“building the inter-american biodiversity information...

“Building the Inter-American Biodiversity Information Network (IABIN)”

GEF PDF Preparatory Block B Grant Phase II

IABIN Council – OAS – World Bank

Sub-Region 7 Deliverable 2, Interim Progress Report

By: Darrell V.B. McClarty Sub-Regional Specialist

North America

May 2003

Phase II, Deliverable 2 Progress Report for Sub Region 7

Table of Contents

1. Introduction ..................................................................................................................................3 2. Summary of Activities ..................................................................................................................3

2.1. IABIN Meetings.....................................................................................................................3 2.2. Preparation of Project Proposals..........................................................................................3 2.3. Partnerships and Data Providers..........................................................................................5 2.4. FEMCIDI Proposal................................................................................................................5

3. Co-Financing Summary ...............................................................................................................5 3.1. Major Partners ......................................................................................................................6 3.2. Partnerships and Data Providers..........................................................................................6

4. Ongoing Efforts............................................................................................................................6 Appendix A - Summary of Institutions Contacted................................................................................8 Appendix B - Project Proposal Received ............................................................................................9 Appendix C – Letters of Intent Received ..........................................................................................10


1. Introduction This report represents a progress update on the second deliverable for Phase II of the IABIN PDF project. The objective of the report is to provide an update on the project activities undertaken and to report progress on partnerships discussions. Specifically, this report provides a summary of the eligible GEF co-financing committed to date by partners, and a summary of ongoing activities to secure additional partnerships and project co-financing.

2. Summary of Activities The following sections summarize the activities of the sub regional specialist in order to achieve the objectives of the IABIN Phase II project. It should be noted that Alberto Oriza has provided considerable support to Darrell McClarty in working with Mexico-based institutions.

2.1. IABIN Meetings Darrell McClarty has attended three IABIN meetings since the initiation of second phase PDF project. These meetings included one meeting held in Cancun, Mexico in December 2002 with other sub regional specialists, and two meetings held in Washington, DC between January 21-23, 2003 and March 6-7, 2003. A total of fours days were spent in Washington for the latest round of meetings that included small, working meetings with the regional coordinator and Vincent Abreu held prior to the larger IABIN group meetings on subsequent days. The primary focus of the latest round of meetings was to confirm and establish the thematic networks concept for IABIN, and also to review the status for major partner participation in IABIN. The sub-regional coordinator for North America made a presentation for the proposed catalogue system.

2.2. Preparation of Project Proposals Project proposals are being sought from major IABIN partners in the hemisphere. These major partners include: United States Geological Survey (NBII)

Catalogue Services – The IABIN catalogue system will provide a mechanism to locate, evaluate, and access biological data and information from a distributed network of cooperating data and information sources from across the Americas. Similar in form and function to the NBII Clearinghouse (http://mercury.ornl.gov/nbii/), the IABIN catalogue system will allow Internet users to search through an assortment of standardized descriptions of different biological databases or information products to identify those that meet their particular requirements. Through this catalogue service, IABIN users can search an online “card catalogue” of detailed descriptions (metadata) of different biological data sets and information products from many different sources to find the particular item that meets their needs. These information products will be developed and maintained by IABIN members that include, include government agencies; private organizations; universities; and other partners within the Americas.


The USGS has agreed to enter a project with IABIN to implement and maintain the IABIN catalogue services. The project will leverage of existing NBII Search Technology currently being utilized to support the 20 or so NBII Metadata Clearinghouse of Nodes throughout the United States. The project will utilize the Oak Ridge National Laboratory supplied Mercury technology to support its metadata functions. A draft version of the USGS proposal has been received and is presented in Appendix B.

Specimens Network Coordinated Through GBIF – As part of their responsibilities to the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF), the USGS will be implementing a GBIF specimen node. USGS has agreed to partner with IABIN in the development of the United States node. IABIN will cost share with USGS on the project, and utilize tools, technologies and skills gained through the project to advance development of IABIN’s own GBIF node and other specimen networks in the hemisphere. Preparation of the USGS proposal for the specimen network is in progress. Invasive Species Network – The ongoing I3N project, a joint initiative between IABIN and the USGS, is building a distributed network that will provide web-accessible information on invasive species in at least 13 countries in the Americas. A growing number of plants, animals, and pathogens are becoming invasive in natural areas, inland waters, oceans, croplands, and rangelands. These invasive species pose increasing risks to human health, native species, ecosystems, and national economies and are second only to habitat destruction as a cause of loss of biodiversity. Documenting current invasions, predicting new invasion sites, and preventing invasions are vital to the protection of biological diversity in all countries. The project being proposed by the USGS will expand and leverage the efforts of the existing I3N invasive species network. With direct access to national knowledge bases throughout the region, those addressing the invasive species challenge could easily obtain data on which species are invasive or potentially invasive in particular habitats, and use this information in their planning efforts. Agencies responsible for pest control could quickly determine if a species of interest has been invasive elsewhere. Importers of new non-native species (e.g., nurseries, botanical gardens, the pet industry) could access accounts of experiences abroad to make responsible business choices. Land managers could learn about control methods that have been useful in other areas, reducing the need to commit resources for experimentation and increasing the speed at which control efforts can begin. Preparation of the USGS proposal for the expanded invasive species network for IABIN is in progress.

Comisión Nacional para el Conocimiento y Uso de la Biodiversidad (CONABIO)

The Comisión Nacional para el Conocimiento y Uso de la Biodiversidad (CONABIO) is a leader in biological informatics in North America, and the hemisphere in the area of specimen networks. CONABIO has developed REMIB, which has specimen nodes in Mexico, the United States, Spain, and Costa Rica. As an early partner in IABIN, CONABIO has agreed to submit project proposal to IABIN that will see their organization taking a leadership role in the area of specimen networks. CONABIO would leverage their vast investments in skills and technology development to take a leadership role in the design, development and implementation of specimens based networks in the hemisphere. Preparation of the CONABIO proposal is in progress.


2.3. Partnerships and Data Providers Partnerships are being sought from several institutions involved in biological informatics in the sub-region. Many of the candidate partnerships have been identified as part of previous project phases, while specific institutions have been identified to support development of specific thematic networks. In total, 88 institutions in North America have been contacted regarding partnership in IABIN with the goal that institutions interested in participating in IABIN indicate support by providing letters of intention and estimates of project co-financing eligible under Global Environmental Facility eligibility criteria. A summary of the institutions contacted and the status of discussions are presented in Appendix A. This list of contacts is currently being expanded. Only, a small number have indicated that they are not interested in a partnership or wish to be represented through another coordinating initiatives to which they belong. Most partnership discussions are in progress with many providing early indications of support for IABIN. The large number of organizations contacted, lags in response, and the interactive nature of partnership discussions is slowing progress related to confirmation of co-financing. In many cases, organizations have not responded to communications. At this writing, only two organizations have confirmed their co-financing contributions. Additional lobbying and follow-up is expected to confirm participation and co-financing from several other organizations. Expected co-financing is presented in Section 3.

2.4. FEMCIDI Proposal In follow-up to discussions at the March meeting in Washington, the sub regional coordinator for Sub Region 7 assisted in the preparation of the OAS sponsored FEMCIDI proposal. FEMCIDI is special multilateral fund within the OAS that could help provide funding for the implementation of IABIN and would supplement the GEF funding being sought. FEMCIDI had expressed interest in hemispheric projects that further the Summit of the Americas process that leverage external funds. Therefore, this was seen as an excellent co-financing opportunity for IABIN. Submission and sponsorship of the FEMCIDI proposal are the responsibility of supporting countries. Subsequent to the preparation of the proposal, the FEMCIDI proposal was presented to the Canadian government through IABIN’s Canadian focal point, Guy Rochon at Environment Canada. Following a review and several discussions on the proposal, it was Canada’s decision that they were not in a position to provide support for the proposal at this time. Obtaining support for the FEMCIDI proposal from other potential countries in Sub Region 7 is ongoing.

3. Co-Financing Summary The following sections provide a summary of the co-financing that has been confirmed and estimated co-financing to be obtained from North America. Alberto Oriza and Eric van Pragg should be recognized in for their efforts in this process. In total, about $1.36M has been confirmed for major partners and other partnerships. On the basis of existing discussions and co financing in hand, it is estimated that the total co-financing to be achieved from North America to support IABIN GEF proposal is about $6.8M.


3.1. Major Partners Most of the information and supporting documentation related to major partner proposals and co-financing remains in progress. To date, only one project proposal has been received from a major partner. Development and submission of other project proposals is in progress. The total documented co financing from major partners in North America is $160,000, which was confirmed through the USGS catalogue services proposal. The total estimated co-financing to be recognized from major partners in North America when all proposals are received is about $2.7M. A summary of the status of major partner co-financing is presented in Table 1. Table 1 Summary of Major Partner Co-Financing

Partner Project

Status Confirmed Co-Financing

Estimated Co-Financing

Total Co-Financing

NBII Catalogue

System Draft

proposal received

$150,000 $150,000

NBII GBIF Node

Proposal in progress $1,250,000

($250,000 annually) $1,250,000

NBII Invasives Network

Proposal in progress $10,000 $100,000

($20,000 annually) $110,000

Comisión Nacional para el Conocimiento y Uso

de la Biodiversidad (CONABIO)

Specimens related

Networks Proposal in

progress $1,250,000 ($250,000 annually) $1,250,000

Totals $160,000 $2,500,000 $2,650,000

3.2. Partnerships and Data Providers At this writing one specific letters of has have been obtained. Although many institutions have indicated their support for IABIN, it has been difficult to obtain the specific “letters of intent” desired for that document support and co-financing details. Current co-financing confirmed through other partnerships and data providers is about $1,200,000. It is estimated that an addition $3,000,000 of partner co-financing will be confirmed in North America prior to IABIN’s proposal submission to GEF.

4. Ongoing Efforts It is clear that more work and time than anticipated will be required to tap the potential partnerships and co-financing support from North America. Organizations, institutions and governments in North America already involved in biological informatics (ones that have an ability to represent significant co financing) are typically very focused to specific areas or themes. Most of the organizations contacted, have had some experience with “umbrella” initiatives like IABIN, and in many cases these experiences have been less than positive. Understanding IABIN, its focus, its partner benefits, and the commitments to it’s partners often takes significant time and effort to communicate and coordinate. It is anticipated that significant additional progress on projects and partnerships can be made in North America can be made before the end of June 2003. It is recommended that sub regional


coordinator for North America continue efforts to follow up with prospective partners in order to bolster partner support and co financing. Follow -up with partners will continue through telephone and email based communications. It is also anticipated that additional travel will be required to lobby additional partners from within Canada.


Appendix A - Summary of Institutions Contacted

Summary of Partnership Contacts

Initiative Organization Country Contact Status Response Status Assisted By Co-Financing

StatusThe North American Biodiversity Information Network Council For Environmental Cooperation Canada Contacted Confirmed Alberto ConfirmedThe Species Analyst University of Kansas United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedNational Biological Information Infrastructure United States Geological Survey United States Contacted In Progress UnconfirmedThe World Information Network on Biodiversity Biodiversidad (CONABIO) Mexico Contacted In Progress Alberto UnconfirmedSpeciesBank Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada Canada Contacted In Progress CDN FP UnconfirmedCanadian Botanical Conservation Network Canadian Botanical Conservation Network Canada Contacted In Progress CDN FP UnconfirmedCentre For Marine Biodiversity Fisheries and Oceans Canada Canada Contacted In Progress CDN FP UnconfirmedCanadian Museum of Nature Canadian Museum of Nature Canada Contacted In Progress CDN FP UnconfirmedRoyal Ontario Museum Royal Ontario Museum Canada Contacted In Progress CDN FP UnconfirmedNWT/Nunavut Bird Checklist Survey Environment Canada Canada Contacted In Progress CDN FP UnconfirmedGlobal Resource Information Database United Nations Environmental Program United States Contacted Confirmed Eric ConfirmedFederal Geographic Data Committee United States Geological Survey United States Contacted In Progress Eric UnconfirmedAsociación Mexicana de Jardines Botánicos Asociación Mexicana de Jardines Botánicos Mexico Contacted In Progress Alberto UnconfirmedHerbarium of the Institute of Ecology Instituto de Ecología A. C. Mexico Contacted In Progress Alberto UnconfirmedInstituto de Ecología Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México Mexico Contacted In Progress Alberto UnconfirmedEl Colegio de la Frontera Sur El Colegio de la Frontera Sur Mexico Contacted In Progress Alberto UnconfirmedInstituto Nacional de Ecología Secretaría de Medio Ambiente y Recursos Naturales Mexico Contacted In Progress Alberto UnconfirmedInternational Species Information System International Species Information System United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedOcean Biogeographic Information System University United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedDiscover Life Discover Life United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedThe Animal Diversity Web University of Michigan United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedUC Davis Herbarium Database University of California Davis United States Contacted In Progress UnconfirmedDigital Flora of Texas Texas A&M University United States Contacted In Progress UnconfirmedTHE EMBL REPTILE DATABASE Washington University United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedWorld Species List - Animals Plants Microbes WSL - NFR Institute United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedWorld Data Centre for Microorganisms World Federation for Culture Collections Contacted No response UnconfirmedInsect and Spider Collections of the World Bishop Museum United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedInter-Institutional Database of Fish Biodiversity in the Neo University of Michigan United States Contacted In Progress UnconfirmedA Global Information System for Lichenized and Non-Lich Botanische Staatssammlung München United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedInternational Species Information System International Species Information System United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedOcean Biogeographic Information System University United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedDiscover Life Discover Life United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedThe Animal Diversity Web University of Michigan United States Contacted In Progress UnconfirmedeNature.com National Wildlife Federation United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedMammals Species of the World Institution United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedHerbarium of the National School of Biological Sciences Escuela Nacional de Ciencias Biológicas Mexico Contacted In Progress Alberto UnconfirmedUniversidad Autonoma de Chapingo Universidad Autonoma de Chapingo Mexico Contacted In Progress Alberto UnconfirmedUNIVERSIDAD AUTÓNOMA DE NUEVO LEÓN UNIVERSIDAD AUTÓNOMA DE NUEVO LEÓN Mexico Contacted In Progress Alberto UnconfirmedTHE EMBL REPTILE DATABASE Washington University United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedWorld Species List - Animals Plants Microbes WSL - NFR Institute United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedWorld Data Centre for Microorganisms World Federation for Culture Collections a Centre for Micro Contacted No response UnconfirmedInsect and Spider Collections of the World Bishop Museum United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedInter-Institutional Database of Fish Biodiversity in the Neo University of Michigan United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedThe Virtual New York Botanical Garden New York Botanical Garden United States Contacted No response Unconfirmed

Summary of Partnership Contacts

Initiative Organization Country Contact Status Response Status Assisted By Co-Financing

StatusBiologyBrowser Biosciences Information Service United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedBrooklyn Botanic Garden Brooklyn Botanic Garden United States Contacted No response Unconfirmedw3Tropicos Missouri Botanical Garden United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedCenter for Plant Conservation Center for Plant Conservation United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedEndangered Species on EE Link North American Association for Environmental Education United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedInformation Center for the Environment University of California, Davis United States Contacted In Progress UnconfirmedCentre For Biological Diversity Centre For Biological Diversity United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedCalFlora University of California, Davis United States Contacted In Progress UnconfirmedBiota of North America Program North Carolina Botanical Garden United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedBishop Museum Bishop Museum United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedColorado Natural Heritage Program Colorado Natural Heritage Program United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedConservation Management Institute Virginia Tech United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedGlobal Invasive Species Program Stanford University United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedPennsylvania Spatial Data Access system Pennsylvania State University United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedSmithsonian Environmental Research Center Smithsonian Institution United States Contacted In Progress UnconfirmedCenter for International Earth Science Information Networ Columbia University United States Contacted In Progress UnconfirmedTreeBase University of Buffalo United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedvPlants A Virtual Herbarium of the Chicago Region The Morton Arboretum United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedFairchild Tropical GardenBotanical Resource Center Florida International University United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedPlant Information Center University of North Carolina United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedCalifornia Academy of Sciences California Academy of Sciences United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedUniversity of Florida Herbarium Databases Florida Museum of Natural History United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedMarion Ownbey Herbarium Databases Washington State University United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedOregon State University Herbarium Oregon State University United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedCollections at the Peabody Museum Yale University United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedUniversity of California Museum of Paleontology University of California, Berkeley United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedUniversity of Tennessee Herbarium University of Tennessee United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedUniversity of Kansas Natural History Museum University of Kansas United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedHarvard Museum of Natural History Harvard University United States Contacted In Progress UnconfirmedClearinghouse for the Olympic Peninsula Olympic Natural Resources Center United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedFlora of North America The Flora of North America Association United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedMan and the Biosphere Species Databases University of California, Davis United States Contacted In Progress UnconfirmedCornell University Museum of Vertebrates Cornell University United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedNatural History Museum of Los Angles County Natural History Museum of Los Angles County United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedField Museum Collections Database System Field Museum United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedThe Illinois State Museum The Illinois State Museum United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedFowler Herbarium North America Database Queens University Canada Contacted No response UnconfirmedThe Vascular Plant Herbarium Eastern Cereal and Oilseed Research Centre Canada Contacted In Progress CDN FP UnconfirmedUniversity of Michigan Herbarium University of Michigan United States Contacted In Progress UnconfirmedInvaders Database System University of Montana United States Contacted No response UnconfirmedNew York Natural Heritage Program New York Natural Heritage Program United States Contacted Not Interested NoneUnited Nations Environmental Program United Nations Environmental Program Mexico Contacted Not Interested NoneCanadian Indigenous Biodiversity Network Canadian Indigenous Biodiversity Network Canada Contacted In Progress UnconfirmedeNature.com National Wildlife Federation United States Contacted No response Unconfirmed


Page 9

Appendix B - Project Proposal Received

Catalog Service Proposal

1.0 Background: IABIN has successfully formed partnerships within North and South America as its network has evolved. These partnerships have laid the foundation for providing access to the tremendous amounts of biodiversity related data and information contained within it’s partner network. As IABIN is maturing as a network, the capabilities to provide seamless access to this vast amount of information are necessary. Therefore, this proposal addresses the creation of an “IABIN Catalog Service” designed to provide access to all types of IABIN partner data and information. Currently, IABIN information held by multiple institutions, is contained in varying formats, and is often available only for a few selected countries. This proposal intends to layout a methodology on how IABIN, as a network, can address these issues. 2.0 Partner Synergies with IABIN Objectives: The National Biological Information Infrastructure (NBII) premise of being a collaborative effort among federal, state, local, and foreign agencies, international and non-government organizations, academic institutions, and private sector groups whose principle purpose it is to provide a gateway to biological data and information is similar in scope to IABIN. The NBII is used by land managers, scientists, legislators, educators, and the general public for purposes that include land-use decisions, scientific research, policymaking, and general information needs within the United States. These goals and objectives are similar to IABIN. The NBII is also an active partner, in providing staff and resources, to support IABIN goals and objectives. 3.0 Project Description: This project proposes to take advantage of existing NBII Search Technology currently being utilized to support the 20 or so NBII Metadata Clearinghouse of Nodes throughout the United States. In 2000, the NBII entered into a partnership with Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tennessee, to support its metadata functions through the implementation of the Mercury tool. Mercury is a tool maintained and developed by the Department of Energy (DOE), NASA and other federal agencies over the past several years. Mercury is founded on the basis of a consortium of federal agencies that have provided funded to ORNL so that funds can be leveraged by each agency to support Mercury development, enhancements, and operations. The National Biological

Information Infrastructure (NBII) has provided funding to ORNL to provide support and improved access to metadata based on the NBII Biological Data Profile of the Content Standard for Digital Geospatial Metadata, FGDC-iD-001.1-1999). The Mercury platform is made up of several commercial off-the-shelf tools including Blue Angel Technologies, Fulcrum SearchServer along with customized search interface screens. Therefore, these tools can readily be redeployed in other environments if the needs arise. The Mercury system currently is being used to search primarily metadata, web sites, and specialized schemes for particular Mercury consortium partners. These documents or records can be in a variety of formats including: XML, HTML, SGML, z39.50 data, .doc, .pdf, etc. More powerful searching results can be obtained through the use of metadata standards, schemes, and fully documented data. Therefore, Mercury provides excellent generalized and umbrella search capabilities for the IABIN Catalog Service. Below is a basic schematic of Mercury capabilities currently being implemented within NBII that could be replicated to the IABIN network.

By taking advantage of the existing relationship, funding, and tools already developed by the NBII, IABIN partners and users will be provided access to all types of information regardless of it’s format, location, or underlying data structure. Improved data access will result as IABIN identifies and fully implements standardized data schemes for it’s vast amounts of information. As these standards evolve, so to will the search capabilities within the IABIN Catalog Service. Figure II below shows a potential IABIN Catalog Service Interface that will allow IABIN users to access IABIN data regardless of the data type, location, and/or format. This is interface is based primarily on implementing the Mercury tools and also providing access to Museum collections information, via the DiGIR tools as it’s adoption occurs within IABIN and the museum communities. Based on DiGIR’s evolvement as a stable product, it’s pending support from networks such as NBII and GBIF, the DiGIR tool and appropriate scheme’s (DarwinCore, ABCD Scheme) make the most sense for IABIN to implement to provide access to museum collection related information; however, a goal of the IABIN Catalog Service should be to provide access to “all” IABIN information

and therefore, in the future, IABIN should have as a goal providing access to this information, via the DiGIR standards and protocols, through the IABIN Catalog Service.

In summary, through implementation of the IABIN Catalog Service, users will have easy access to:

o IABIN Network Country Sites o Publications Documents of interest o Existing and future IABIN FGDC Metadata Clearinghouse Sites o IABIN Funded projects (i.e. I3N) o Museum collection specimen data, via DiGIR

As the IABIN network and its metadata schemes become more the stable, the ability for users to search via “fields/elements” within data sources will be made available through the IABIN Catalog Service. 4.0 Summary of Participating Organizations and Sources of Funding: USGS National Biological Information Infrastructure Program: As the operating agent for the NBII, the USGS is providing programmatic leadership, technical direction, infrastructure support, and funding to support the management and delivery of biodiversity data and information throughout the United States. In support of the NBII mission, the USGS has developed various data and information standards to enable the discovery and delivery of scientific and technical information. Along with the development of these standards, the USGS has also developed various tools, training support, and outreach capabilities. All of these efforts are integral components of the NBII Program. In that the USGS NBII Program does not have all of the necessary scientific, technical, and financial resources to build and operate the NBII on it’s own, the USGS NBII Program is a program made up of a number of federal, non-

federal, and private sector organizations. This allows the NBII Program to capitalize on partner strengths and supports the Program overall goals and objectives more effectively. This principle is demonstrated through the USGS NBII strategic partnership with the U.S. Department of Energy Oak Ridge National Laboratory. U.S. Department of Energy Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL): The US DOE Oak Ridge National Laboratory will extend the capabilities of the Mercury System to support IABIN search needs. ORNL will work closely with the USGS Program Office to insure that all requirements, data sources, and issues are addressed during the development of this project in a timely manner. 5.0 Chronogram of Project Activities: This project will involve performing a number of activities to support the development of the IABIN Catalog Service. These activities will primarily be done via conference calls, electronic mail, and web seminars. However, some resources will be required to support travel requirements to meet the tasks related to this project. A description of the high-level tasks required to create the IABIN Search Catalog Service are listed below.

- Solicitation of IABIN Country web pages/sites for automatic indexing of country web presences.

- Review and QA/QC of Country web pages/sites to insure the appropriate metadata and tags exists on partner pages.

- Work with IABIN Countries to improve web pages/sites metadata and tags to aid discovery of information.

- Identify existing IABIN Country FGDC metadata that can be also accessed through the IABIN Catalog Service.

- Develop IABIN Catalog Service Interface with priorities for data access to be: country websites, existing IABIN Country FGDC Metadata, Publications/Documents of interest, and IABIN funded projects of interest (I3N, etc.). The NBII Program has already invested funding in making IABIN I3N related project information available on the IABIN website.

- Index search catalog content. - Evaluate search catalog overall content. - Develop Help, sample search examples for IABIN Search Catalog System to

aid in users accessing the IABIN System. - Announce IABIN Search Catalog to IABIN partners. - Develop statistics to be provided to IABIN Council related to system usage

and performance. - Develop tools to enable the automatic inclusion of data sources, URLs, for

inclusion into the IABIN Catalog. - Provide limited support to IABIN high priority data/information to enable it’s

content to be included within the IABIN Catalog. Scripts will be developed to allow data holders to manipulate their information into appropriate IABIN

formats. A limited number of these scripts will be developed due to the resource limitations for this effort.

- Provide ongoing maintenance of the IABIN Catalog. A detailed work breakdown structure, which includes major milestones, will be jointly developed with input from all stakeholders involved in this project when the project is officially started. 6.0 Management: The overall project management, monitoring, and tracking of progress will be the responsibility of the NBII Program Office. Specifically, the Director of Research and Development for the NBII will work with the ORNL Development Team to insure that all deliverables and milestones are meet. Support from the IABIN council in working with IABIN partners will be required to insure this project is a success. 7.0 Budget summary and chronogram of expenses: The budget for this project is contained in the table below. The NBII Program Office intends to match, through both real dollar contributions and in-kind support this effort to help insure its success.

Organization Requested Funding

USGS NBII Program – The NBII Program will provide technical resources for overseeing this effort, supporting travel for technical NBII staff, and other administrative functions related to the development of the IABIN Search Catalog. The NBII Program office will also provide an additional $75,000 (1/2 fte) to support this effort development and technical development.

$25,000

Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) – ORNL will provide technical support for the development of IABIN Search Catalog Service and to maintain its operation over the next year.

$125,000

Total Requested Funding $150,000


Page 10

Appendix C – Letters of Intent Received

DIVISION OF EARLY WARNING & ASSESSMENT - NORTH AMERICA

Global Resource Information Database (GRID) -Sioux Falls, EROS Data Center, Sioux Falls, SD 57198, USA Tel: 605-594-6117/6107 Fax: 605-594-6119 Email: [email protected] WWW: http://na.unep.net

May 6, 2003 Richard M. Huber Principal Environmental Specialist Sustainable Development and Environment Organization of American States 1889 F. St., NW, Suite 695 Washington, D.C. 20006 Dear Mr. Huber, Our institution is strongly committed to programs of biological informatics in LAC. Over the next five years, we expect our approximate budget in this area to be $400,000. This program will be composed of the following activities and programs: - Using remotely sensed satellite images to document and visualize areas for rapid

environmental change. - Involvement in standards-compliant metadata, GSDI clearinghouse and spatial

visualization development. We understand that IABIN over the next five years will make the following contribution to hemispheric management of biological information: - Agreements between countries of the Americas on protocols and standards - Definition and design of these protocols and standards - Provision of analytical and search tools and methodologies - Endorsement politically and institutionally of informatics goals in countries of LAC - Maintenance of portals - Multifaceted efforts to increase the amount of publicly available biological information - Establishment of linkages/partnerships with other related initiatives to ensure cross

fertilization and sharing of tools and data and reduce costs because of overlapping mandates and standards (GBIF, NABIN, NBII, CHM, REMIB, etc.).

- Translation into LAC languages of key tools - International coordination meetings on a variety of issueS We are extremely committed to these goals and share these with IABIN. Over the period of the GEF/WB project, our institution will be making a direct contribution to these goals in an amount approximately equal to $12,000 of co-financing through the following ways: - Staff time to work on IABIN, participate in meetings, and provide TA to IABIN

partners

Contribution of time or resources to development of tools - Contribution of LAC wide Landsat coverage for circa 1975, 1990 and 2000 - Contribution of time series of satellite images for areas of rapid environmental

change - Contribution to the IABIN web portal As a result of working with and supporting the IABIN initiative, we expect furthermore that some part of our overall bioinformatics budget will be redirected to IABIN-compatible outputs (more sharing of data, more compatibility of data standards, better access to and use of data and information) in a way that would not have happened in the absence of the IABIN initiative. We estimate that this amount will be in the order of $50,000 over the next five years. Sincerely,

Ashbindu Singh, Regional Coordinator AS:jss