SUMMARY REPORT
OF THE FIRST COUNCIL MEETING
FOR THE
INTER-AMERICAN BIODIVERSITY INFORMATION NETWORK (IABIN)

(December 13-14, 1999, Miami, Florida, USA)

 
1.      Election of Council Chair and Vice-Chair

The Council elected Ms. Gladys Cotter, Focal Point from USA, as Chair of the IABIN Council.  Dr. Elaine Fisher, Focal Point from Jamaica, was elected as Vice-Chair of the Council.  Both the Chair and Vice-Chair will serve a 3-year term.

2.      Rules of Procedure

The IABIN Council discussed and revised the draft rules of procedure for IABIN.  The revised document, entitled Rules of Procedure for the Inter-American Biodiversity Information Network (IABIN), was adopted at the meeting.  This document provides guidance and an overview of IABIN’s objectives and governance infrastructure.  Some of the issues discussed at the meeting will need to be addressed by the IABIN Council at a later time.  These include:

·         Definition of who are the users of IABIN information.

·         Form of presentation of the information that will circulate through the network (e.g. basic vs. processed form).

·         Development of a biodiversity information management strategy for the hemisphere.

·         Development of IABIN policies on data quality control.

·         Development of a mechanism to keep Focal Points updated on their countries’ participation in IABIN projects.

·         Direct participation of data providers (e.g. museums, herbaria, etc.) in IABIN. (Council to consider establishing a technical working group to address this issue.)

·         Development of a process and guidelines for selecting and appointing non-country members to the Council. (The inter-governmental / non-governmental organizations that attended as observers will establish a working group.  These inter-governmental / non-governmental organizations selected Marcos Silva, of NABIN, as Chair of that working group chair and their representative on the IABIN Council for the year 2000.)

The Council also revised and adopted the document titled Criteria for Membership of Non-governmental, International and Regional Organizations in the IABIN Council, which provides broad criteria for incorporation of organizations, other than national Focal Points, into the IABIN Council.  They agreed to annex this document to the Rules of Procedure for IABIN.

3.      Criteria for Hub Selection

Members of the IABIN Council agreed to review individually the Draft Criteria for Hub Selection and provide their comments and revisions electronically to the Council Chair at the following e-mail address: iabinchair@usgs.gov.

4.      Election of an Executive Committee

The IABIN Council agreed that the Executive Committee would be composed of the following members:

·         The Council Chair, who will be the Chair of the Executive Committee

·         The Council Vice-Chair

·         Seven members elected at large according to the following criteria:  governmental geographical representation, inclusion of up to two non-governmental / inter-governmental representatives, interest and commitment

·         An OAS representative, with voice but no vote

·         The Executive Secretary of the IABIN Hub (when selected), with voice but no vote

Members of the Executive Committee will serve for 3-year terms, staggered on a rotational basis, with some members changing each year.  The first elected Executive Committee will have members with one- and two-year terms to allow for rotation of members in subsequent years.

On December 14, 1999, the IABIN Council elected the first Executive Committee for IABIN.  This Executive Committee consists of the following members: 

5.      Establishment of Working Groups

Given the lack of funding for IABIN in fiscal year 2000, the Council established two Working Groups to address financial and technical issues for the network and prepare proposals to funding organizations:  the Long-Term Sustainability Working Group, and the Technical Work Plan Working Group.

A.     The Long-Term Sustainability Working Group will:

·         Prepare a US AID proposal for a financial sustainability strategy for IABIN

·         Look into sources of funding for ongoing IABIN operations

·         Develop a communication strategy for IABIN.

The following volunteers will constitute the Long-Term Sustainability Working Group:  U.S. (Barbara Bauldock), Jamaica (Elaine Fisher), Canada (Guy Rochon), Brazil (Maria Luisa Gastal), OAS (Bernhard Griesinger), IBIN (Preston Hardison), NABIN (Marcos Silva), TNC / ABI (Xavier Silva). 

B.     The Technical Work Plan Working Group will define common network elements that promote the development of IABIN.  This working group will examine the following approaches as options for submission of proposals to funding organizations:

·         Submit several proposals from individual countries based on projects that emerge as priorities, with IABIN serving as the interconnecting network component to thematic projects.

·         Submit a common proposal from IABIN as a region, which will serve as an umbrella for various other projects.

The Technical Work Plan Working Group will also:

·         Prepare a proposal for submission to the GEF. 

·         Obtain assistance from the OAS in the preparation and submission of the GEF proposal.

·         Select the implementing agency for submission of the GEF proposal. 

·         Prepare an OAS proposal or proposals.

The following volunteers will constitute the Technical Work Plan Working Group:  Brazil (Vanderlei Canhos), U.S. (provide assistance in Washington: Bonnie Carroll / Elizabeth Martin), Canada (Guy Rochon), Colombia (Juan Carlos Bello / Cristian Samper), OAS (Jorge Rucks), TNC / ABI (Xavier Silva), NABIN (Marcos Silva).

6.      Projects of Interest to IABIN Participants

Meeting participants provided project ideas of potential interest to IABIN.  These ideas will be prioritized according to IABIN’s objectives and the commitment of countries or organizations to lead specific projects.  (For a list of projects, see the informational paper on IABIN projects.)                                                                 

During the discussions on this topic, meeting participants stressed the need to include a capacity building component on information management assets into IABIN projects and to define information elements that will help local decision-makers.

7.      IABIN Action Items for the year 2000

Meeting participants discussed the steps that will need to be taken this year in order for IABIN to move forward.  These are: 

8.      Follow-On Activities

Both the Long-Term Sustainability Working Group and the Technical Work Plan Working Group for IABIN are planning to meet in the first half of 2000 to move forward the IABIN agenda.  Among the major items to be discussed are:

·         Preparation of IABIN proposals to funding organizations such as the GEF, OAS and USAID to secure funding for future IABIN activities and operations.

·         Development of a long-term sustainability strategy for IABIN.

·         Selection of technical pilot projects that will go forward in the year 2000 under the aegis of IABIN.

IABIN Council members and observers are encouraged to assist in the implementation of IABIN by promoting IABIN at national meetings, participating actively in the development of IABIN activities, assisting in the search for potential sources of funding, and encouraging participation of national technical experts in the IABIN pilot projects.

Abreu , Dr. Vincent, University of Michigan, USA

Bauldock, Ms. Barbara, USGS/Biological Resources Division, USA

Bello, Mr. Juan Carlos, Instituto Alexander von Humboldt, Colombia

Blaine, Ms. Lois, American Type Culture Collection (ATCC), USA

Busto, Mr. Bruno Brol, Secretaria de Integracion Centroamericana (SICA/CCAD), El Salvador

Canhos, Dr. Vanderlei Perez, Fundacao Andre Tosello, Brazil

Carroll, Ms. Bonnie, USGS/Biological Resources Division, USA

Chun, Mr. Angel, Ministry of Natural Resources, Belize

Cotter, Ms. Gladys, USGS/Biological Resources Division, USA

Dadd, Mr. Michael, Species 2000, UK

del Huerto, Ms. Maria Arcaus, The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Uruguay

Espinel, Mr. Alvaro, Conservation International (CI), USA

Fenn, Dr. Denny, USGS/Biological Resources Division, USA

Fisher, Dr. Elaine, Institute of Jamaica, Jamaica

Fuentes, Lic. Jose Antonio, Secretaria de Recursos Naturales y Ambiente (SERNA), Honduras

Gaskin, Miss Nakira S., The Bahamas Environment, The Bahamas

Gastal, Dr. Maria Luiza, Ministerio do Meio Ambiente, Recursos Hidricos e Amazonia (MMA), Brazil

Greene, Mr. Bertram Saiid, Ministry of Planning & Implementation, Antigua

Griesinger, Mr. Bernhard, Organization of American States (OAS), USA

Hardison, Mr. Preston, ICONS, USA

Hernandez, Lic. Marina, Oficina Nacional de Planeacion (ONAPLAN), Dominican Republic

Hirsch, Dr. Leonard, Smithsonian Institution, USA

Martin, Ms. Elizabeth, USGS/Biological Resources Division, USA

Martinez, Mr. Arturo, Ministry of Foreign Affaires, Argentina

Moritz, Dr. Tom, American Museum of Natural History, BCIS; SI/AMNH, USA

Naarendorp, Ms. Ellen, National Institute for Environment and Development in Suriname (NIMOS), Suriname

Quezada Diaz, Dr. Jorge Ernesto, Ministerio de Medio Ambiente y Recursos Naturales, El Salvador

Quinn, Dr. James, University of California/Davis, USA

Rivarola, Lic. Nelida, Ministerio de Agricultura y Ganaderia, Paraguay

Rochon, Mr. Guy, Biodiversity Convention Office, Canada

Rodriguez, Lic. Carlos Leonel Olivet, Comision Nacional del Medio Ambiente (CONAMA), Guatemala

Rucks, Mr. Jorge, Organization of American States (OAS), USA

Ruggiero, Dr. Michael, National Museum of Natural History, USA

Salvador, Lic. Pablo Hernan Puig, Ministerio de Medio Ambiente (MMA), Ecuador

Silva, Dr. Marcos, North American Commission for Environmental Cooperation (NABIN), Canada

Silva, Dr. Xavier, The Nature Conservancy/ABI, USA

Soberon, Dr. Jorge, Comision Nacional Para El Conocimiento Y uso De La Biodiversidad (CONABIO), Mexico