status.

 

Included files:



BeschreibungMetadatenOekosystemzustand_Potenzial_DE.pdf

BeschreibungMetadatenOekosystemzustand_Potenzial_ENG.pdf

CAR_gap.tif

ec_index_combined.tif

ec_index_LU_13.tif

ec_index_LU_15.tif

ec_index_LU_17.tif

FF_gap.tif

HAB_gap.tif

POL_gap.tif

REC_gap.tif