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Visitors since 26 Nov 2007

Biodiversity is changing at an unprecedented rate. Habitat conversion and land use change, invasions of exotic species, pollution, overharvesting of resources and climate change are leading to local and broad extinctions, changes in ecological patterns, and genetic bottlenecks. These changes have drastic effects on the functions of ecosystems as well as on the services that they provide to society. These changes will also greatly reduce future options for utilizing biodiversity for new goods and services. One of the most challenging obstacles to achieving our ultimate goals of conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity is the lack of an adequate and coherent system to provide expertise on the rate, speed, direction and mechanisms of these biodiversity changes.

By establishing GEOSS, the participating Governments and organizations have explicitly recognized that coordinated observations and information systems will enable better management of the world's resources. We (individuals and institutional bodies) members of government agencies, non-governmental organizations, academic institutions, and other interested parties that are active in initiatives and basic or applied research on biodiversity (including its change and its conservation and sustainable use), commit to collaborate at national and international levels to develop an integrated, operational biodiversity observing system (potentially the "Global Biodiversity Observation Network") that can:

• detect, assess, and analyse changes at all levels and dimensions of biodiversity (genetic, species, ecosystem, composition, structure, function, dynamics),
  
• integrate data from different provider communities (museum collections and organism observation, genetic, satellite remote sensing systems, biogeography, intensive plot-type biodiversity measuring and monitoring systems, ecosystem processes);
  
• utilize and feed back to the framework and facilities that other GEOSS mechanisms provide;
  
• establish infrastructures to provide and analyse data with global coverage at an adequate spatial and temporal resolution and accuracy;
  
• provide information and user-friendly tools by means of a shared IT data architecture, in a timely way, for a range of user groups including those working on human health issues, scientific research, conservation planning, and all types of conservation and resource management such as forestry, rangeland, landscape, wildlife, agriculture, and fisheries;
  
• be used for the design of systems on sustainable use and management of biodiversity, including analysis, prediction, early warning, conservation planning, policy making, and management effectiveness evaluation; and
  
• in general, support increased understanding of the state of the world's biodiversity and thereby respond to the needs of relevant international treaties concerning the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity.
  

Necessary steps will be to:

• identify, integrate, and further refine requirements of user groups;
  
• review current state of knowledge, and available methodologies and networks;
  
• facilitate interoperability among the many existing and planned system components, developing new information technology where needed;
  
• design new analytical techniques to integrate the data;
  
• strengthen research capacities;
  
• stimulate application of research findings;
  
• facilitate the effective use of the data, techniques and research within the global community; and
  
• promote incremental advances in technology, particularly in support of easy access to biodiversity-related information.
  

This "Global Biodiversity Observation Network" will be established within the framework of GEOSS. All scientists and institutions are encouraged to join the establishment process, which has been initiated and coordinated by DIVERSITAS in collaboration with GTOS and GBIF. The network will work with the biodiversity-related conventions and is open to collaboration with other appropriate mechanisms, including national and international organizations, institutions or agencies that provide or use biodiversity data or information.

A first step in establishing such a network is to form an executive steering committee, following an outreach period of several months during which members of DIVERSITAS, GTOS and GBIF will participate in working groups to discuss:

1. data architecture,
2. scales and standards,
3. observatory network planning and
4. strategic planning for implementation.
   

With our signatures, we confirm our wish to contribute actively to the goals described above and to be included in the future activities of the emerging "Global Biodiversity Observation Network". We also agree to list our names as signatories.

I support the above declaration and wish to join the Global Biodiversity Observation Network.

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