GSPC Target 1: The ‘World Flora’: possibilities & perspectives –

a Stakeholder Consultation

Chris FreelandDirector, Center for Biodiversity Informatics, Missouri Botanical GardenTechnical Director, Biodiversity Heritage Library

Email: chris.freeland@mobot.org

Twitter: @chrisfreeland

#gppc

Goals of workshop

• Extend overview from Turland’s plenary talk• Present perspectives from international

stakeholders– Paton, Crouch

• Review & discuss procedural/organizational questions

Outcome: Summary report outlining discussion and possible ways forward

GSPC Target 1: “An online flora of all known plants.”

7 words, n7 ways of interpreting them

April 2011 Meeting

• Informal meeting held at MOBOT

• How would you attempt a world flora?• How is it different than the floras we’ve

produced before?

• What materials needed?• What technologies?

Major constraint: 2020 deadline

• Have to work with existing knowledge to achieve target by 2020– “No time for biology or taxonomy”

• Comparisons with existing floristic projects– Has taken 10 years to compile checklist of

Antioquia, 35 years for Flora of North America

Major asset: Existing data

• 250+ years of published floras, treatments, monographs– Some published electronically, most printed– Biodiversity Heritage Library has efficient pipeline

for digitization

• APG to define family-level framework• The Plant List to define list of species– TPL needs continuous updates

Triage: Data Gathering

1. Catalogue existing datasets, monographs, treatments, and floras– Score publications by criteria of usefulness– Digitize printed titles en masse

2. Use APG & TPL for family- & species-level backbone

3. Aggregate descriptions from the digitized resources – Use a rules engine for selecting best description,

links to all the rest

Triage: Data Refinement

4. Publish the flora online with gaps5. Divide the gaps among institutions– How big is this? What is the level of effort

required for this new research at global scale?

6. Provide tools for collaborative authoring / curating

Components of an online flora

• Name & synonymy from TPL *• Description *• Characters & Character states *• References *– To other floras & supporting data

• Distribution *– Literature-based, specimen-based

• Conservation status• Images– Illustrations, photos, specimen images

• Notes * = required, others optional

Administration needed

• Global leadership team• Team of regional managers• Editorial committee?– Not too big

• Formatting committee?– Not too rigid– Need a schema, guidance on what is expected in

treatment

Who will contribute?

• Plant scientists• Citizen scientists• General public• Crowdsourcing?

GSPC Target 1: The ‘World Flora’: possibilities & perspectives –

a Stakeholder Consultation

Chris FreelandDirector, Center for Biodiversity Informatics, Missouri Botanical GardenTechnical Director, Biodiversity Heritage Library

Email: chris.freeland@mobot.org

Twitter: @chrisfreeland

#gppc