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talk · Thursday 24 September · 14:50–⁠15:05 · SAL B

Biodiversity data at your fingertips: open-access freshwater biodiversity information systems for South Africa and Africa

Helen Dallas · A consensus taxonomic reference for improved freshwater biodiversity data and knowledge

Recording time 6:48:17–6:59:16Open on Vimeo ↗

Summaries and key moments are machine-produced. Check the recording for the speaker’s exact words.

The short versionCo-designed, open and interoperable freshwater information systems like FBIS turn fragmented records into decision-ready information, and multi-tenancy helps keep them sustainable.

Overview

What this was about

Helen Dallas presented FBIS, the Freshwater Biodiversity Information System for South Africa, and its continental scale-up FBIS-Africa. Developed since 2017 through user-centred design for water resource and conservation managers, researchers, consultants and policymakers, FBIS holds over 14 million occurrence records across eight biodiversity modules and has 1,648 registered users. It uses the GBIF taxonomic backbone (with planned FADA integration), links to the IUCN Red List, offers spatial and temporal filters, spatial layers and standardised dashboards, and attaches citation metadata to every record. Separating the engine from the data enabled redeployment for other platforms via a multi-tenant model that improves sustainability.

Why it matters. It offers a proven, reusable platform model for regional biodiversity data systems in resource-constrained settings.

Key ideas

In the room

  • Freshwater data are fragmented, inaccessible and poorly integrated, and thus underused in decision-making.
  • FBIS development began in 2017 with a user-centred approach, designing backwards from end users' needs.
  • FBIS holds over 14 million occurrence records, eight modules (fish, annelids, invertebrates, wetland and riparian plants, algae, wetland birds, water-dependent mammals and reptiles) and 1,648 registered users.
  • Taxonomy uses the GBIF backbone; integration with FADA is planned; links to IUCN conservation status.
  • Tools include spatial and temporal filters, spatial layers (catchments, ecoregions, protected areas), standardised dashboards, and downloadable graphs and data; every record carries citation metadata.
  • Separating the engine from the data allowed redeployment for other, including non-freshwater, platforms and scale-up to FBIS-Africa.
  • Multi-tenant model: independent governance and branding per tenant, shared costs, shared improvements and increased resilience.
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Programme abstract

Biodiversity data at your fingertips: open-access freshwater biodiversity information systems for South Africa and Africa

Helen Dallas

Freshwater biodiversity data are essential for monitoring ecosystem change, informing conservation, and supporting evidence-based management. However, such data often remain fragmented, inaccessible, or poorly integrated across scales, institutions, and regions. The Freshwater Biodiversity Information System (FBIS) and FBIS-Africa platforms, developed for South Africa and the broader African region respectively, respond directly to this need. FBIS is a powerful, visual, data-rich system designed to host, share, and explore freshwater biodiversity data. Its design and functionality have been shaped by key user groups, including water resource managers, conservation practitioners, planners, researchers, and environmental consultants. Both platforms interoperate with global biodiversity infrastructures, including GBIF and the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, contributing to a more connected and accessible freshwater biodiversity data ecosystem. By combining regional expertise, open infrastructure, and interoperable data workflows, FBIS and FBIS-Africa demonstrate how community-driven information systems can support FAIR biodiversity data mobilisation and translate knowledge into actionable conservation and management outcomes. The South African platform already supports improved freshwater science, conservation, and decision-making at a national scale, with approximately 14 million occurrence records across eight biodiversity modules. The recently developed FBIS-Africa platform is rapidly expanding in both data coverage and user uptake. Together, these platforms play a critical role in translating freshwater biodiversity data into informed monitoring, management, and conservation action across local, regional, continental, and global scales.

Submitted to the conference programme before the talk, so the talk itself may differ.