MAKING ENDS MEET: The Challenges of Establishing IABIN

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Symposium on Key Innovations in Biodiversity
Informatics October 21-22, 2002
IABIN Building a Hemispheric Biodiversity
Network
Barbara Bauldock U.S. Geological
Survey Coordinator, IABIN Planning Team
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THE NEEDFORIABIN
Biodiversity conservation requires timely,
accurate and scientifically credible information
Information relevant to a nations biodiversity
conservation effort extends beyond that nations
borders
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Opportunities (and challenges) for biodiversity
information management in Brazil
the Americas

• Biggest biodiversity in the world
• Poor integration among institutions, specially
  for those
• located in remote biodiversity-rich areas
• Development of low cost standards and protocols
  (software in the public domain, open platforms,
  etc)
• Unbalanced communication services among regions

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IABINS CHARTER
Seek to establish an Inter-American Biodiversity
Information Network, primarily through the
Internet, that will promote compatible means of
collection, communication, and exchange of
information relevant to decision-making and
education on biodiversity conservation, and that
builds upon such initiatives as the
Clearing-House Mechanism provided for in the
United Nations Convention on Biological
Diversity, the Man and Biosphere Network (MABNET
Americas), and the Biodiversity Conservation
Information System (BCIS), an initiative of nine
programs of the World Conservation Union (IUCN)
and partner organizations. -- Initiative 31, San
Cruz (Bolivia) Plan of Action, December 1996
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IABIN PRINCIPLES

• Ownership and control of information is retained
  by information provider
• Intellectual property rights are respected and
  sources acknowledged by users,
• but ownership and control of information is
  retained by information provider
• Free and open access is encouraged,
• but ownership and control

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T O P D O W N

• Summit of the Americas for
• Sustainable Development

P U M O T T O B

• Santa Cruz Plan of Action

• IABIN Governance

HOW DO WE BUILD IT?

• International working groups

• National initiatives

• Institutions

• Individual researchers

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GOVERNANCE STRUCTURE

• IABIN Council
• Official IABIN Focal Points (28 countries to
  date)
• IGO representatives (CHM, GBIF, NABIN)
• NGO representatives (NatureServe, CRIA, BCIS,
  etc.)
• Representatives from ITIS, Species 2000, ATCC,
  universities,
• IABIN Executive Committee
• 8 countries 1 IGO/NGO ? GBIF
• IABIN Planning Team (in lieu of IABIN Hub)

Equal voices, consensus decisions
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• CHM representative

• GBIF representative

• NABIN representative

• Associate membership

• MOC

• Rep on IAC

• Common FPs

• Individual country participation (7 to date)

• Canadian FP
• Mexican FP
• U.S. FP

• Committee leadership

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PARTICIPANT SPECTRA
Providers Users Public Private Not
for Profit Commercial Experts Lay
people Heads of States Private
Citizens Government agencies NGOs K-12
Post Docs
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PARTICIPANT SPECTRA

• Varying requirements
• Varying capacity to access
• Varying backgrounds and understanding
• Varying languages and language levels

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TECHNOLOGY CHALLENGES
IABIN is possible only through the
incremental enhancement of ongoing efforts by
promoting interoperability within the network

• Evaluating current practices and policies
• Selecting standards
• Exchange protocols
• Record formats
• Controlled vocabularies
• Encouraging adoption of standards
• Sharing tools, methodologies, expertise

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FINANCIAL CHALLENGES

• Progress to date thanks to funding from OAS,
  World Bank, USAID, Governments of the U.S. and
  Brazil, and in-kind contributions from
  participants.
• 2002 Financial Picture
• IABIN Planning Team support continues
• I3N Project funded by U.S. State Department
• Financial Sustainability study completed
• GEF awards 650K grant for consultative process!

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• Recommended sources
• International and bilateral agencies
• Private foundations
• Main environmental NGOs
• Fees from country members
• Corporations
• Universities and research institutes

Financial Sustainability Strategy
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IABIN GEF PROJECT

• World Bank is funding agency
• OAS is executing agency
• IABIN Executive Committee directs and reviews
• Consultants will perform work
• Regional Coordinator Alberto Oriza-Barrios
• 7 Sub-Regional Specialists

Region 7 N. Am.
Region 5 Caribbean
Region 6 Central America
Region 4 Venez/Guy/ Sur/TrinTob
Region 1 Andean
Region 2 Brazil
Region 3 So. Cone
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IABIN GEF PROJECT

• Sub-Regional Specialists Charge
• Determine data and information requirements and
  resources

• Types
• Specimen data
• Observations
• Literature
• Project descriptions
• Experts
• Authorities
• ??

• Scope
• Biological
• Ecological
• Environmental
• Economic?
• Sociological?
• Management?
• ??

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IABIN GEF PROJECT

• Sub-Regional Specialists Charge
• Determine data and information requirements and
  resources

• Document training and capacity- building needs
• Human
• Technological
• Infrastructural

• Initiate partnerships
• Hold workshops to increase participant interaction

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IABIN GEF PROJECT

• Coordinate sub-regional specialists
• Define network architecture
• Technical specifications
• Configuration management plan
• Develop 5-year implementation plan
• Priorities for incorporation of content
• Steps for capacity building
• Estimated costs
• Prepare input to GEF proposal

Regional Coordinators Charge
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TODAYS CHALLENGE
Incremental cost to facilitate IABIN access
GEF contribution Cash Quantifiable
Cost of development for participant purposes
Quantifiable?
Cost?
or value?
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IABIN is the sum of the contributions made by
its participants
What can your institution contribute?
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For more information
Visit ltwww.iabin.netgt and ltwww.iabin-us.orggt Subsc
ribe to the IABINfriends listserv (see Web
site) Email barbara_bauldock_at_usgs.gov
agrosse_at_usgs.gov