Nine changes needed to deliver a radical transformation in biodiversity measurement

Biodiversity is declining in many parts of the world. Biological diversity measurement and monitoring are fundamental to the assessment of the causes and consequences of environmental changes, identification of key areas for the protection of biodiversity or ecosystem services, determining the effectiveness of actions, and the creation of decision-support tools critical to maintaining a sustainable planet. Biodiversity measurement is rapidly changing due to advances in citizen science, image recognition, acoustic monitoring, environmental DNA, genomics, remote sensing, and AI. In this perspective, we outline the exciting opportunities these developments offer but also consider the challenges. Our key recommendations are to 1) Capitalize on the ability of novel technology to integrate data sources 2) agree to standard methods for data collection 3) ensure new technologies are calibrated with existing data; 4) fill data gaps by using emerging technologies and increasing capacity, especially in the tropics; 5) create living safeguarded databases of trusted information to reduce the risk of poisoning by AI hallucinated, or false, information; 6) ensure data generation is valued; 7) ensure respectful incorporation of Indigenous Knowledge; 8) ensure measurements enable the quantification of effectiveness of actions, and 9) increase the resilience of global datasets to technical and societal change. Radical new collaborations are needed between computer scientists, engineers, molecular biologists, data scientists, field ecologists, citizen scientists, Indigenous peoples, policymakers, and local communities to create the rigorous, resilient, accessible biodiversity information systems required to underpin policies and practices that ensure the maintenance and restoration of ecological systems.

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Publication Details

Journal
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Published
2026-03-04
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2519345123
Citations
2
Primary Topic
Species Distribution and Climate Change
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
66.98
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article

Nine changes needed to deliver a radical transformation in biodiversity measurement

Kamaljit S. Bawa, Andrew González, Martin C. Wikelski, Cristina Eisenberg et al.
2 citations
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Species Distribution and Climate Change
66.98
article

Nine changes needed to deliver a radical transformation in biodiversity measurement

Kamaljit S. Bawa, Andrew González, Martin C. Wikelski, Cristina Eisenberg, Philipp H. Boersch‐Supan, David Williams, Barnabas H. Daru, Winifred F. Frick, Lior Greenspoon, Scott V. Edwards, Jeannine Cavender‐Bares, Julia P. G. Jones, Rebecca Chaplin‐Kramer, Sallie Bailey, Andy Purvis, Oisin Mac Aodha, Jonny Hazell, Don L. Hankins, Tanya Birch, Iroro Tanshi, Chris S. Elphick, David G. Tilman, Ron Milo, V Vijay, J. D. Allen, Marco Lambertini, Nick J. B. Isaac, Scott J Goetz, Neil D. Burgess, Tom August, Christina M. Grozingeree, Robert P. Freckleton, Mark Blaxter, Adriana De Palma, Heather Tallis, Gene E. Robinson, S. Hollis Woodard, EJ Milner-Gulland, James O’Dwyer, Herizo T. Andrianandrasana, Cathrine J. Armour
article en
2 citations

Abstract

Biodiversity is declining in many parts of the world. Biological diversity measurement and monitoring are fundamental to the assessment of the causes and consequences of environmental changes, identification of key areas for the protection of biodiversity or ecosystem services, determining the effectiveness of actions, and the creation of decision-support tools critical to maintaining a sustainable planet. Biodiversity measurement is rapidly changing due to advances in citizen science, image recognition, acoustic monitoring, environmental DNA, genomics, remote sensing, and AI. In this perspective, we outline the exciting opportunities these developments offer but also consider the challenges. Our key recommendations are to 1) Capitalize on the ability of novel technology to integrate data sources 2) agree to standard methods for data collection 3) ensure new technologies are calibrated with existing data; 4) fill data gaps by using emerging technologies and increasing capacity, especially in the tropics; 5) create living safeguarded databases of trusted information to reduce the risk of poisoning by AI hallucinated, or false, information; 6) ensure data generation is valued; 7) ensure respectful incorporation of Indigenous Knowledge; 8) ensure measurements enable the quantification of effectiveness of actions, and 9) increase the resilience of global datasets to technical and societal change. Radical new collaborations are needed between computer scientists, engineers, molecular biologists, data scientists, field ecologists, citizen scientists, Indigenous peoples, policymakers, and local communities to create the rigorous, resilient, accessible biodiversity information systems required to underpin policies and practices that ensure the maintenance and restoration of ecological systems.

Proceedings of the National Academy of SciencesVol. 123(10)
University of Copenhagen (DK), California State University System (US), Royal Society (GB), Google (United States) (US), University of Minnesota (US), University of Leeds (GB), Target (United States) (US), WWF Colombia (CO), Natural England (GB), University of Helsinki (FI), American Museum of Natural History (US), Harvard University (US), University of Connecticut (US), University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (US), University of Life Sciences in Lublin (PL), Bangor University (GB), UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (GB), University of California, Santa Cruz (US), University of Konstanz (DE), Utrecht University (NL), University of Washington (US), Northern Arizona University (US), University of Cambridge (GB), Bat Conservation International (US), Wellcome Sanger Institute (GB), University of Massachusetts Boston (US), University of Oxford (GB), Planta (RU), WWF Tanzania (TZ), InfoConsult (Germany) (DE), UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (GB), Sustainability Institute (ZA), Carnegie Department of Plant Biology (US), Biodiversity Research Institute (US), Financial Research (Hungary) (HU), Futures Group (United States) (US), U.S. President's Malaria Initiative (US), Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior (DE), Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (IN), Conservation Leadership Programme (GB), Center for Climate and Resilience Research (CL), Royal Society of South Australia, McGill University (CA), Weizmann Institute of Science (IL), Virginia Tech (US), British Trust for Ornithology (GB), University of Sheffield (GB), Stanford University (US), University of Edinburgh (GB)
Life in Land
Openalex Percentile: Top 0%
Species Distribution and Climate Change
66.98
DOIOpen Access PDFOpenAlex
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