The Finnish Ecosystem Observatory (FEO) aims to create a national co-operation model and information platform to support the extensive monitoring and evaluation of and research on the state of ecosystems.
Monitoring the state of nature is ever more important when the environmental conditions are changing globally and rapidly. The deterioration of ecosystems and biodiversity decline are intertwined with climate change. Their mitigation requires comprehensive and up-to-date information on the state of nature. Reliable, open and current information supports democratic decision-making.
FEO brings together scattered activities that support the monitoring of the state of nature and improves elements of research and monitoring infrastructures where needed. The project advances the utilisation and development of observation networks, remote sensing data, analysis algorithms and open data and reporting products. The rapidly increasing amount of different types of digital data, the increased openness and accessibility of data, and the development of analysis and modelling methods make founding the system now relevant.
The FEO project consists of six work packages each focusing on a specific thematic area
- Work package 1 advances the usability of environmental information and indicators as part of decision-making processes.
- Work package 2 puts the developed methods into practice. The tasks include responding to the nature information needs of municipalities, interconnecting carbon neutral land use and habitat management as well as developing the reporting on the Habitats Directive and Birds Directive the assessment of threatened habitat types, ecosystem accounting, and the indicators used in the Biodiversity.fi website.
- Work package 3 brings together scattered data sets and develops monitoring network.
- Work package 4 advances the utilisation of remote sensing methods in the monitoring of the state of nature.
- Work package 5 develops modelling of biodiversity and carbon cycling and storages.
- Work package 6 develops the managing and integrating of FEO data streams.
The research and development in the FEO project are divided into six units.
Implementation
The Finnish Environment Institute SYKE leads the implementation of the project, but developing a functional system requires extensive co-operation with different parties producing and utilising data sets. Achieving an operative co-operation network is one of the key objectives of the project.
The FEO steering group includes the Ministry of the Environment, the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, the Natural Resources Institute Finland, the University of Helsinki, the Finnish Museum of Natural History, Metsähallitus, the Finnish Forest Centre, the National Land Survey of Finland, the Centres for Economic Development, Transport and the Environment (ELY centres), and the IT Center for Science Ltd. (CSC).
The FEO project is planned to take four years, and it launched in the spring of 2020. The project is financed by the Ministry of the Environment and SYKE.
Contact information
Biodiversity
Responsible Leader of the Project, Head of Unit Petteri Vihervaara, Finnish Environment Institute SYKE, tel. +358 295 251740, firstname.lastname@syke.fi
Ecosystem processes
Research Professor Martin Forsius, Finnish Environment Institute SYKE, tel. +358 295 251 118, firstname.lastname@syke.fi
Data systems
Development Manager Saku Anttila, Finnish Environment Institute SYKE, tel. +358 295 251 069, firstname.lastname@syke.fi
Project Coordinator Peter Kullberg, Finnish Environment Institute SYKE, tel. +358 295 251 965, firstname.lastname@syke.fi