SHaRED (Submission, Harmonization and Retrieval of Ecological Data)

Full description

The SHaRED tool (Submission, Harmonisation and Retrieval of Ecological Data) provides an intuitive, online portal for structured data/metadata submission and retrieval that is specifically designed for the plot-based ecological research domain.

The tool has been developed within the Terrestrial Ecosystem Research Network (TERN) Eco-informatics facility based at the University of Adelaide. Thanks to this new online tool environmental scientists across Australia are able to access a system for submitting, storing and publishing ecological data. 

Professor Andrew Lowe from the University of Adelaide's Environment Institute and Australian Centre for Evolutionary Biology and Biodiversity and who is associate science director of the Terrestrial Ecosystem Research Network (TERN) at the University said the project is aimed at safeguarding many lifetimes of vital information collected about Australian ecosystems.

"In the course of their careers, ecologists produce huge volumes of data for research, and after publishing their work they often store the data on their own personal computers for many years. There are many risks associated with this that could lead to the data being lost forever.  This includes the rapid turnover of computer technology, data corruption, or computer damage or theft."

"A national system that allows scientists across Australia to store their work safely and securely and to receive acknowledgement when it’s used by other scientists will be of great benefit to ecological research. The tool will encourage scientists to store and share their data," Professor Lowe says.

SHaRED is a major step forward, ultimately delivering huge amounts of previously unavailable scientific data to support ecosystem science, education and management. It will help to strengthen research networks and scientific collaborations by providing information about other researchers and their scientific endeavours, stimulating increased communication and partnership.