Stockholm university
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Curation and Biodiversity Informatics

The maintenance of museum specimens and catalogues demands great expertise and handling skills, and this course will introduce collection procedures and database handling methods.

The preservation of natural history collections, together with proper documentation, digitization and accessibility, is of crucial importance to meet today’s challenges. These collections represent a vast reservoir of biodiversity data that can be used e.g. to inform conservation strategies, understand the evolution of species, ecosystem complexities, and the impact of climate and environmental change.

However, the sheer volume of data held within these collections can make it difficult to extract meaningful insights. National and international biodiversity data repositories and infrastructures allow open sharing and using of data, advancing our understanding of the natural world. Biodiversity informatics and digitization enable us to apply computational tools and techniques to data, revealing patterns and relationships that might otherwise go unnoticed. To do this in a sustainable, future-proof manner, it is imperative that the data is curated in a way that is consistent with global data standards and the F.A.I.R. and C.A.R.E. principles.

During the course, subjects ranging from specimen curation, digitization, integration and subsequent publication in data repositories using best practices will be presented, and students train the use of web-based tools to retrieve data and information.

  • Course structure

    Learning outcomes

    A list of the learning outcomes can be found in the syllabus. Please find the link to the syllabus on the right side of this page.

    Examiner

    Veronika Johansson
    E-mail: veronika.johansson@nrm.se

    Margret Steinthorsdottir
    E-mail: margret.steinthorsdottir@nrm.se

  • Schedule

    The schedule will be available no later than one month before the start of the course. We do not recommend print-outs as changes can occur. At the start of the course, your department will advise where you can find your schedule during the course.

    The course consists of three themed weeks. Each week starts with an introduction, live on zoom, and ends with an assignment deadline the following week. The remaining time is based on self-studies where you can work on the material when you want to. A recommended structure is supplied at the start of the course.

    Dates for 2023:
    Introduction to course: November 30, 11-12 noon.

    Theme:  Natural History Collections, Curation and Biodiversity information
    Introduction: December 4, 11-12 noon.
    Assignment hand-in: December 11, 5 pm.

    Theme: Data mobilization and publication
    Introduction: Decmeber 12, 11-12 noon.
    Assignment hand-in: December 19, 5 pm.

    Theme: Data use
    Introduction: December 20, 11-12 noon.
    Assignment hand-in: January 12, 5 pm.

  • Course literature

    Note that the course literature can be changed up to two months before the start of the course.

    No mandatory course literature.

  • Course reports

  • Contact

    Student office
    Study counsellor for advanced level