The research infrastructure

LifeWatch will construct and bring into operation the facilities, hardware, software and governance structures for all aspects of biodiversity research. It will consist of:  facilities for data generation and processing; a network of observatories; facilities for data integration and interoperability; virtual laboratories offering a range of analytical and modelling tools; and a Service Centre providing special services for scientific and policy users, including training and research opportunities for young scientists. The infrastructure has the support of all major European biodiversity research networks.

Rationale

While we are exploring other planets, its is surprising how little we still know about our own planet Earth. This is especially true for our understanding of the living world, the biological diversity of species, and their genes and the ecosystems in which they occur. We only know a fraction of the probably millions of species, especially of the insects, microorganisms and other small species which are in different ways crucial for goods and services such as pollination, health or biotechnology. Scientific developments generated knowledge about some components of biodiversity, but the research community needs a new methodological approach to understand the biodiversity system. LifeWatch is designed to serve science as a large-scale facility offering on-line facilities for such methodologies.

Vision and ambition

The LifeWatch infrastructure for biodiversity research addresses the huge gaps we face in our understanding of life on Earth. Its innovative design supports a large-scale methodological approach to data resources, advanced algorithms and computational capability. Life Watch will not only serve to support the scientific research, but also support the understanding and the rational management of our ecosystems by policy makers, the private sector and the general public.

Mission and services

• Operate a single portal for pure and applied researchers, policy makers, industries and the public at large
• Enable new scientific practices and inspire a new generation of scientists
• Structure the scientific community with new opportunities for large scale projects and data capture priorities
• Offer knowledge-based decision-support for the rational management of our ecosystems on land and in the seas, and to policy makers and the public
• Innovate biodiversity based industry towards sustainable practices
• Educate to catalyze the discovery and innovation process
• Provide on-line and off-line user support 
       

Architecture

The wealth of large data sets on the different levels of biodiversity (genes, populations, species and ecosystems) opens up an unprecedented new area of research. But the complex and multidisciplinary problems also force scientists to collaborate in virtual organizations at a global scale. LifeWatch will enable ‘distributed large-scale' science, which is the only way to participate in new developments in biodiversity science.

User groups can create their own e-laboratories or e-services within the common architecture of the infrastructure. They may share their data and analytical and modeling algorithms with others, while controlling access. All public resources, such as data repositories, computational capabilities and capacity are available through the problem solving environment.

The architecture allows for dynamic linkages to other resources and associated infrastructures. As such, LifeWatch is an example of the new generation of research infrastructures that form a cooperating fabric.

International cooperation

The implementation of LifeWatch is only possible through international cooperation. The sheer size of the infrastructure with respect to costs, functionalities and user communities requires large-scale collaboration. The European Strategy Forum on Research Infrastructures (ESFRI) identified LifeWatch as an essential facility to be supported by European countries. Currently 19 European countries expressed their interest in LifeWatch.

LifeWatch cooperates with other international infrastructures to add value to its services. Such cooperation includes the connection to a variety of data repositories, or providing analysis of ground-level data with Earth-observation data from satellites. At the global level the LifeWatch partners interact with the relevant knowledge centres to work together within a cost-effective and targeted long-term strategy in order to serve the global interests.

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