UNEP-WCMC/Earthwatch Collaboration

The need for more investment into research, identification and monitoring programmes is a key area that was highlighted by The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and is a primary aim for Earthwatch Institute.

Earthwatch is an international science and education charity that provides financial and volunteer support for field research, and during the last 30 years, Earthwatch has supported over 2,800 projects in 120 countries, and annually provides around $3.8 million in research grants to over 140 projects. Seventy percent of the Earthwatch project portfolio is biodiversity related, ranging from monitoring bird migration between Europe and Africa, to exploring how insect interactions maintain critically endangered habitats in Costa Rica’s tropical forest. These projects yield a constant stream of data on species, habitats, protected areas and climate change. In order to maximise the conservation benefit of its projects, Earthwatch needs to ensure that the data generated in the field is made accessible to a wider audience and contributes effectively to the Convention on Biological Diversity, CITES, CMS, Habitats Directive and other conservation initiatives.

The partnership between UNEP-WCMC and Earthwatch is twofold:

• providing a forum where Earthwatch project field results will be linked directly to the relevant UNEP-WCMC databases that are globally accessible
• providing up-to-date information from the field to UNEP-WCMC helping them achieve their aim of improving the quality and integrity of the global and regional datasets of their Biodiversity Information System (BIS).