Biodiversity Information Management Directorate
Biodiversity Information Management Directorate
The South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI) is legally mandated to manage biodiversity information. The effective management of information underpins research, decision-making, policy advice and monitoring.
What we do?
The Directorate mobilises and publishes biodiversity information so that it is freely available for end users.
Further to its legal mandate to manage biodiversity information, SANBI must also report to the Minister of Water and Environment on biodiversity status and trends in order to measure our success at effective biodiversity conservation and management.
SANBI’s internet based information resources are accessed through the Biodiversity Advisor http://biodiversityadvisor.sanbi.org
The Biodiversity Information Management Directorate comprises the following functions:
• Biodiversity GIS (BGIS)
• South African Node of the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (SABIF)
• Biodiversity Monitoring
• Systems analysis and development
• Libraries
• Publications
• BRAHMS project
• Learning Network
Where we work
BIM works across SANBI and South Africa with a network of partners. There is a regional (southern Africa and Africa) and global component to the work.
Reason for our programme
The Biodiversity Information Management Directorate (BIM) was established to effectively organise our biodiversity information and to make it universally available and useful.
What we have achieved
The BIM directorate has succeeded in providing a valuable service to SANBI and to the sector. It has developed products that are highly regarded and available through the Biodiversity Advisor website, with spatial data served through the Biodiversity GIS resource and primary data through the SABIF website.
The annual Biodiversity Information Management Forum, hosted by BIM, has become an established and valued forum for partners to strategise and share products and lessons.
The BIM Directorate has established international, regional and national partnerships through its programmes.
Who we are
The Biodiversity Information Management Directorate has 22 staff members and is part of the Applied Biodiversity Research Division.
Director
Selwyn Willoughby
s.willoughby@sanbi.org.za
Finance and Administration
Gloria Cupido
g.cupido@sanbi.org.za
+27 21 799 8858