About the Climate Center
About the Climate Center
- What is the Data Basin Climate Center?
- What does the Climate Center do?
- Who is the Climate Center built for?
- How does the Data Basin Climate Center relate to CAKE?
- Who contributes and provides datasets to the Climate Center?
What is the Data Basin Climate Center?
The Climate Center is a component of Data Basin that specializes in creating and disseminating critical datasets, tools, and networks needed to address changes related to climate. The Data Basin Climate Center allows you to do three primary activities:
- Publish existing climate datasets and analyses
- Review new research on the potential patterns and impacts of a changing climate
- Connect with people with datasets, expertise, or similar interests
The Climate Center is organized around the following building blocks:
- Datasets: A dataset is a spatially explicit file, currently Arcshape and ArcGrid files. These can be biological, physical, socioeconomic, (and soon to be imagery) that can be uploaded, downloaded or visualized.
- Maps: Maps are visualized datasets created with easy-to-use tools in Data Basin. Maps, customized by users, can be kept private, shared with groups, or published for everyone. Users can critique maps with provided drawing and commenting tools.
- Galleries: Galleries are meaningful collections of datasets and/or maps created by Data Basin users. Users and organizations can publish galleries (including studies, atlases and books) that others can easily find and use.
- People: People are members of the Data Basin community. Users can search profiles to find data providers, potential collaborators or interested audiences.
- Groups: Groups are user-defined subsets of Data Basin users, collaborating around specific places or issues. Group members can share, analyze, and discuss datasets and maps. Data Basin allows for private (closed) and public (by request) groups.
What does the Climate Center do?
Data Basin makes it simple to find reliable climate datasets and make compelling visualizations. After locating a relevant dataset, combine it with others to create a map the way you want. The Climate Center provides the following functionality:
- Extensive documentation for each climate dataset or analysis
- Allows you to upload datasets and share them publically or keep them private
- Ability to download publically-shared climate-related datasets
- Visualization tools that allow you to combine datasets and make maps
- Searchable profiles of all users including climate and biodiversity experts
- Searchable galleries (collections of datasets, maps, analyses, or people)
- Working groups that enable sharing of datasets and maps with specific people
Who is the Climate Center built for?
The Data Basin Climate Center lowers the technical skills usually needed to visualize and create spatial datasets and maps. The data storage, visualization, group sharing, and directories are relatively straight forward to use. The Conservation Biology Institute provides technical support for registered Data Basin users. Now, anyone can visualize the predicted shifts in temperature, precipitation, and other relevant factors due to increases in greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Anyone using the Climate Center can explore how the natural, physical, and cultural worlds may be impacted by climate change. Climate Center users can learn from the experience of our partner, CAKE, to strategize and implement an adaptive response.
How does the Data Basin Climate Center relate to CAKE?
The Data Basin Climate Center was built in collaboration with the Climate Adaptation Knowledge Exchange (CAKE). CAKE supports individuals interested in developing the discipline of adaptation to climate change. CAKE is an online destination built by EcoAdapt and Island Press that provides:
- Detailed case studies of adaptation efforts already underway
- Directory of people interested in climate adaptation
- Virtual library of resources that can support adaptation efforts
- Information exchange, postings about upcoming events, job opportunities, and relevant deadlines
- Links to the tools, data and other portals that are available to support and build a community
CAKE is partnering with with Data Basin's Climate Center to provide the best information and tools to those working on the ground that need assistance dealing with the uncertainty of climate change. Read more.
Who contributes and provides datasets to the Climate Center?
Data Basin works with dozens of institutions, universities, research groups and individuals to provide the highest quality datasets as they become available.
