Software codesign between end users and developers to enhance utility for biodiversity conservation
Creating software tools that address the needs of a wide range of decision-makers requires the inclusion of differing perspectives throughout the development process. Software tools for biodiversity conservation often fall short in this regard, partly because broad decision-maker needs may exceed the toolkits of single research groups or even institutions. We show that participatory, collaborative codesign enhances the utility of software tools for better decision-making in biodiversity conservation planning, as demonstrated by our experiences developing a set of integrated tools in Colombia. Specifically, we undertook an interdisciplinary, multi-institutional collaboration of ecological modelers, software engineers, and a diverse profile of potential end users, including decision-makers, conservation practitioners, and biodiversity experts. We leveraged and modified common paradigms of software production, including codesign and agile development, to facilitate collaboration through all stages (including conceptualization, development, testing, and feedback) to ensure the accessibility and applicability of the new tools to inform decision-making for biodiversity conservation planning.
Authors
- Cory Merow (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0561-053X)
- Jorge Velásquez‐Tibatá (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7773-7348)
- Néstor Roncancio-Duque (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8575-8272)
- Gonzalo E. Pinilla‐Buitrago (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0065-945X)
- Peter J. Ersts
- Leonardo Buitrago (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0459-4024)
- Octavio Rojas‐Soto (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0201-1454)
- H. Arango (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0004-1807-1867)
- Juan Luis Parra Vergara (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5689-1872)
- María Helena Olaya-Rodríguez (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8012-0197)
- Mary E. Blair (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0139-020X)
- Leonardo Lemus-Mejía (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3282-6248)
- Bethany A. Johnson (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7419-8580)
- Andrea Paz (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6484-1210)
- Cristina López‐Gallego (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5872-6053)
- María Cecilia Londoño (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2317-5503)
- Daniel López-Lozano (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8347-0782)
- Matthew E. Aiello‐Lammens (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6180-5959)
- Elkin A. Noguera‐Urbano (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4391-4852)
- Jamie M. Kass (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9432-895X)
- Juan F. Díaz‐Nieto (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3926-5244)
- Valentina Grisales‐Betancur
- María Ángela Echeverry-Gálvis (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5273-8694)
- Samuel Chang Triguero (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6867-2327)
- J. Nicolás Urbina‐Cardona (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4174-8467)
- Juan Zuloaga (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7614-4746)
- Cristian A. Cruz-Rodríguez (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8319-4706)
- Dairo Escobar (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8327-8670)
- Robert P. Anderson (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7706-4649)
- Pilar Rodríguez (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3198-5941)
- Nicolette S. Roach
- José Manuel Ochoa-Quintero
- Carlos J Muñoz-Rodríguez
- Erika Suárez-Valencia
- Camilo A Zapata-Martinez
Institutions
- Global Biodiversity Information Facility (DK)
- The Graduate Center, CUNY (US)
- City College of New York (US)
- Pace University (US)
- National Audubon Society (US)
- American Museum of Natural History (US)
- University of Connecticut (US)
- City University of New York (US)
- Tohoku University (JP)
- Pontificia Universidad Javeriana (CO)
- Alexander von Humboldt Biological Resources Research Institute (CO)
- Instituto Sinchi (CO)
- Universidad de Antioquia (CO)
- Universidad Nacional de Colombia (CO)
- Secretaría de Educación del Distrito Capital (CO)
- National Commission for the Knowledge and Use of Biodiversity (MX)
- Instituto de Ecología (MX)
- McGill University (CA)
- Université de Montréal (CA)
- Universidad EAFIT (CO)
- Texas A&M University (US)
Publication Details
- Journal
- BioScience
- Published
- 2024-10-22
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1093/biosci/biae097
- Primary Topic
- Species Distribution and Climate Change
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00
Funders
- National Science Foundation
- National Aeronautics and Space Administration
- Wildlife Conservation Society
- McGill University
- Temple University
- Universidad EAFIT
- Universidad Nacional de Colombia
- Nuclear Safety and Security Commission
- Universidad de Antioquia
- Universidad del Valle
- Pontificia Universidad Javeriana
- Comisión Nacional para el Conocimiento y Uso de la Biodiversidad, Gobierno de México
- Liber Ero Foundation