Biodiversity platforms for implementing a sustainable world

UNEP-WCMC: Lauren V. Weatherdon, Jennifer Preston, Nina Bhola, Ben Tregenna, Naomi Kingston, Neil Burgess.

We would like to thank the many contributors to the series of workshops that were held on biodiversity platforms typologies and criteria, including colleagues at UNDP, UNEP, the National Geographic Society, and The Nature Conservancy.

We would also like to thank the One Earth Foundation for supporting the ‘Building the Digital Network for Nature’ project, the Luc Hoffmann Institute, and the UKRI-GCRF for their support of the TRADE Hub initiative, all of whom co-financed this work. This research was also partly funded by the European Union’s Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Program (H2020-BG-12-2016-2), grant number No. 727277—ODYSSEA (Towards an integrated Mediterranean Sea Observing System). We would also like to acknowledge the previous efforts across projects to collate information on available biodiversity-related platforms, which helped to inform this review. These include Ocean+, collaborations with the Green Growth Knowledge Partnership and National Geographic Society, and the Exploring Natural Capital Opportunities, Risks and Exposure (ENCORE) initiative, among others.

Citation

Weatherdon L.V., Preston, J., Bhola, N., Tregenna, B., Kingston, N., Burgess, N. (2021). Biodiversity platforms for implementing a sustainable world for nature and people: types and ingredients of effective biodiversity platforms. Cambridge, UK: UNEP-WCMC. 17 pp. Available at: https://resources.unep-wcmc.org/products/WCMC_RT385

A growing digital frontier of nature-related data has resulted in a diverse, interconnected and interdependent ecosystem of online biodiversity platforms that serve tailored insight for public and private sector audiences. These platforms frequently have different aims, audiences and information, yet are difficult to navigate in an increasingly complex digital world. To clarify this picture, we have developed a methodology to (a) classify each of these platforms to illustrate their role in the ecosystem, and (b) assess the effectiveness of these platforms in supporting progress toward the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda, the emerging targets of the post-2020 global biodiversity framework and related global targets.

Citation

SHARE: