1. Sharing & Sustaining Ecosystem Data
Professors Stuart Phinn and Andrew Lowe
TERN - Associate Science Directors
TERN Office: T. Clancy, A. Specht., E. Cuffe, C. Lange, B. Morris, M. Widdowson, Y. Li.,
S. Guru, S.Long, R, Christensen and P. Runting

2. International Partners
TERN is supported by the Australian Government through
the National Collaborative Research Infrastructure Strategy
and the Super Science Initiative

3. Presentation Aims
To demonstrate how TERN is used to enable:
- improved use and re-use of data;
- improved collaboration to address key questions;
- greater collective influence on ecosystem science
and management in Australia.

4. Presentation Outline
1. Introduction –data sharing and increasing knowledge!
2. How does TERN work?
3. Science application examples from TERN
4. Where to from here….open data, papers, etc….?

5. Presentation Outline
1. Introduction –data sharing and increasing knowledge!
2. How does TERN work?
3. Science application examples from TERN
4. Where to from here….open data, papers, etc….?

6. Data sharing and increasing knowledge
• The Research data lifecycle ?:
Ecosystem
Science

7. Data sharing and increasing knowledge
Ecosystem
Science
Research Question
Research Output
Proposal and Funding
Data Processing, Analysis,
Integration and Synthesis. Researcher(s) and
Data Collection
TERN Data Portal
+License + Identifier
Data Sets + Meta-data

8. Data sharing and increasing knowledge
• Provide resources for data: collection, storage, search and sharing
• Data are checked and able to be (re-)used
• Demonstrate return on research investment for agencies and researchers

9. Data sharing and increasing knowledge

10. Data sharing and increasing knowledge

11. Data sharing and increasing knowledge

12. Data sharing and increasing knowledge
• Enable a change in data collection and research practices in Australia

13. Data sharing and increasing knowledge
• Enable a change in data collection and research practices in Australia

14. Data sharing and increasing knowledge
• Enable a change in data collection and research practices in Australia

15. Main recommendations:
•Collect more data on Australia’s
ecosystems and make it freely available
• Engage the community in data collection
• Develop methods to determine the
consequences of ecosystem decisions and
make these accessible to all stakeholders
•Involve all stakeholders in ecosystem
planning and decision making
Source: http://www.science.org.au/events/thinktank/thinktank2011/index.html

16. Data sharing and increasing knowledge
• Enable a change in data collection and research practices in Australia

17. Presentation Outline
1. Introduction –data sharing and increasing knowledge!
2. How does TERN work?
3. Science application examples from TERN
4. Where to from here….open data, papers, etc….?

18. How does TERN work : Environments covered
Source: NASA and Chuvieco and Huete(2009): Fundamentals of satellite remote sensing. Taylor and Francis

19. How does TERN work : Links to other data collections

20. How does TERN work : Infrastructure?
Fundamental infrastructure for collecting, storing and sharing data sets and
knowledge for Australian ecosystems.
Builds on past and current data collection activities across all levels of
government, research organisations, universities, private companies and non-
government organisations.

21. How does TERN work : Data collection and storage

22. How does TERN work : the concept…….
Data Portal
Meta-data - 1
Identifier - DOI
Use Licence
Data Sets

24. How does TERN work : Linking data portals
• The Research data licencing:

27. How does TERN work : the concept…….
TERN Data Discovery Portal
Meta-data
from all Data Portals
Data Portal Data Portal Data Portal
Meta-data - 1 Meta-data - 2 Meta-data - 1
Identifier - DOI Identifier - DOI Identifier - DOI
Use Licence Use Licence Use Licence
Data Sets Data Sets Data Sets

28. How does TERN work : Multi-Scale Plot Network

29. How does TERN work : Supersites

30. How does TERN work : Supersites

31. TERN Supersite: Robson Creek 25ha plot
Terrestrial Ecosystem Research
Network (TERN)
Single 25ha (500m x 500m) plot in
selectively logged upland rainforest.
Last logged in 1970
Trees >10 cm diameter identified,
mapped, and measured for height
& DBH
CSIRO Rainforest plots: M. Bradford.

32. TERN Supersite: Robson Creek 25ha plot

33. TERN Supersite: Robson Creek 25ha plot

34. How does TERN work : Supersite Portal

35. How does TERN work : Supersite Portal

36. TERN Data Portals – Remote Sensing

37. TERN Data Portals – Energy + Gas Fluxes

38. TERN Data Portals – Coastal Data

39. TERN Data Portals – Ecological Survey Data
Bladder Saltbush Atriplex vesicaria

40. TERN Data Portals – Integrated and Synthesised Data

41. Australia’s Terrestrial Ecosystem Research
Network:
42

42. Presentation Outline
1. Introduction –data sharing and increasing knowledge!
2. How does TERN work?
3. Science application examples from TERN
4. Where to from here….open data, papers, etc….?

43. • TERN delivers fundamental research infrastructure:
A multidisciplinary, networked, national approach for
Carbon accounting and dynamics
Improved field measurements Integrated field, satellite image
techniques and cover across all and modelling process to quantify
ecosystems Carbon dynamics for current and
future scenarios
Transpiration
More accurate satellite image Total Net Primary Productivity
maps of biomass and primary
production Long-term continental water
balance properties and Carbon
Soil Evaporation balance using BIOS2, constrained
by data including OzFlux data
Source: Beringer, Hacker, Hutley, Arndt, Amiri, Bannehr, Cernusak, Grover, Hensley, Hocking, Isaac,
Jamali, Kanniah, Leuning, Livesley, Neininger, Paw U, Sea, Stratten, Tapper, Weinmann, Wood, Zegelin
(2011) SPECIAL – Savanna Patterns of Energy and Carbon Integrated Across the Landscape, Bulletin of the
American Meteorological Society, Vol 92, 1467-1485.

44. • TERN delivers infrastructure for research and management:
Continental scale monitoring of ecosystem and biodiversity
stocks and changes for improved understanding and decisions
Tropical Savanna
Spinifex Hummock Grassland Rain Forest
Baseline monitoring of ecosystem
disturbance and change drivers.
Acacia Shrubland Eucalypt Open Woodland
Combining field, satellite, nutrient
cycling and biodiversity data for
understanding change and improved
management.
Tussock Grassland Mulga Shrubland
Integrating approaches along a
continental transect to determine rate
Chenopod Shrubland Mallee
of change and turn-over in ecosystems.
Tall Eucalypt Forest

45. • TERN delivers human infrastructure for integrating ideas:
Synthesizing understanding of major drivers, threats and new
ways to manage Australian ecosystems
Network of infrastructure to
support scientists and policy makers
to better understand drivers, rate of
change and improved management
of ecosystems:
• Extinctions
• Fire
• Biogeography of continent
• Invasives
• Climate change
• Landscape transformation
• Ecosystem adaptation
• Integration for national data sets
Murphy BP, Bradstock RA, Boer MM, Carter J, Cary GJ,
• International standards for data
Cochrane MA, Fensham RJ, Russell-Smith J, Williamson
GJ & Bowman DMJS (2012) Fire regimes of
Australia, a pyrogeographic model system.
Journal of Biogeography, In review March 2012.

46. Presentation Outline
1. Introduction –data sharing and increasing knowledge!
2. How does TERN work?
3. Science application examples from TERN
4. Where to from here….open data, papers, etc….?

47. Where to from here – Data publishing?
• Existing data storage, publishing and sharing options?

48. Where to from here – Data publishing?
• Existing data storage, publishing and sharing options?

49. Where to from here – Data publishing?
• Existing data storage, publishing and sharing options?

50. Where to from here – Data publishing?
• Existing data storage, publishing and sharing options?

51. Where to from here – Data publishing?
• Existing data storage, publishing and sharing options?

52. Where to from here – Data publishing?
• Existing data storage, publishing and sharing options?

54. Current investments and research infrastructure
TOTAL TERN Government Funding TERN Office
2009-2014 $49.73 million TERN Portal
2% 1% 0% ACEAS
4% 10% 3% Auscover
4%
Ozflux
4%
8% Ecoinformatics
Supersite Demonstrators (FNQ x 2, SEQ x 3)
13% Long Term Australian Multi-Scale Plot System
Ausplots
17% Long Term Ecosystem Research Plot Network
9% Supersites
Scaling and Modelling
10% Soils and Landscape
3%
9% ACEF
3%
TERN Coordination

55. • Enable a change in data collection and research practices in Australia
• Data sharing infrastructure as part of national research fabric

56. TERN’s Future
• To become the standard for all ecosystem research data
collection, storage and sharing .
• The “integration” facility for ecosystem data.
• Adoption within local to state and national governments.
• Basis for open data and cite-able data for ecosystem research in
Australia.
• Requires long-term commitments from state and federal
governments, universities and research organisations.

57. Your Data, Research Projects and Proposals
• Data management plans
• Data storage, curation and metadata for you and your group
• Knowledge generation and sharing
• Collaborations
• Act and express our needs collectively

58. Questions?
TERN/Science Stuart Phinn s.phinn@uq.edu.au
TERN Director Tim Clancy t.clancy@uq.edu.au
TERN Portals Siddeswara Guru s.guru@uq.edu.au
ACEAS Alison Specht a.specht@uq.edu.au
Comms/Knowledge Suzanne Long s.long5@uq.edu.au
Bek Christensen r.christensen1@uq.edu.au
www.tern.org.au and tern@uq.edu.au