Towards a knowledge base to support global change policy goals

Figures & data

Figure 1. The archetypal management process (lifecycle) of knowledge body.

Figure 2. Systematic process to generate Knowledge from Data, for addressing policy goals.

Table 1. Main interrelations among community essential variables, according to the ConnectinGEO survey.

	Agriculture	Biodiversity	Climate	Disasters	Ecosystems	Energy	Health	Water	Weather	Ocean
Agriculture		▪	▪			▪
Biodiversity	▪		▪		▪
Climate	▪	▪	▪	▪	▪	▪	▪	▪	▪	▪
Disasters			▪
Ecosystems		▪	▪			▪		▪		▪
Energy	▪		▪		▪			▪	▪	▪
Health			▪					▪	▪
Water			▪		▪	▪	▪
Weather			▪			▪	▪
Ocean			▪		▪	▪

Figure 3. The expert elicitation framework for datasets characterization.

Figure 4. The scientific model formalization (in BPMN2.0) of the ‘Earth Observation Data for Ecosystem Monitoring (EOSDM)’ by using VLAB.

Figure 5. The extended GEOSS Web Portal GUI, developed to demonstrate the use of VLAB with the GEOSS Platform (concept browsing on left, workflow visualization and execution on the right).

Figure 6. The ConnectinGEO process and dedicated platform to analyse the EVs accessibility on GEOSS via the GEOSS Platform.

Table 2. Cross-cutting EVs, as specified by the ConnectinGEO experts.

Essential variable	Desired spatial resolution	Desired temporal resolution
River discharge	1 km	Daily
Water use	1 km	Monthly
Groundwater	1 km	Monthly
Lakes	1 km	Annual
Snow cover	1 km	Annual
Glaciers and ice caps	1 km	Annual
Ice sheets	1 km	Annual
Permafrost	1 km	Annual
Albedo	1 km	Monthly
Land cover	1 km	Annual
FAPAR	1 km	Monthly
LAI	1 km	Monthly
Above ground biomass	1 km	Annual
Soil carbon	1 km	Annual
Fire disturbance	1 km	Daily
Soil moisture	1 km	Monthly

Figure 7. Discoverable and accessible EVs via the GEOSS Platform (in 2016): by matching the variable standard name (A) and by matching the standard name and the desired spatial and temporal resolutions (B).

Table

Concept	Definition
Application programming interface (API)	A software interface defining how communication may take place between applications. (W3C)
Business process	A set of one or more linked procedures or activities which collectively realize a business objective or policy goal. (Workflow Management Coalition 1996)
Composite indicator	Formed when individual indicators are compiled into a single index on the basis of an underlying model. The composite indicator should ideally measure multidimensional concepts which cannot be captured by a single indicator, e.g. competitiveness, industrialization, sustainability, single market integration, knowledge-based society, etc. (OECD 2008)
Data/raw data	Digital encoding of information/Data that has not been processed for use
EVs	A minimal set of variables that determine the system’s state and developments, are crucial for predicting system developments, and allow us to define metrics that measure the trajectory of the system. (ConnectinGEO 2016)
GEO model web	A dynamic web of models, integrated with databases and websites, to form a consultative infrastructure where researchers, managers, policy makers, and the general public can go to gain insight into ‘what if’ questions. (Nativi, Mazzetti, and Geller 2012)
GEOSS KB	A dynamic and evolvable information framework, organized as a repository of existing and distributed knowledge bodies, to facilitate Information and Knowledge generation and sharing from Earth Observations. (S. Nativi, GEO Plenary 2016)
[DIKW] knowledge	(In the scope of the DIKW pattern) Artefact generated by understanding Information and elaborating valuable patterns
Knowledge base	A business ecosystem platform to facilitate knowledge sharing, content management and communication
Integrated modelling	The process of combining several submodels that represent different interacting natural, economic, and social systems. (Hinkel 2009)
Indicator	A quantitative or a qualitative measure derived from a series of observed facts that can reveal relative positions (e.g. of a country) in a given area. When evaluated at regular intervals, an indicator can point out the direction of change across different units and through time. In the context of policy analysis […], indicators are useful in identifying trends and drawing attention to particular issues. (OECD 2008).
Index	See Composite Indicator
[DIKW] information	(In the scope of the DIKW pattern) Added-value product resulting from the comprehension of available Data and their relations with physical and/or social phenomena
Statistical indicator	The representation of statistical data for a specified time, place or any other relevant characteristic, corrected for at least one dimension (usually size) so as to allow for meaningful comparisons. It is a summary measure related to a key issue or phenomenon and derived from a series of observed facts. Indicators can be used to reveal relative positions or show positive or negative change. (Eurostat 2014)
Sustainable development	Development that meets the needs of the present while safeguarding Earth’s life-support system, on which the welfare of current and future generations. (Griggs et al. 2013, 2014)
Sustainable development indicators	Indicators that measure progress made in sustainable growth and development, where a Biological Indicator is defined as an organism, species or community whose characteristics show the presence of specific environmental conditions. Other terms used are indicator organism, indicator plant and indicator species and an Environmental Indicator is a parameter, or a value derived from parameters, that points to, provides information about and/or describes the state of the environment, and has a significance extending beyond that directly associated with any given parametric value. The term may encompass indicators of environmental pressures, conditions and responses. (UNSD 1997)
Workflow	The automation of a business process, in whole or part, during which documents, information, or tasks are passed from one participant to another for action according to a set of procedural rules. (Workflow Management Coalition 1996)

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