Abstract
BackgroundFree and open access to primary biodiversity data is essential for informed decision-making to achieve conservation of biodiversity and sustainable development. However, primary biodiversity data are neither easily accessible nor discoverable. Among several impediments, one is a lack of incentives to data publishers for publishing of their data resources. One such mechanism currently lacking is recognition through conventional scholarly publication of enriched metadata, which should ensure rapid discovery of 'fit-for-use' biodiversity data resources.DiscussionWe review the state of the art of data discovery options and the mechanisms in place for incentivizing data publishers efforts towards easy, efficient and enhanced publishing, dissemination, sharing and re-use of biodiversity data. We propose the establishment of the 'biodiversity data paper' as one possible mechanism to offer scholarly recognition for efforts and investment by data publishers in authoring rich metadata and publishing them as citable academic papers. While detailing the benefits to data publishers, we describe the objectives, work flow and outcomes of the pilot project commissioned by the Global Biodiversity Information Facility in collaboration with scholarly publishers and pioneered by Pensoft Publishers through its journals Zookeys, PhytoKeys, MycoKeys, BioRisk, NeoBiota, Nature Conservation and the forthcoming Biodiversity Data Journal. We then debate further enhancements of the data paper beyond the pilot project and attempt to forecast the future uptake of data papers as an incentivization mechanism by the stakeholder communities.ConclusionsWe believe that in addition to recognition for those involved in the data publishing enterprise, data papers will also expedite publishing of fit-for-use biodiversity data resources. However, uptake and establishment of the data paper as a potential mechanism of scholarly recognition requires a high degree of commitment and investment by the cross-sectional stakeholder communities.
Highlights
Taxonomic Coverage Spatial CoverageTemporal Coverage Project DescriptionNatural Collections Description
While detailing the benefits to data publishers, we describe the objectives, work flow and outcomes of the pilot project commissioned by the Global Biodiversity Information Facility in collaboration with scholarly publishers and pioneered by Pensoft Publishers through its journals Zookeys, PhytoKeys, MycoKeys, BioRisk, NeoBiota, Nature Conservation and the forthcoming Biodiversity Data Journal
Discovery of existing and prospective unpublished data needs to be encouraged, if our goal is to fill the extensive biodiversity knowledge gap that exists today. This emphasis on free and open access to biodiversity data is in tune with the call for open access to primary scientific data, which
Summary
Taxonomic Coverage Spatial CoverageTemporal Coverage Project DescriptionNatural Collections Description. Discovery of existing and prospective unpublished data needs to be encouraged, if our goal is to fill the extensive biodiversity knowledge gap that exists today This emphasis on free and open access to biodiversity data is in tune with the call for open access to primary scientific data, which. In 2004, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) recognized the importance of open access to primary scientific data [23] Established initiatives such as Conservation Commons [24], the Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS) 10 year implementation plan [25], and the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) [26] recognized the importance of open access to primary scientific knowledge. Several of them emphasized the need for simultaneous publication of primary biodiversity data with scholarly publications and described some approaches to incorporate this practice in the routine publication process [35,36,37,38]
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