Contribute to the Atlas
The Global Ecosystems Atlas is built up from existing ecosystem information. If you're an owner of ecosystem data, and are interested in contributing to the initiative, please follow these general guidelines.
Data Format Requirements
To prevent delays in the submission process, it helps to ensure your dataset meets the following criteria:
Thematic alignment: Your data needs to represent the current spatial distribution of natural and anthropogenic ecosystem(s) consistent with Level 3 of the IUCN Global Ecosystem Typology (GET) - Ecosystem Functional Groups (EFGs). We accept data for all 110 EFGs in version 2.1 of the GET.
File structure: Where possible, please submit datasets as a single consolidated vector or raster file. To account for the vertical structure of some ecosystems, such as pelagic ecosystems, exceptions apply for these standalone ecosystems. Details for standalone EFGs are specified in the metadata repository in the Global Ecosystems Atlas GitHub organisation.
Spatial resolution: The cell size of raster submissions should preferably be between 10 and 100 metres (0.000089 and 0.000898 decimal degrees). Similar equivalent scales/minimum mapping units are also required for vector data. Coarser data may be considered if no other data is available for a specific ecosystem, region or country.
Supported File Formats:
Vector & Raster Files must be submitted in a GDAL-compatible format (e.g. GeoTIFF, Shapefile, GeoPackage, Geodatabase, GeoJSON). For vector files, only polygon data is accepted for ecosystems.
Web Services, including publicly accessible REST services (ArcGIS Server or WFS endpoints)
Step-by-Step Submission Process
Step 1: Prepare Your Spatial Data
Upload your spatial dataset with a licence, preferably CC0 or CC-BY, to a public repository (e.g., Zenodo, Figshare, or a similar globally accessible cloud endpoint/web service) with supporting documentation detailing your methods, map class definitions, and accuracy validation metrics.
If you prefer to share your data privately rather than publicly, please contact the Group on Earth Observations Secretariat (GEO) team directly at ecosystems.atlas[at]geosec.org before submission.
Step 2: Submit Your Data
Choose one of the following methods to submit your data:
Option A (Online Form): Fill out and submit the official Data Submission Form.
Option B (Email): Send links to your data, as well as your contact information, licence information, and any supporting documentation to accompany your data via email to ecosystems.atlas[at]geosec.org.
Step 3: Complete the Membership Matrix
Once we receive your submitted data, we will assess it for suitability against our data standards, and then generate a tailored Membership Matrix (.csv) template to be completed by you.
Cross-referencing map classes can be a complex and demanding task, best suited to map developers. Please complete the Membership Matrix to correlate the classes in your map with Ecosystem Functional Groups (EFGs) following the IUCN Cross-Referencing Guidelines. Return the completed .csv file to complete the integration of your map data.
If your data already represents Ecosystem Functional Groups (EFGs), you will still need to complete and submit a Membership Matrix to ensure your data is ingested in a suitable and consistent format.
If you need any assistance with the preparation and submission of your data, please get in touch via email to ecosystems.atlas[at]geosec.org.
Common issues
We recommend that you follow the IUCN Cross-Referencing Guidelines to align your map classes with the Global Ecosystem Typology.
The Membership Matrix enables you to accurately record “many to one” cases, where map classes don’t perfectly align to a single EFG, by detailing secondary and tertiary EFGs and their estimated proportional presence in each map class.
Source data classes that can not be cross-referenced to an EFG class with a proportional membership value of less than 0.5 cannot be included in the Atlas synthesis map.
You can view completed examples in the Global Ecosystems Atlas Cross-Referencing Repository.
You can submit your updated dataset through the standard submission channels.
Once we update your data, the outdated spatial layer will be removed and replaced with your new version.
You will need to complete and submit a new Membership Matrix corresponding to the updated dataset.
We accept data with Creative Commons CC0 and CC-BY licences, or equivalent. We cannot ingest data that forbids commercial use, or has a no-derivatives or share-alike restrictions.
If your dataset has a non-standard licence, please provide all the details with your submission for assessment of suitability.
More information on licensing ecosystem data is available from the Atlas' paper on the topic.
If you have questions about how your data is visualised or presented in the Atlas, or if you have any other questions or require support to submit your data, please email ecosystems.atlas[at]geosec.org.