Building: Grand Hotel Mediterraneo
Room: America del Nord (Theatre I)
Date: 2013-11-01 09:15 AM – 09:30 AM
Last modified: 2013-10-08
Abstract
As part of the Information System for Nature and Landscapes (SINP), the French National Museum of Natural History has been appointed by the Ministry in charge of Ecology to develop a national standard for biodiversity data of both marine and terrestrial ecosystems, in mainland France and its overseas territories.
The aim of this presentation is to introduce this data standard and the strategic choices that were made during the development process. The data standard intends to facilitate both the dissemination of data by partners and their use to meet national requirements for biodiversity conservation.
This data standard must also be interoperable with international and local standards.
We analyzed 14 biodiversity data standards (international, national and regional) to create a draft standard and to identify the main issues to be considered. Then the draft was submitted to a dedicated working group including representatives of French biodiversity stakeholders (e.g., GBIF, public institutions, regional stakeholders, collections managers) which led to improvements and validation of this data standard.
After a short presentation of the analysis of the existing standards, we will present the strategic choices made to build the standard:
1) Focussed on a core of data
The data standard focuses on a core of attributes characterizing the presence of a taxon and individual taxa count in a place during a specific event. This has raised the issue of defining sufficient attributes to characterize such information in the context of unspecified uses.
2) Promoting both dissemination and use of data
We will present examples of trade-offs that had to be made on chosen attributes, on their format and also on some rules to harmonize the exchanged information.
3) Allowing traceability of information
The proposal for a persistent identifier requires more commitments from data producers than initially planned. These are seen as an intrusion into their own information systems.
4) Congruent with TDWG standards
We will conclude our talk with future prospects, including the importance of user support and additional thematic extensions.