The European Marine Observation and Data Network (EMODnet) is a network of European organisations working together to observe the oceans, to make the collected marine data freely available and interoperable, to create seamless data layers across sea-basins and to distribute the data and data products through the Internet. The primary aim of EMODnet is to unlock existing but fragmented and hidden marine data and make them accessible for a wide range of users including private bodies, public authorities and researchers.
The South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI) is leading a consortium of research institutions on a new biodiversity data pipeline project nicknamed the ‘BIRDIE Project’ (September 2020 - August 2023), funded by JRS Biodiversity Foundation. The project aims to develop a wetlands and waterbirds data-to-decision pipeline that will use statistical tools to extract policy-relevant information from key data. The project’s partners are the University of Cape Town (Centre for Statistics in Ecology, Environment and Conservation) and Fitzpatrick Institute of African Ornithology, Sol Plaatje University, Seascape Belgium and the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences. The consortium ensures sufficient statistical modelling capacity, data pipeline development expertise and ecological knowledge to understand the challenges and threats facing freshwater biodiversity in South Africa. With help from other partners and end users of the pipeline, the consortium aims to ensure that the pipeline can produce the data products required for reporting on South Africa’s commitments to international conventions, and also be of use to decision makers at various scales.
Within the consortium, Seascape Belgium is responsible for developing the data pipeline and bringing it to life through a dynamic web application, automating statistical computing work flows and applying data visualisation techniques.
Visit project website: BIRDIE