Meeting:

Dimensions of Biodiversity Design Charrette


Date17-Sep-2010 ~ 18-Sep-2010
SummaryThe discovery of biodiversity in its many forms has been ongoing for centuries, but has become increasingly urgent as the human population continues to grow, the climate continues to change, and extinction of many species accelerates. Although many approaches have been proposed to document and understand the planet's biodiversity, the problem continues to be intractable, with current efforts insufficient to address its scale. A multi-disciplinary group of scientists will engage in a design charrette, held at NESCent in September 2010, to design a campaign to address this challenge. Key aspects of the charrette include identifying key dimensions of biodiversity, understanding the relationships among these dimensions, developing strategies to accelerate the pace of discovery, engaging global partners in strategic programs to develop a comprehensive understanding of biodiversity, and prioritizing efforts in light of limited time and money to achieve a comprehensive understanding of biodiversity. The design charrette is coincident with a new NSF initiative to accelerate understanding of the Earth's biodiversity, and results will help to set the research agenda for that initiative.