Spatio-Temporal evolutive Data Infrastructure: a Spatial Data Infrastructure for managing data flows of Territorial Statistical Information

Abstract

ABSTRACTThe observation of demographical, economical or environmental indicators over time through maps is crucial. It enables analysing territories and helps stakeholders to take decisions. However, the understanding of Territorial Statistical Information (TSI) is compromised unless comprehensive description of both the statistical methodology used and the spatial and temporal references are given. Thus, in this paper, we stress the importance of metadata descriptions and of their quality that helps assessing data reliability. Furthermore, time-series of such TSI are paramount. They enable analysing a territory over a long period of time and likewise judging the effectiveness of reforms. In light of these observations, we present Spatio-Temporal evolutive Data Infrastructure (STeDI) an innovative Spatial Data Infrastructure (SDI) that enriches the description of a Digital Earth, providing a virtual representation of territories and of their evolution through statistics and time. STeDI aims at managing a whole dataflow of multi-dimensional, multi-scale and multi-temporal TSI, from their acquisition to their dissemination to scientists and policy-makers. The content of this SDI evolves autonomously thanks to automated processes and to a Web platform that help improving the quality of datasets uploaded by experts. Then, STeDI allows visualizing up-to-date time-series reflecting the human activities on a given territory. It helps policy-makers in their decision-making process.