3GTW
the 3rd Global Taxonomy Workshop
Pretoria 2002
Paris 2003

Implementing the Global Taxonomy Initiative


Plan of Action and Resource Kit for
Taxonomic Capacity Building





3GTW Plan of Action
for Demand-Driven Taxonomic Capacity Building
Partner commitments [1] to date to a strategy for delivering taxonomic capacity and products needed by users, including those in the following sectors: agriculture; forestry; marine, environment managers; conservationists; policy and decision makers; indigenous and local communities; private sector (national and multinational); publicly-owned companies; ecotourism; biosecurity; biosafety; Access and benefit sharing; bioindicators; biotechnology and health issues (including emerging diseases).

Strategy element

Actions identified by 3GTW Partners

Partners committed to date

1.        End-user focus:

 Meet stakeholder needs

1.        Form partnerships with users

2.        Incorporate market research techniques in assessing stakeholder needs, including methods of ensuring stakeholder take-up of taxonomic products

3.        Needs assessments, including identifying full range of stakeholders and users

4.        Make taxonomic products more relevant to non-taxonomic issues

5.        Improve stabilisation of names and develop concordencies between different classifications

6.        Increase the rate at which species are identified

7.        Establish discussion fora.

8.        Include feedback on products from users and ‘lessons learned’ in projects

9.        Assist with delivery of products

10.     Sharing of biodiversity data with developing country end-users

11.     Coordination (regional)

1.        GBIF, IPPC, ITIS, GISP, ICIPE, IUCN, RBGK, SP2000, UNESCO

2.        -

3.        GBIF, GISP, ICIPE, NHM, UNESCO, WFCC

4.        ABRS, GBIF, GISP, ICIPE, ITIS, RBGK, SP2000, SPP

5.        GBIF, ITIS, NHM, RBGK, SP2000

6.        GBIF, RBGK

7.        GBIF, IUCN

8.        GBIF, GISP, IUCN

9.        ABRS, GISP, SPP, UNESCO, WFCC

10.     ENBI

11.     BioNET LOOPs,

2.        Political partnership:

Generate effective political and multi-sectoral commitment to fulfill national and international obligations.

1.        Raise profile of taxonomy with key sectors of society, including policy and decision makers;

2.        Work with CBD and other conventions and related UN bodies;

3.        Participate in bodies reporting to government on biodiversity issues;

4.        Engage decision makers;

5.        Conduct media campaigns;

6.        Develop education programmes;

7.        Participate in global initiative on biodiversity communication, education and public awareness (CEPA)

8.        Awareness raising through Interim Commission on Phytosanitary Measures regarding need for support to taxonomy

9.        Champion taxonomy nationally and regionally

10.     Coordination (regional)

1.        ABRS, GBIF, GISP, ICIPE, IUCN, NHM, RBGK, SP2000, SPP, UNESCO, WFCC

2.        ABRS, GBIF, GISP, IUCN, SPP, UNESCO

3.        ABRS, GBIF, GISP, ICIPE, IUCN, RBGK

4.        ABRS, GBIF, GISP, ICIPE, IUCN, RBGK, UNESCO

5.        GBIF,

6.        GBIF, NHM, UNESCO

7.        UNESCO

8.        IPPC

9.        ABRS

10.     BioNET LOOPs

3.        Global partnership:

Enhance collaboration, cooperation and partnerships, building to global scales

1.        strengthen networking between institutes, individuals and countries;

2.        improve effectiveness of focal points;

3.        Drive pro-action of groups, networks and societies in linking together;

4.        Promote Access and Benefit-sharing for inclusiveness of all 

5.        Increase collaboration with BioNET-INTERNATIONAL LOOPs

6.        CBD-IPPC collaboration activities

7.        Continue to write, publish & distribute Species Plantarum Flora of the World

8.        Coordination (regional)

1.        CETAF, GBIF, IUCN, NHM, UNESCO

2.        GBIF, NHM

3.        ABRS, GBIF, IUCN, NHM, UNESCO

4.        GBIF, IUCN, RGBK, WFCC

5.        UNESCO, WFCC

6.        GISP, IPPC,

7.        ABRS, SPP

8.        BioNET LOOPs

4.        Awareness and action:

Improve access to and analysis of policy level  information within the taxonomic community.

1.        develop and sustain  awareness of taxonomy in development programme processes and objectives.

2.        develop and sustain  awareness of NBSAPs

3.        develop and sustain  awareness of relevant Convention decisions;

4.        develop and sustain  awareness of donor policy backgrounds.

5.        Analyze information obtained to relate taxonomic output to development objectives

6.        Contribute to harmonising the format of national reports under various conventions.

7.        Promote support to taxonomy as it relates to phytosanitary issues of National Plant Protection Organisations (NPPOs)

8.        Liase through International Phytosanitary Portal (in future)

9.        Build awareness of taxonomic networks among Regional Plant Protection organisations

10.     Coordination (regional)

1.        ABRS, GISP, IUCN, WFCC

2.        IUCN, WFCC

3.        ABRS, GISP, NHM, IUCN, RBGK, WFCC

4.        GISP, IUCN, WFCC

5.        GISP, IUCN, WFCC

6.        IUCN

7.        ABRS, GISP, IPPC

8.        IPPC

9.        BioNET LOOPs

10.     BioNET LOOPs

5.        Capacity building:

Build human and infrastructural capacity to meet sustainable development needs

1.        develop long-term strategy for sustaining capacity

2.        develop capacity within current structures and processes;

3.        identify and include new elements, structures and processes;

4.        improve access to new information technologies

5.        Access and mobilise resources

6.        Assist in development of curricula in tertiary institutions

7.        Pursue current activities in relation to training in taxonomy and parataxonomy

8.        Help assess taxonomic needs assessments for NPPOs using “Phytosanitary Capacity Evaluation”

9.        Advanced training in taxonomy, curation and other relevant disciplines

10.     Establish Regional Biodiversity Centres based on existing infrastructure

11.     Coordination (regional)

1.        GBIF, GISP, IUCN, RBGK, UNESCO

2.        ABRS, CABI, GBIF, GISP, IUCN, NHM, SPP, UNESCO, WFCC

3.        GBIF, GISP, UNESCO

4.        GBIF, GISP, RBGK

5.        GBIF, GISP

6.        UNESCO

7.        UNESCO, ABRS

8.        IPPC

9.        CABI, University of Amsterdam, National Herbarium (Netherlands),

10.     CABI, ICIPE, WFCC

11.     BioNET LOOPs

6.        Science:

Sustainably maintain and enhance taxonomic science skills and knowledge base to enable responsiveness to emerging needs

1.        Support and strengthen existing collections, institutions and networks;

2.        Generate interest in taxonomy as a science and encourage people to join discipline; find mechanisms and incentives for employing taxonomists

3.        Develop and improve training programmes and curricula;

4.        Develop mechanisms for linking taxonomists to end users;

5.        Complete the catalogue of life

6.        Adoption of new technologies/techniques

7.        Coordination (regional)

1.        ABRS, GBIF, NHM, RBGK, UNESCO, WFCC

2.        IUCN, NHM, RBGK, UNESCO, WFCC

3.        GBIF, GISP, NHM, UNESCO, WFCC

4.        GBIF, GISP, IUCN, RBGK, WFCC

5.        ABRS, GBIF, ICIPE, RBGK, SP2000, SPP

6.        GBIF, RBGK

7.        ABRS, BioNET LOOPs

7.       Taxonomic information:

Improve access to and exchange of taxonomic information and products

[This is one of GBIF’s major goals]

1.        Decrease publication time for taxonomic works;

2.        Improve accessibility of publications;

3.        Develop and link databases of taxonomic information;

4.        Improve access to specimens and data

5.        Exploit appropriate information technology;

6.        Improve access and communication among experts;

7.        Improve transfer and interpretation of taxonomic products from providers to users

8.        Coordination (regional)

1.        ABRS, GBIF, SPP, UNESCO

2.        ABRS, Fauna Europea, GBIF, RBGK, SPP

3.        ABRS, European Catalogue of Names GBIF, ITIS, IUCN-SIS, NHM, NSF, RBGK, SP2000, SPP

4.        ABRS, ENBI, GBIF, ITIS, IUCN, NHM, RBGK, WFCC

5.        ABRS, ENBI, ETI, GBIF, ITIS, IUCN, NHM, RBGK, SP2000, WFCC

6.        ETI, GBIF, GISP, IUCN, SP2000, WFCC

7.        ETI, GBIF, GISP, ITIS, RBGK, SP2000, UNESCO, WFCC

8.        BioNET LOOPs

8.        Timeliness:

Accelerate the full taxonomic cycle: discovery, description,

determination and dissemination

1.        Improve and develop new tools and technologies in taxonomic research;

2.        Improve response times – provide quicker and more accurate identification and description;

3.        Examine new approaches to components of the cycle and cycle in total

4.        Coordination (regional)

1.        ETI, GBIF, NHM, RBGK, WFCC

2.        ABRS, ETI, GBIF, NHM, SPP, WFCC

3.        ABRS, UNESCO, WFCC

4.        BioNET LOOPs

9.        Resourcing:

Access and mobilise resources ( ensure resources are available for production of appropriate product)

1.        Identify new resources via new areas of application (e.g. trade; expand ecotourism products to new groups)

2.        Enhance skills/institutional capacity in writing/managing successful proposals

3.        Improve communication skills

4.        Improve media relation skills

5.        Develop co-funding partnerships based on end-user needs

6.        Assist with workshops aimed at developing project proposals for funding

7.        Participate in fundraising nationally, regionally and globally

8.        Coordination (regional)

1.        -

2.        GISP, NHM

3.        -

4.        NHM

5.        ABRS, GBIF, GISP, NHM, RBGK, SPP, WFCC

6.        GISP, UNESCO, WFCC

7.        ABRS, SPP

8.        BioNET LOOPs

[1] Further details on this and other recent activities in support of the GTI are reported in the SBSTTA-9 Information Document, UNEP/CBD/SBSTTA/9/INF/16, November 2003.

[2] Acronyms