Mission

Our mission is to foster biodiversity research that contributes to sustainable development, by:

• Facilitating access to biodiversity data, science and research information
• Encouraging interdisciplinary cooperation amongst scientists
• Stimulating interaction between scientists, policy makers and stakeholders in biodiversity research
• Advising on the designation of biodiversity research priorities
• Promoting Belgian biodiversity research at international fora.

Task and services

To accomplish our mission, the platform:

• Valorizes Belgian biodiversity data by making them accessible worldwide, through a unified web portal. As national node for the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF), we offer support to researchers in developing, linking and, eventually, hosting databases
• Develops BioBel, a reference database on biodiversity related research and resources in Belgium
• Animates thematic forums and organizes events on topical issues in biodiversity research to encourage communication and discussion between scientists, policy makers and stakeholders; they act as catalysts for the integration of science into biodiversity conservation and policy and as kernel for projects on specific problems related to the management and conservation of biodiversity
• Analyses scientific research with a view to contribute to the development of an effective and appropriate science policy
• Serves as interface between researchers and Belgian and international science policy organizations. As such, the platform is the secretariat of the European Platform for Biodiversity Research Strategy (EPBRS) and the National committee of the international biodiversity programme DIVERSITAS.

  

Platform structure

To fulfil its diverse tasks, the platform is organized in different modules:

• The IT module supports the platform and researchers in their IT needs
• The DATA module is in charge of services related to biodiversity data and research information
• The SCIENCE module promotes interactions amongst scientists
• The SCIENCE POLICY module advances the communication between scientists, science policy and other stakeholders in biodiversity science.

It is especially its function as interface between providers and users of biodiversity information that is of primordial importance. The initiatives of the different modules and of the interface are coordinated by a management node at the Belgian Science Policy Office (BelSPO).

Meet the team

The platform is an integrated network of members posted in federal and regional research institutions.

Biodiversity scientists

• Estelle Balian - science policy responsible (1)
• Dimitri Brosens - data acquisition manager (4)
• Bruno Danis - data acquisition manager for Anta'BIF (1)
• Aaike De Wever - data acquisition manager for BioFresh (1)
• Barbara Gonzalez - data acquisition manager (3)
• Hendrik Segers - data responsible (1)

IT specialists

• Julien Cigar - system administrator (3)
• Bos Debusscher - IT engineer BioFresh (1)
• Michel Kapel - IT engineer BioFresh (1)
• Nicolas Noé - IT engineer (3)
• André Heughebaert - IT engineer (3)
• Nabil Youdjou - IT engineer  for Anta'BIF  (1)

Management

• Aline Van der Werf - Project Officer (5)

(1) Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences (RBINS)
(2) Walloon Research Centre for Nature, Forest and Wood (CRNFB)
(3) Free Universities of Brussels (ULB-VUB)
(4) Flemish Research Institute for Nature and Forest (INBO)
(5) Belgian Federal Science Policy (BelSPO)

Partners

To fulfil its mission the platform has also established privileged partnerships with Belgian federal and regional scientific institutions:

• Belgian Clearing-House Mechanism under the Convention on Biological Diversity - website
• Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences (RBINS) - website
• Walloon Research Centre for Nature, Forest and Wood (CRNFB) - website
• Flemish Research Institute for Nature and Forest (INBO) - website
• National Botanic Garden of Belgium - website
• Royal Museum for Central Africa (RMCA) - website
• Belgian Coordinated Collections of Micro-organisms (BCCM) - website
• Belgian Node of the European Molecular Biology laboratory - website