BID 2020: National biodiversity data mobilization grants

Purpose

National grants seek to establish or strengthen national biodiversity information facilities and to increase the data available about the country’s biodiversity, responding to national priorities.

The objectives of the BID national biodiversity data mobilization grants are to:

• Establish or strengthen national biodiversity information facilities
• Increase available biodiversity data, within and beyond the grant period
• Support application of biodiversity data in response to national sustainable development priorities

Existing GBIF nodes and institutions applying for a national grant for a follow-up of a BID project will be required to demonstrate how they plan to build on their ongoing activities as a GBIF node, or the results from the first grant.

First-time applicants from GBIF non-participating countries will be expected to promote national participation in GBIF, and take steps within the project period to engage relevant government officials in the process of becoming a national Participant through signature of the GBIF Memorandum of Understanding.

National grants must include at least one activity contributing to the following component categories. It is important that activities are implemented within the 24-month project period.

1. Capacity enhancement of national biodiversity information facilities

• Assessing biodiversity data holdings and user needs (with assessment method description)
• Developing a strategic plan for the biodiversity information facility
• Organizing national stakeholders’ workshops to engage the community of biodiversity data holders and users
• Formalizing partnerships through institutional agreements, data sharing policies and public endorsement of mobilization strategies
• Establishing governance structures for the biodiversity information facilities (including representation from ministries, key institutions holding or using biodiversity data, etc.)
• Setting up an infrastructure for the biodiversity information facility to support data publishing and management
• Training stakeholders on data mobilization and management, for example, through workshops to share the knowledge gained through attending the BID capacity enhancement workshop

2. Activities to mobilize biodiversity data relevant to sustainable development

• Compiling inventories of biodiversity data holdings (for example, implementing metadata catalogues)
• Digitizing and publishing data from natural history collections, monitoring and sampling activities, DNA barcoding, citizen science, literature and other sources
• Validating and publishing regional, national and local species checklists, invasive species lists or threatened species lists
• Preparing data papers to improve the reusability of the mobilized biodiversity data

3. Integrating biodiversity information into policy and decision-making processes

• Leading surveys or workshops to understand the biodiversity data requirements for specific use cases
• Setting up user groups to guide project implementation on identified priority themes
• Directing workshops and advocacy actions that promote the use of openly accessible data, for example, in national-level biodiversity reporting
• Hosting workshops on data analysis techniques
• Applying biodiversity data in decision-making processes
• Documenting use cases and sharing them with partners in the region

Funding

Maximum funding: €40,000 per project

Eligibility

In addition to complying with the general eligibility criteria, applications for national biodiversity data mobilization grants must comply with the following criteria:

1. All projects must include activities contributing to each of the three component categories listed above. Applications must be submitted by the project coordinator who will coordinate the project activities on behalf of the project partners. The project coordinator must be affiliated to a legal entity from an eligible country. The project coordinator will be responsible for managing the grant and for the project reporting.
2. Applications must include at least two relevant national institutes, agencies or non-governmental organizations as project partners, in addition to the project coordinator.
3. All projects must include a major component of data mobilization through the GBIF network. It is expected that most BID funding is directed towards data mobilization. As a guideline for the national grants, the amount of BID funding spent on data mobilization activities should not be less than 60% of the total grant.
4. Data mobilization activities must focus on data relating to biodiversity within the target country.
5. BID funds may be used to cover up to 50% of the costs of IT, electronic and laboratory equipment, up to a maximum of €2,500 of any national grant. Such equipment includes, but is not limited to, a) computer equipment, such as laptops, desktop computers, servers, hard drives and printers; b) software licences and subscriptions; c) digital cameras and scanners; d) other electrical equipment and electronics; e) lab equipment including microscopes, sequencing equipment, etc. Receipts will need to be provided in financial reports.

Biodiversity information facilities

Many different stakeholder groups in a given country or organization may be involved in collecting, organizing and using data on biodiversity. These different groups often do not fully benefit from one another’s efforts, either failing to discover all existing information or duplicating effort by spending time on the same tasks.

Within the GBIF network, the group that coordinates national activities with the goal of ensuring effective cooperation and combination of resources and information is a ‘biodiversity information facility’. Using tools and techniques developed and applied by formal GBIF members, these groups sustain key relationships and common solutions for managing and accessing data.

GBIF exists to support its member states and organizations—or, more formally, its Participants—to establish these networks. By signing the GBIF Memorandum of Understanding, GBIF Participants commit to set up a Participant node that coordinates a biodiversity information facility. More information on biodiversity information facilities is available in the guide, Establishing an Effective GBIF Participant Node, which also available in French, Portuguese and Spanish.

 This programme is funded by the European Union.