2006 GISIN Invasive Species Profile Schema Experts Meeting
20-24 February 2006, Agadir, Morocco

Experts Meeting to Discuss an Invasive Species Profile Schema

The Global Invasive Species Information Network requires building an information network for sharing and exchange of invasive species data, information, knowledge, and related metadata. The network aims to connect, through a distributed approach, as many existing and new invasive species information systems as possible, by promoting common standards, protocols, and services designed to achieve connectivity.

Exchanging data, information and knowledge about invasive species is a critical component of our response to biological invasions. With funding from the US Department of State, the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity selected a consultant to create a draft schema (see announcement on our home page) for a broad invasive species profile, for use by the Global Invasive Species Information Network. According to the terms of reference, the consultant’s team was to develop a data exchange standard for Invasive Alien Species Profiles (or Species Accounts) by consulting the main actors, comparing and evaluating different schemas and data formats, and to propose a core set of data elements.

The resulting documents have been available for public comment since August, and there is a need to convene an international group of technical experts to discuss the suggested universal vocabularies and high-level elements.

The consultant’s report (PDF) states the following:

The Invasive Alien Species Profile Schema (IAS-PS) described in this report proposes preliminary draft standards for the exchange of invasive species information in the form of fact sheets, projects and case studies, expertise and checklists via the Global Invasive Species Information Network (GISIN). It supports the exchange of data elements important to invasive species science such as native and non-native status, pathways of spread, host and parasitic organisms observed, impact, invasiveness, control techniques used. The IAS-PS does not present schemas for data elements such as observations and survey data and bibliographies, but instead references existing schemas for the invasive species community to evaluate and adopt wherever possible.

The purpose of the IAS-PS is to facilitate data exchange and it should not serve as a template for information system design. It has been developed as an annotated XML-Schema document. We stress that the XML schema, and the suggested structure it encapsulates, will require further technical development. It is intended that the IAS-PS become the subject of discussion within the invasive species community and that an appropriate TDWG (Taxonomic Database Working Group) standard working group will take development of the proposed draft through a formal standards adoption process.

In order to prepare a technically sound information document for consideration at the Eighth Ordinary Meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the CBD to be held 20-31 March, 2006 in Curitiba, Brazil, a four-night, three-day GISIN experts meeting is proposed for the week of February 20-24 2006, in Agadir, Morocco.

Funding and logistical support for the meeting has been obtained from the CBD Secretariat, the Global Biodiversity Information Facility, the US National Biological Information Infrastructure, the Moroccan Ministry of Agriculture, and the Moroccan non-governmental organization, Association des Producteurs des Agrumes au Maroc (ASPAM). Funding for additional participants is being sought from several sources to achieve an adequately diverse participation. Possible funding sources include the Gates Foundation, FAO, and the Global Invasive Species Programme.

Proposed participants include members of the Taxonomic Databases Working Group, owners of international invasive species databases, and members of the Global Invasive Species Information Network and its Steering Committee.

Back to top

Logistics

Each document (in the table below) is available for download in one of several formats including text (txt), Portable Document Format (PDF), Hypertext Markup (htm) and Microsoft Word 2000 (doc). If you need assistance with downloading these documents, please contact us.

Other publications produced for or in relation to the GISIN can be found on our Publications and Products page.

Back to top