This GEO Mountains workshop sought to better understand the current interdisciplinary 'data landscape' across the Hindu Kush Himalayas.
On 30 June 2022, GEO Mountains hosted an online workshop entitled Inter- and transdisciplinary mountain data across the Hindu Kush Himalaya: Identifying user requirements.
The workshop was convened by the Mountain Research Initiative (MRI), GEO Mountains, and ICIMOD, and formed part of the global Adaptation at Altitude programme.
Following words of welcome from the co-convenors, Sudip Pradhan (ICIMOD) presented the Regional Database System and associated tools and services that enable a wide variety of data and information related to the region, including model outputs, related to the region to be accessed.
Lily Shrestha (Global Biodiversity Information Facility) then gave an overview of biodiversity data available through GBIF’s portal, as well as the crucial training and capacity development activities that are being undertaken to enable these data to be more fully exploited.
To conclude the first part of the workshop, James Thornton (MRI & GEO Mountains) presented the capabilities of the GEO Mountains In Situ and General data inventories. Contributions to these inventories were encouraged from the participants and their wider networks to further maintain and enhance these resources.
In the second part of the meeting, participants discussed the following key questions:
1. In which regards (e.g. disciplines, sub-regions) can the “data landscape” currently be described as “good”?
2. What / where are the most critical data gaps with regards to monitoring, understanding, and better-predicting and managing the impacts of climate change?
3. What are the main challenges / barriers that are responsible for these data gaps (i.e., what prevents the more extensive collection / generation, sharing, and re-use of data)?
4. What are some potential solutions to address these challenges / barriers?
5. What functionality would data providers and users like inventories / portals through which data and other resources can be shared and accessed to possess?
Finally, participants were requested to complete the GEO Mountains HKH Data Survey. The survey remains open, and everyone with experience of working across the region is warmly invited to complete it (whether they attended the session or not).
Looking ahead, on the basis of this engagement, GEO Mountains hopes to co-develop a pragmatic, medium-term “data agenda” to improve the situation with the workshop participants and regional partners.
Submit to GEO Mountains In Situ Inventory
Submit to GEO Mountains General Inventory
The meeting slides can be downloaded from here.
For any questions about the workshop, survey, or GEO Mountains’ inventories, please contact james.thornton@unibe.ch.
Cover image by Makalu.
