Deadline: 21-May-22
The GBIF Secretariat is now seeking a contractor to analyse and assess progress to date and to propose potential governance models that can help GBIF consolidate and prepare the alliance for its next phase.
GBIF (Global Biodiversity Information Facility) also convenes the alliance for biodiversity knowledge (the alliance), an umbrella framework for aligning investments in biodiversity informatics to support science and society.
The alliance is a coordination mechanism for developing shared road maps for biodiversity informatics. As such, it acts as an incubator or broker capable of bringing together or preserving critical infrastructure for the biodiversity informatics community. Organized around the GBIO Framework, it functions as a coordination mechanism for scaling up or solidifying key infrastructure elements needed to deliver biodiversity data, information and knowledge and to maximise the impact of FAIR and open data in research and policy.
GBIF, as an effective convenor across the global bioinformatics community, now seeks to consolidate the work to date on the alliance and establish the long-term structure necessary to function as an effective research and development incubator.
Aims
During its next five-year strategic framework, GBIF aims to position the alliance to:
- Scale up and keep pace with demands to align for research-for-development solutions and meet the growing needs of its community
- Provide an incubation mechanism for development of biodiversity informatics road maps
- Strengthen means of participation across existing signatories and communities to achieve critical technical milestones
- Increase capacity to address emerging issues through ongoing projects and tool development
- Create synergies leading to greater impact
This work will provide the foundation for developing long-term administration and coordination of the alliance. It will provide GBIF with an analysis that:
- Assesses the completeness of stakeholders and develops a prioritized framework for outreach and engagement
- Strengthen the understanding and vision of the alliance and provide communication of value to key stakeholders, including existing signatories and partners, aligned organizations, research communities and potential funders
- Develop a model of governance capable of managing a pipeline of investment and ongoing activities
- The selected contractor will develop options for future governance models and, in conjunction with the GBIF Secretariat, advise on steps to consolidate the progress to date.
Approach and Methods
The framework should prompt questions that enable GBIF to evaluate its effectiveness across impact areas and explore:
- Analyse current work
- Assess and consolidate work to date to review outputs both executed and planned, including input into road maps
- Document processes used to deliver outcomes, including where affiliated projects or institutions provided support or leverage
- Assess current alliance partner opportunities
- Analysis of partners, both as signatories and as participants in alliance-organized activities, taking into account and identifying the types of workstreams, current areas of strength and opportunities for growth
- Analysis of likely dependencies on outputs of alliance-related activities with conclusions on priority activities
- Conduct a needs assessment across partners to contribute to a potential list of foundational workstreams
- Recommendations
- Provide options for governance to support the alliance, its goals and its principles
- Identify effective approaches for stakeholder management
- Outline options for an alliance project office
Duration: They expect the contract to be signed by the end of May 2022. The GBIF Secretariat will work with the contractor to agree on the final process and deadline(s) for each deliverable. They would expect a full draft to be ready for presentation at the GBIF Governing Board in October 2022.
Eligibility Criteria
The alliance is open to all institutions, agencies, organisations, researchers and communities whose work measures and monitors biodiversity or depends on current, accurate and comprehensive information about biodiversity.
For more information, visit https://www.gbif.org/fr/news/6EzYcHp3dMZXkFGSALtQlg/call-for-proposals-to-scope-future-framework-of-the-alliance-for-biodiversity-knowledge