This workshop hosted and led by SPREP: the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme for the BID-funded project, Regional and national alien and invasive species data mobilization and capacity building in the Pacific invited participants from ten Pacific Island countries and territories (Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, New Zealand, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, The Kingdom of Tonga, Solomon Islands, Wallis and Futuna), and was facilitated by Mr David Bloom (Vertnet), Mr John Wieczorek (Vertnet), Mr David Moverley (SPREP Invasive Species Advisor), Mr Bradley Myer (Project Coordinator), Mr Ainsof So’o (SPREP IPT Node Manager), and Ms Shyama Pagad (ISSG).
The primary objective of the workshop was to enhance the capacity of Consortium Partners to plan and implement biodiversity data digitisation according to GBIF standards. Its focus was on the technical aspects of the data mobilisation including aspects related to the data lifecycle: digitisation, management and online publishing. The workshop also focused on the use of data to support decision making, data management and tools. In addition, the workshop allowed for a platform where the participants could publish the datasets identified during their national meetings, using the technical expertise available.
An outcome of the workshop for those in attendance was the publication of at least one dataset for groups using the GBIF portal. In total, 21 datasets from 10 countries across the Pacific were published. Agencies from 7 countries were registered as new publishers on GBIF however there are many more datasets waiting to be published.