Accessing and Integrating Multidisciplinary Global Change Data

Columbia Universityin the City of New York

World Data Center for Human Interactions in the Environment

© 2000 The Trustees of Columbia University in the City of New York

Accessing and Integrating

Multidisciplinary Global Change Data

Dr. Robert S. ChenDr. Deborah L. BalkCenter for International Earth Science Information NetworkSocioeconomic Data and Applications Center Columbia UniversityPalisades, New York USAhttp://www.ciesin.orghttp://sedac.ciesin.org




Center for International Earth Science Information Network (CIESIN)

Established in 1989 in Michigan as a Consortium; became a Center in the Columbia Earth Institute in July 1998

Based at Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, Palisades NY


Registered UN nongovernmental organization

Interdisciplinary staff from social, natural, and computer sciences

Home page athttp://www.ciesin.org




CIESIN Mission and Activities

CIESIN Mission To provide access to and enhance the use of information

worldwide, advancing understanding of human interactions in the environment and serving the needs of science and public and private decision making.

Major Programs and Projects NASA Socioeconomic Data and Applications Center (SEDAC) U.S. Global Change Research Information Office (GCRIO) World Data Center for Human Interactions in the Environment World Bank development information systems




Example CIESIN Data and Services

Major Data Products and Interactive Applications Gridded Population of the World; China, Mexico data collections DDViewer (U.S., U.S.-Mexico); Geocorr; DDCarto; ACRP online Environmental Treaties and Resource Indicators database Stratospheric Ozone and Human Health WWW site IPCC Special Report on Emission Scenarios Open Process WWW site CIESIN Gateway Search System (implements Z39.50 protocol and various metadata

standards) Land and Water Knowledge Management Node Pilot Environmental Sustainability Index (Yale, World Economic Forum)

Other Services Email-to-WWW access User Services office (business hours) Ask Dr. Global Change GCRIO document distribution




Challenges in Integrating Global Socioeconomic Data

Spatial consistency Same set of countries? Same “definition” for each country? Are there gaps or biases in spatial coverage? Multiple counting of people/activities across countries? Important

omissions? Temporal consistency

Same underlying temporal unit? (e.g., total or average for year, month, day vs. instantaneous value)

Do variable definitions and/or underlying spatial units vary over time? Are updates and corrections to historical data handled consistently?

“Conversion” consistency What conversion factor, common units, international standard, and/or

subcategories are most appropriate? (e.g., exchange rate adjusted by purchasing power; energy or carbon content; economic sector definitions)




Spatial and Temporal Consistency: China Boundary Data

CIESIN’s China data Boundaries different even between

July and December 1990 to correspond to 2 different datasets

Continual changes in subnational boundaries over time

PRC view of China, including disputed territories

Available through China Dimensions WWW site and developed through lengthy collaboration with China in Time and Space Project and various Chinese organizations

http://sedac.ciesin.org/china




Conversion Consistency:Integrated Assessment Model Data

Computer Model Data Intergovernmental Panel on Climate

Change (IPCC) commissioned a Special Report on Emission Scenarios (SRES) as input to IPCC Third Assessment

Needed Open Process to ensure wide international input and review; CIESIN Open Process site created to share model scenarios during 1999

Focused working group required much time and effort to reconcile model differences and produce comparable scenarios and data for comparable regions and variables

For further details, see

http://www.ciesin.org/SRES_fullsize.pdf




Challenges in Integrating Global Socio-economic with Environmental Data (1)

Spatial Integration: Three Approaches Aggregate environmental data to administrative units

Need georeferenced boundaries, weights (e.g., for affected population)

Disaggregate socioeconomic data to “grid” Need georeferenced boundaries, disaggregation method with

assumptions or model regarding distribution of population and associated characteristics

Overlay georeferenced data Intersect underlying geographies (e.g., administrative units with

watersheds, population distribution with measurement station locations, urban lifelines with earthquake faults)




Disaggregate Socioeconomic Data to Grid: Gridded Population of the World Dataset

Created in 1994-95 Collaboration with NCGIA (W. Tobler

and U. Deichmann) 19,000 administrative units used Estimated 1994 populations Total population of 5.6 billion 5’ x 5’ lat-lon spherical

quadrilaterals 6.7 million cells Unsmoothed and smoothed versions

(Tobler’s pycnophylactic algorithm) Regional and global coverages

Uses have included: Comparison with OLS data Vulnerability to hazards Land use classification Human stress on environment

http://www.ciesin.org/datasets/gpw/

globldem.doc.html




Updated Gridded Population of the World Dataset

Undergoing testing Collaboration with WRI and IFPRI

(U. Deichmann) with regional inputs from UNEP-GRID, CIAT, others

~121,000 administrative units used Estimated 1990 and 1995 pops Total 1995 population of 5.7 Billion 2.5’ x 2.5’ lat-lon quadrilaterals ~29 million cells Unsmoothed version only Regional and global coverages

Changes in technique Proportional allocation DCW as base Populations consistent with UN

1995 national totals Easier to update by country




Gridded Population of the World, Version 2: 1995

Robinson Projection




Database of Country Boundaries and Ancillary Data

Technical documentation of methodology and error

Summary of data utilized by world region

Live links to country summary pages




Example Country Summary Page

Summary of data and sources, including links to sources

GIFs of each country’s boundaries




Test Version Now Available!

Via CD-ROM or ftp. Contact: SEDAC User Services Greg Yetman

e-mail [email protected] [email protected]. 914-365-8922 914-365-8982

Testers welcome! Final release expected May/June Redistribution of ORNL Landscan dataset also planned 2-3 May 2000 workshop on gridding population planned,

including participation by UNEP-GRID, ORNL, WRI, others; contactauthors if interested.




Spatial Integration at the Global Scale: Key Issues

Much boundary data are proprietary and cannot be redistributed or are restricted to non-commercial uses

Major problem with disputed boundaries, including countries that object even to calling a boundary disputed

Quality of spatial data and attributes (e.g., census data) quite varied

Difficult to identify and access many datasets, due to scattered institutional sources, limited cataloging and documentation, problems of conversion and integration

Integration of even a basic dataset like population density requires significant effort, expertise, and resources




Challenges in Integrating Global Socio-economic with Environmental Data (2)

Temporal Integration Temporal characteristics of socioeconomic data

Day vs. night; commuting vs. non-commuting times; weekday vs. weekend; seasonal fluctuations in tourism, recreation

Temporal aspects of environmental data Peak vs. average values; return periods; frequency distributions Biases due to observational limitations (e.g., clouds)

“Conceptual” Integration Influence of mediating factors

e.g., exposure to environmental pollution mediated by built infrastructure, occupation, commuting patterns, age structure, income, behavior




Conceptual Integration:The ENTRI Database

CIESIN’s ENTRI database Includes treaty status, treaty

text, national-level resource and environmental indicators from multiple sources, e.g., IUCN, UNEP, World Resources Institute

Nation-state as common variable Permits relational queries across

treaties and indicators Does not address gap between

national treaty participation and actual implementation of national/ subnational policies leading to environmental improvement

http://sedac.ciesin.org/entri/




Conceptual Integration: The Pilot Environmental Sustainability Index

Pilot Environmental Sustainability Index Developed with Yale University under the

auspices of the World Economic Forum (WEF) Global Leaders for Tomorrow Environment Task Force

Integrates a wide range of environmental and socioeconomic data (64 variables) into an “illustrative” index of sustainability for 56 economies

Attempts to focus attention of policy makers and the public on relative progress towards improved environmental sustainability

Concepts are evolving and the index still very much under development

For further details, see http://www.ciesin.org/indica

tors/ESI/pilot_esi.html

0 20 40 60 80 100

Vietnam

Philippines

El Salvador

Egypt

Zimbabwe

India

Peru

Ukraine

Mexico

Turkey

Thailand

J ordan

Bulgaria

South Africa

Mauritius

Indonesia

China

Singapore

Malaysia

Colombia

Greece

Bolivia

Venezuela

Costa Rica

Ecuador

Korea

Poland

Brazil

Chile

Czech Republic

Hungary

Italy

Argentina

Belgium

Russia

Slovak Republic

Spain

Israel

J apan

Portugal

United States

Germany

Austria

Netherlands

United Kingdom

Denmark

Australia

France

Ireland

Canada

New Zealand

Sweden

Finland

Switzerland

Iceland

Norway

Ran

king

for I

llust

rativ

e Pu

rpos

es O

nly

Longer bars denote greater levels of environmental sustainability

Environmental Systems

Environmental Stresses

Human Vulnerability

Social and Institutional Capacity

Global Stewardship




Summary and Observations

Considerable work in progress around the world in data management, development, and integration, e.g., in developing international spatially referenced data bases and distributed data catalogs

UN coordination of its own data development and integration efforts would be extremely beneficial

The UN’s efforts may also be able to benefit substantially from approaches, technologies, and projects developed in the non-governmental sector

CIESIN as a university-based NGO is very interested in working with this UN Working Group on these issues

Documents

Accessing and Integrating Multidisciplinary Global Change Data