Assessing the FAIR Digital Object Framework for Global Biodiversity Research

Research Ideas and Outcomes, vol. 9

Abstract

In the first decades of the 21st century, there has been a global trend towards digitisation and the mobilisation of data from natural history museums and research institutions. The development of national and international aggregator systems, which focused on data standards, made it possible to access millions of museum specimen records. These records serve as an empirical foundation for research across various fields. In addition, community efforts have expanded the concept of natural history collection specimens to include physical preparations and digital resources, resulting in the Digital Extended Specimen (DES), which also includes derived and related data. Within this context, the paper proposes using the FAIR Digital Object (FDO) framework to accelerate the global vision of the DES, arguing that FDO-enabled infrastructures can reduce barriers to the discovery and access of specimens, help ensure credit back to contributors and increase the amount of research that incorporates biodiversity data.

Authors 7

1. Sharif Islam corresponding Aachen Naturalis Biodiversity Center DiSSCo

   Naturalis Biodiversity Center · Corporation for National Research Initiatives · Florida Museum of Natural History · University of Kansas · Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County · University of Florida · Indiana University Bloomington · Distributed System of Scientific Collections

   Affiliation as printed

   Naturalis Biodiversity Center, Leiden, Netherlands

   Corporation for National Research Initiatives (CNRI), Reston, Virginia, United States of America

   DiSSCo, Leiden, Netherlands | University of Kansas, Lawrence, United States of America

   Florida Museum of Natural History, Gainesville, United States of America

   Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, Los Angeles, United States of America

   University of Florida, Gainesville, United States of America

   » Indiana University Bloomington, Bloomington, IN, United States of America

2. James H. Beach Aachen DiSSCo Naturalis Biodiversity Center

   Naturalis Biodiversity Center · Corporation for National Research Initiatives · Florida Museum of Natural History · University of Kansas · Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County · University of Florida · Indiana University Bloomington · Distributed System of Scientific Collections

   Affiliation as printed

   University of Kansas, Lawrence, United States of America

   Corporation for National Research Initiatives (CNRI), Reston, Virginia, United States of America

   DiSSCo, Leiden, Netherlands | University of Kansas, Lawrence, United States of America

   Florida Museum of Natural History, Gainesville, United States of America

   Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, Los Angeles, United States of America

   Naturalis Biodiversity Center, Leiden, Netherlands

   University of Florida, Gainesville, United States of America

   » Indiana University Bloomington, Bloomington, IN, United States of America

3. Elizabeth R. Ellwood Aachen DiSSCo Naturalis Biodiversity Center

   Naturalis Biodiversity Center · Corporation for National Research Initiatives · Florida Museum of Natural History · University of Kansas · Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County · University of Florida · Indiana University Bloomington · Distributed System of Scientific Collections

   Affiliation as printed

   Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, Los Angeles, United States of America

   Corporation for National Research Initiatives (CNRI), Reston, Virginia, United States of America

   DiSSCo, Leiden, Netherlands | University of Kansas, Lawrence, United States of America

   Florida Museum of Natural History, Gainesville, United States of America

   Naturalis Biodiversity Center, Leiden, Netherlands

   University of Florida, Gainesville, United States of America

   » Indiana University Bloomington, Bloomington, IN, United States of America

4. J.A.B. Fortes Aachen DiSSCo Naturalis Biodiversity Center

   Naturalis Biodiversity Center · Corporation for National Research Initiatives · Florida Museum of Natural History · University of Kansas · Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County · University of Florida · Indiana University Bloomington · Distributed System of Scientific Collections

   Affiliation as printed

   University of Florida, Gainesville, United States of America

   Corporation for National Research Initiatives (CNRI), Reston, Virginia, United States of America

   DiSSCo, Leiden, Netherlands | University of Kansas, Lawrence, United States of America

   Florida Museum of Natural History, Gainesville, United States of America

   Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, Los Angeles, United States of America

   Naturalis Biodiversity Center, Leiden, Netherlands

   » Indiana University Bloomington, Bloomington, IN, United States of America

5. Larry Lannom Aachen DiSSCo Naturalis Biodiversity Center

   Naturalis Biodiversity Center · Corporation for National Research Initiatives · Florida Museum of Natural History · University of Kansas · Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County · University of Florida · Indiana University Bloomington · Distributed System of Scientific Collections

   Affiliation as printed

   Corporation for National Research Initiatives (CNRI), Reston, Virginia, United States of America

   DiSSCo, Leiden, Netherlands | University of Kansas, Lawrence, United States of America

   Florida Museum of Natural History, Gainesville, United States of America

   Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, Los Angeles, United States of America

   Naturalis Biodiversity Center, Leiden, Netherlands

   University of Florida, Gainesville, United States of America

   » Indiana University Bloomington, Bloomington, IN, United States of America

6. Gil Nelson Aachen DiSSCo Naturalis Biodiversity Center

   Naturalis Biodiversity Center · Corporation for National Research Initiatives · Florida Museum of Natural History · University of Kansas · Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County · University of Florida · Indiana University Bloomington · Distributed System of Scientific Collections

   Affiliation as printed

   Florida Museum of Natural History, Gainesville, United States of America

   Corporation for National Research Initiatives (CNRI), Reston, Virginia, United States of America

   DiSSCo, Leiden, Netherlands | University of Kansas, Lawrence, United States of America

   Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, Los Angeles, United States of America

   Naturalis Biodiversity Center, Leiden, Netherlands

   University of Florida, Gainesville, United States of America

   » Indiana University Bloomington, Bloomington, IN, United States of America

7. Beth Plale Aachen DiSSCo Naturalis Biodiversity Center

   Naturalis Biodiversity Center · Corporation for National Research Initiatives · Florida Museum of Natural History · University of Kansas · Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County · University of Florida · Indiana University Bloomington · Distributed System of Scientific Collections

   Affiliation as printed

   Indiana University Bloomington, Bloomington, IN, United States of America

   Corporation for National Research Initiatives (CNRI), Reston, Virginia, United States of America

   DiSSCo, Leiden, Netherlands | University of Kansas, Lawrence, United States of America

   Florida Museum of Natural History, Gainesville, United States of America

   Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, Los Angeles, United States of America

   Naturalis Biodiversity Center, Leiden, Netherlands

   University of Florida, Gainesville, United States of America

   » Indiana University Bloomington, Bloomington, IN, United States of America