GBIF Nodes Implementation Plan 2026

In 2026, the ASEAN Centre for Biodiversity (ACB) will support Priority Area 1 by coordinating the mobilization of high-quality biodiversity data from ASEAN countries across key thematic areas, strengthening regional capacity to publish survey and monitoring data using Darwin Core standards, and promoting the integration of underrepresented taxonomic groups and DNA-derived data.

ACB will facilitate collaboration among researchers, data managers, and thematic communities to improve data quality and interoperability, assess regional data gaps and biases, and advocate open science and FAIR data practices. These efforts will enhance the visibility, usability, and scientific uptake of GBIF-mediated data to support research and evidence-based biodiversity policy in Southeast Asia.

Attendance of TDWG 2026 in Oslo.

We will move forward with the integration of on-farm testing data to GBIF and work on the first submission. We plan to engage with Norway’s node for this task.

We will explore how BGCI and GBIF can work together to mobilise plant living collection data and identify synergies between PlantSearch (an ex situ database for living collection data of botanic gardens worldwide) and GBIF to see how they can be mutually beneficial.

In 2026, together with the BID-approved projects, newly developed tools at the national level, and other ongoing initiatives, we expect to mobilize a larger volume of ecological, eDNA, and IPLC data. We will continue delivering training activities and support actions for other nodes, participating in additional CESP initiatives and other BID calls. In addition, the GBIF node is now also an OBIS node, with the responsibility of mobilizing more marine biodiversity data.

Our plan is to develop the capacity at a national level to establish a functioning Node. We will also be involved in the distribution, maintenance and updating of guides, training materials and other resources aimed at research audiences in relation to GBIF requirements.

Consolidate scientific expertise across the GBIF network—including researchers from national participants, thematic community experts, the Science Committee and the GBIF Secretariat—to support development of strategic documents, communications and improvements to GBIF-mediated data and services

In 2026, Catalogue of Life will further explore its role and strategy for supporting national species list with taxonomic data services. COL will also involve GBIFS in this exploration to see if in the future national lists could be made available though hosted portals.

Work will also continue on evaluating the impact of incorporating DNA-derived nomenclatures, including BOLD Barcode Index Numbers (BINs) and UNITE species hypotheses. This will involve further testing, refining inclusion criteria, and assessing the actual benefits and limitations of these components for improving taxonomic coverage, interoperability, and the representation of GBIF occurrence data, particularly for metabarcoding and eDNA-based datasets.

All activities started in 2025 will continue in 2026. Promotion of the open biodiversity data will continue through various events, media appearances and social network, with stronger outreach to the scientific community.

Support the implementation and further development of DwC DP, further development of AI support for specimen digitisation, pilot enriched data delivery to GBIF through DwC DP.

FinBIF will continue work mobilising Finnish metabarcoding data using our Metabarcoding Data Toolkit installation and leveraging the GBIF Metabarcoding Data Programme along with our in-country partner organisations. FinBIF plans to engage Finnish researchers to partner with us to incorporate ecological modelling into our suite of tools and services we offer through our national portal.

The delegates of the GBIF node, the node manager and the staff plan to participate in international GBIF meetings, including GBIF ECA 2026 in Montpellier (France), the GBIF mid-term meeting in Copenhagen and the GBIF GB 33/TDWG meeting in Oslo (Norway), and will continue to serve on several committees as before.

We will be reaching out to researchers working on native species, and helping them prepare their data for publication. We will once again engage with researchers working with eDNA to help them publish their data through our MDT.

Ongoing work continues to focus on improving data quality, interoperability, and analytical capacity to support research and decision-making. Planned efforts include further refinement of data pipelines and tools, continued development of research-ready data products (including potential fee-for-service offerings), and expansion of AI-enabled interfaces, such as iChatBio, to facilitate discovery and use of biodiversity data. Training and mentorship of students and early-career researchers remain a priority, ensuring sustained capacity for generating and interpreting biodiversity evidence.

Complete assessment of biodiversity from the HKH region- which also entails considering other publications and datasets) and publish new datasets via HKHBIF- providing updated taxonomic backbone for species published.

Given that Italy just entered GBIF, we plan to organise workshops or symposia at the main scientific Italian conferences in the fall (ecologists, biogeographers, zoologists, botanists, microbiologists, limnologists, etc.), in order to drive mobilization and use of biodiversity data. We also plan to contact the Italian scientific journals dealing with biodiversity to open the possibility of publishing datapapers connected to datasets in GBIF.

Plans for 2026 under Priority Area 1 build on this momentum and are more clearly articulated. The GBIF network plans to further consolidate scientific expertise across nodes and thematic communities, including those on agrobiodiversity, expand engagement with priority research domains, and strengthen the role of GBIF as a platform supporting biodiversity research at multiple scales.

Countries and regions that were particularly active in 2025, such as European nodes working on survey and monitoring data and DNA-derived data, Latin American nodes advancing community-based data mobilization, and Oceanian nodes integrating GBIF into applied research contexts, are well positioned to act as catalysts for broader uptake across the network in 2026.

Foster data publication by participants to encompass more taxa.

Our primary goal for 2026 is to achieve our first data publication, starting with datasets from our own institute to demonstrate the practical application of the publishing pipeline. We plan to consolidate local scientific expertise to identify high-priority thematic data gaps in Mongolia and explore the integration of these records into the GBIF infrastructure. Furthermore, we will continue to advocate for open science within the Mongolian research community, encouraging the use of persistent identifiers and best practices for data citation.

In 2026, GBIF Spain plans to set in motion a focused set of projects directly contributing to Priority Area 1 of the GBIF Work Programme. These include, first, “Tools and Strategies for Biodiversity Data Validation”, which will encompass the consolidation of an inventory of existing documentation and validation tools, the further development and refinement of data-quality assessment instruments (notably Darwin Test and FAIR EVA), and the organization of targeted training activities to promote their adoption by the scientific community. In parallel, GBIF Spain will strengthen support for the publication and reuse of survey, monitoring and emerging data types, including event-based and DNA-derived datasets, through dedicated technical guidance and workshops. Together, these actions aim to reduce knowledge gaps, improve data fitness for research, and increase the effective uptake of GBIF data across scientific disciplines.

In 2026, the Swiss Node will consolidate and stabilise these data mobilisation pathways. Planned actions include ensuring routine operation of aggregation services for collections, maintaining and optimising data flows from species data centres, and strengthening mechanisms dedicated to the mobilisation of research data. Particular attention will be given to improving visibility and usability of published data, ensuring that data produced by collections, monitoring programmes and research projects can be efficiently shared through GBIF.

In 2026, the UK Node will focus on turning the 2025 infrastructure and pipeline work into clear, measurable improvements in research relevance, data usability, and gap reduction. A portion of the wider 2026 to 2027 delivery plan is being finalised alongside ongoing funding and partnership conversations, so the priorities below reflect confirmed work and near term commitments, with additional activities to be confirmed as resourcing is secured.

In 2026, the US Node plans to contribute to the GBIF-NA webinar series, which will feature talks on publishing data to OBIS, data quality, and updates from GBIF-NA nodes. A session on OBIS is being organized for the BioMonWeek 2026 conference, and a presentation is planned for TDWG 2026. Additional priorities include creating a Wikidata entry for the US Node of GBIF with links to relevant references, with the longer-term goal of parlaying that content into a Wikipedia article, as well as developing updated materials for distribution at conferences.

In the coming year, plans for the Andorra GBIF and according to the GBIF Work Programme 2026 are:

In 2026, priority area 2 will focus on strengthening the science policy interface and nature-positive decision-making by renewing key international partnerships, enhancing GBIF’s contribution to CBD and GBF reporting, promoting policy-ready data tools and taxonomic services, and deepening engagement with businesses, financial institutions, and global initiatives to mainstream biodiversity data sharing in policy, finance, and practice.

Work on the BioCASe-NG project, if granted.

Work in collaboration with Crop Trust under the BOLD and PDFF projects to bring stronger partnership around FAIR biodiversity data, particularly on-farm and variety information data. Countries of work will be Nigeria, Benin, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, India, Colombia and Ecuador.

In 2026, we expect to begin meetings with the new multi-ministerial Steering Committee and start providing indicators for national targets. To support these targets, it will be necessary to mobilize additional data. In addition, we established the GBIF Private and Business Sector Network in partnership with the National Confederation of Industry (CNI), which is expected to strengthen collaborations with the private sector.

We plan to establish a national working group comprising the Bulgarian scientific community and governmental environmental institutions. Within the group, we will promote the GBIF priority and try to find solutions to current tasks or requirements relating to data collection and data structure.

Support national and regional engagement with CBD focal points and subregional support centres to align technical collaboration and data use with GBIF capabilities.

Revision of the Nature Protection Act is in progress where importance and obligation for mobilization and opening of the biodiversity data will be elaborated in more details. National Nature Restoration Plan (NRP) in alignment with the EU Nature Restoration Law is in the development, in large extent relying on the open biodiversity data in BioAtlas.

Deliver first data from DiSSCo to GBIF, both new and improved data. Further collaborate with CETAF to improve collection descriptions in GrSciColl and with DataCite and Pensoft to improve citability of specimens, and improved connection between names, treatments and type specimens.

In 2026 we plan to further strengthen ties and engagement at all levels of Finnish government and expand engagement with the private sector. FinBIF will continue to engage with key national stakeholders and actors working on Finland’s commitments under the Convention on Biological Diversity, with a particular focus on the monitoring of progress on agreed goals and targets under the convention.

Strengthened internal coordination within the GBIF-D node system and external coordination with funders, funding agencies and also with representatives of the NFDI (National Research Data Infrastructure) with the NFDI4Biodiversity consortium. The aim is to integrate GBIF tools and services (such as CoL services) into the institutional national data centres instrastructure and to develop long-term financing strategies and corresponding funding frameworks.

We will continue to push for voting participation. Additionally, we are actively assisting some stakeholders in the private sector to publish their data to GBIF.

Future work will continue to strengthen partnerships that connect biodiversity data with societal needs, including education, conservation, and policy development. iDigBio will maintain its role as a convener and advisor for participatory science frameworks and expand professional and public engagement through webinars, targeted outreach, and a conference scheduled for June 2026. Sustained collaboration with educators, collections professionals, and international partners will support broader adoption of collections-based resources and ensure that biodiversity data remain relevant to policy and public decision-making.

Explore funding opportunities to support evidence-based national reporting for CBD in Nepal through ecosystem restoration in mountain landscape- with focus on high-altitude rangelands, wetlands and peatlands.

We plan to increase the use of iNaturalist and DiSSCo in Italy, in order to expand the participation of actors providing reliable data to GBIF.

The plans for 2026 under Priority Area 2 are structured and strategic, with clearer emphasis on operationalizing GBIF’s role in policy and partnerships. Building on leadership shown in 2025, nodes with strong policy linkages, particularly those in Europe, Latin America and Africa, are expected to play an important role in sharing experience, achievements and supporting other participants. National participation is planned to be expanded, following the example of 2025. Important activities are planned, such as the operationalisation of the engagement with the UN CBD, the support to the IPBES and the development of valuable products (e.g. value proposition for potential funders, new policy use cases for multilateral agreements) to attract and engage more key stakeholders in GBIF. In addition, increased engagement with the business and finance sectors is planned, with European nodes (e.g. the Netherlands, France, Spain) already demonstrating early leadership that can inform wider network uptake in 2026. Renewal of the memoranda of understanding with major organisations emerges one of the key actions.

For 2026, we intend to strengthen our national participation by engaging with government agencies and environmental focal points to ensure that GBIF tools and services are reflected in national biodiversity strategies. A major focus will be outreach to other institutions across the country; we hope that new publishers will join GBIF through our node and begin publishing their own datasets to increase Mongolia’s data representation.

In 2026, GBIF Spain plans to set in motion a focused set of projects aimed at strengthening the science–policy interface and broadening partnerships beyond the academic domain. These actions will include targeted initiatives to mobilise biodiversity data from the third sector and territorial stewardship organisations, supporting NGOs and foundations in standardising and publishing their data so that it can be reused in policy, management and conservation contexts.

In parallel, GBIF Spain will reinforce collaboration with environmental administrations through technical coordination, policy-oriented data products (such as Biodiversidad en cifras), and continued participation in national reporting frameworks, while promoting responsible data sharing practices aligned with CARE principles. Together, these activities are intended to increase the visibility, policy relevance and practical uptake of GBIF-mediated data, positioning GBIF Spain as a key enabling infrastructure for evidence-based decision-making at national and subnational levels.

In 2026, the Swiss Node will further strengthen data quality practices by refining quality checks across aggregated, species-centre and research data. Planned actions include aligning internal workflows with evolving GBIF data models, including event-centric approaches, and supporting partners in addressing recurrent quality issues. The node will also continue to work on solutions for mobilising DNA-derived data, in coordination with national and international initiatives, to improve the usability and interoperability of molecular data published through GBIF.

In 2026, the UK Node will focus on converting strengthened partnerships into clearer policy outcomes, more consistent reporting use, and more explicit adoption of biodiversity data sharing expectations in business and finance contexts.

Elements of the wider 2026 to 2027 delivery plan are being finalised alongside ongoing funding and partnership conversations, so the priorities below reflect confirmed work and near term commitments, with additional activities to be confirmed as resourcing is secured.

Looking ahead, the US Node aims to deepen coordination across the country on policy and new partnerships, including supporting GBIF in developing a strategy for marine biodiversity through continued partnership with OBIS and potentially serving as a liaison between GBIF and the GEO BON Marine Biodiversity Observation Network. Outreach efforts will focus on discovering and supporting new data providers such as government agencies, small collections, taxonomic groups, field stations, and iDigBio connections. The Node also plans to begin contributing to preparations for the next GBIF Strategic Plan (2028–2032) as introduced by the Governing Board Chair at GB32, with an emphasis on demonstrating how US-published data is being used in research on climate change, biodiversity loss, and ecosystem functioning, and promoting further applications of that data for policy-relevant purposes.

In 2026, Priority Area 3 will focus on strengthening the GBIF community and capacity by clearly communicating GBIF’s value, reinforcing the role and effectiveness of nodes, and expanding training and support programmes.

Keep the engagement with Crop Trust and genebank partners.

For 2026, we plan to initiate all BID, CESP, and other approved projects and participate in the LAC regional event. We believe the LAC region has strong potential, with Colombia and Brazil acting as regional leaders. We are supporting Chile in organizing taxonomic information and implementing a national portal, as well as supporting Peru in the publication of sampling-event data. We are also strengthening collaboration with Australia and the Pacific region to test the new sociobiodiversity extension.

Coordinate the work and skills development of regional support teams to ensure they provide effective support of data mobilization and use.

Coordinate a consistent and structured approach toward community engagement and communication with nodes, thematic communities and other communities of practice.

We aim to develop a clearer strategy for participating as an international GBIF node and strengthening engagement across regions, starting with a better understanding of regional needs related to checklist development and use. This will include assessing which needs can already be addressed through existing Catalogue of Life tools and services, particularly the infrastructure ChecklistBank.

Based on this assessment, we will identify areas for improvement in Catalogue of Life workflows, tooling, and guidance to better support regional and national users. Greater emphasis will also be placed on engaging with the GBIF community to gather feedback, share use cases, and encourage contributions that help improve the Catalogue of Life.

DanBIF will participate in organising and teaching activities in a PhD course at the Natural History Museum of Denmark on Curation of Natural History Collections, introducing GBIF, sampling-event data and DwC extensions relevant for collections and e.g. expeditions

FinBIF will support the work of GBIF Sweden and Norway along with other nodes and the secretariat towards enhancing Indigenous Data Governance and the CARE principles.

The GBIF-D Node project with support of SNSB, Munich to develop GBIF competencies in Kenya will continue with a planned on-site workshop in Siaya County, Kenya (ITCER location). Technical support for the installation of the BioCASse Provider software and for the LAND Hosted Portal can also be provided in 2026.

In collaboration with the NFDI Initiative and the GFBio data centres, we will continue to train researchers in the management of various data types, guide them in the installation of one of the recognised data management systems, and support them in the publication of GBIF data papers and biological datasets via the GBIF data publishers in Germany. Support with the endorsement of new GBIF data publishers will be organised.

We will keep looking for opportunities to translate GBIF material into Spanish. We will continue providing training to researchers.

Ongoing efforts focus on sustaining and evolving the U.S. contribution to the GBIF network amid changing technical, organizational, and funding landscapes. This includes continued leadership engagement, support for node operations, and collaboration on data standards, registries, and infrastructure alignment. Importantly, iDigBio has also transferred the iDigBio IPT to the GBIF US IPT, in anticipation of the iDigBio IPT becoming unavailable later this year when funding ends. Similarly, we have initiated the creation of an iDigBio Hosted Portal which we will continue to build out and then make public when we are ready to sunset the iDigBio portal.

Explore support to strengthen HKHBIF node and seek collaboration with other Asian nodes to develop BID-like programme for Asia.

Plans for 2026 emphasize upscaling, outscaling and coordination of capacity development. One of the most important activity is the publishing of the paper describing the GBIF infrastructure after 25 years of operation. Enhancing the impact of the Node Awards programme is another planned activity. Nodes and regions that have acted as hubs for training and mentoring, particularly in Europe and Latin America, are expected to support regional and interregional learning, alongside regional support teams.

The 2026 plans also point to stronger alignment of capacity development tools, curricula, and self-assessment mechanisms, helping reduce inequalities across regions while building on existing centres of excellence.

Collaboration with other nodes (France, Africa).

We plan to expand our training activities by delivering follow-up technical support hours to help our researchers move from data preparation to active publication. We will seek to utilize GBIF’s updated training curricula and multilingual resources to further develop the skills of our local community. Additionally, we hope to engage with the Capacity Enhancement Support Programme (CESP) or similar mentoring opportunities to learn from experienced node managers in the region.

Three students identified for student exchanges between South Africa and Norway, with capacitation in eDNA related work, and biodiversity informatics efforts. Students actively engaged in Biodiversity Informatics projects

In 2026, GBIF Spain plans to set in motion a focused set of actions aimed at strengthening the community and capacity dimensions of the national network, in line with Priority Area 3 of the GBIF Work Programme. These plans include reinforcing and expanding training and capacity-building activities, both online and face-to-face, with updated and multilingual materials covering data mobilisation, data use and emerging data types. GBIF Spain will further consolidate support to the community of data publishers, collections and nodes through targeted technical assistance, improved documentation and shared good practices, while advancing initiatives that foster peer learning and exchange, including technical meetings and user-driven forums.

In parallel, the Node will continue to strengthen citizen science and community engagement—notably through Natusfera/iNaturalist and community-based initiatives linked to collections—ensuring that participation pathways remain inclusive, technically robust and sustainable, and that the Spanish GBIF community is well equipped to meet future scientific and societal challenges.

In 2026, the Swiss Node will reinforce community engagement through targeted capacity-building activities. A key focus will be reaching the research community through dedicated training on data publication workflows and standards, including hands-on training for research data mobilisation. The node also plans to engage with national research funders and other stakeholders to promote data publication through GBIF as a standard requirement for biodiversity-related research, and to contribute to broader discussions on data availability in scientific publishing.

In 2026, the UK Node will focus on strengthening the resilience and capability of the UK biodiversity data community, improving support pathways for publishers and users, and increasing the visibility and articulation of the Node’s value as national infrastructure.

Elements of the wider 2026 to 2027 delivery plan are being finalised alongside ongoing funding and partnership conversations, so the priorities below reflect confirmed work and near term commitments, with additional activities to be confirmed as resourcing is secured.

In 2026, the US Node plans to promote understanding and use of Darwin Core Data Packages while continuing work initiated in 2025, including participating in the GBIF North America Steering Committee, supporting US data providers and publishers in sharing their data and accessing the GBIF-US IPT, and improving communication and coordination across the GBIF North America region. Efforts to develop communication and collaboration between GBIF-US and regional nodes will include regular meetings, a plan to better describe and raise awareness of node activities, and the development of data analysis examples to highlight the utility of US data. The Node will also work to increase its stability and sustainability by supporting new staff and building a broader network of knowledge holders, identifying new data publishers and guiding them through the publication process, and collaborating with the iDigBio Node to encourage and facilitate additional data transfers from iDigBio to GBIF.

In 2026, ACB will focus on further aligning its regional biodiversity platforms with GBIF’s evolving infrastructure by adopting emerging data standards such as Darwin Core Data Packages, strengthening checklist and taxonomic integration, improving data publishing and validation workflows, and enhancing technical capacity to ensure ASEAN biodiversity data are interoperable, reliable, and ready for regional and global policy use.

The Global Tree Assessment is entering a reassessment phase for IUCN Red List assessments. We have submitted a concept note for the 2026 Capacity Enhancement Support Programme with a project that aims to develop a workflow and documentation for integrating new and updated GBIF occurrence data into reassessments.

In 2026, we will update the nationally organized taxonomy using ChecklistBank and produce tutorial materials for the new DwC-DP. We will also strengthen our capacity to work with the new data model and improve the information published through GRSciColl. For ecological data, we will initiate data publication using Humboldt Core and controlled vocabularies for variables in the Extended Measurement or Fact extension. In addition, the tools developed at the national level will be made available to other nodes and to the GBIF and OBIS networks more broadly.

We plan to incorporate the Darwin Core standard into our Central Database for Biodiversity Monitoring infrastructure.

Expand the infrastructure to support download capabilities for the emerging Darwin Core Data Package format.

Work will focus on evaluating how the Catalogue of Life Data Package (ColDP) can better cover information needs at both global and regional levels. This will include reviewing how existing fields and structures support decision-making and identifying where additional or improved annotations are needed to better inform the use of occurrence data. COL will publish a new taxonomic reference for GBIF every month.

Particular attention will be given to policy-relevant checklists, including those related to the European Environment Agency (EEA), invasive alien species, CITES, and other multilateral environmental agreements. Improving the clarity and standardization of annotations for these categories will support better interoperability and more effective downstream use in policy reporting and biodiversity assessments.

Focus on digitisation support to speed up data delivery to GBIF, further improvement of annotations and connection between GBIF records and digital specimens, switch from COL to extended taxonomic backbone for improved discovery of specimens and harmonisation with GBIF.

FinBIF will continue with the development of our national web portal in 2026, including adding a new species trait database.

The staff at the GBIF-D sub-node in Berlin (BGBM) will continue to collaborate on the development of the new seamless data format ‘DarwinCore Data Packages’ for GBIF. Where necessary, they will contribute further real test data for DwC-DP, as will the GBIF-D sub-node in Munich (SNSB). The implementation of an IndExs service API with relation to examplary GBIF occurrence data is in progress.

We plan on publishing our first eDNA datasets this year. We had a test IPT installed in a small personal server for training purposes, but we had to repurpose the VM that was hosting it. We hope to install it somewhere else.

The iDigBio Node will emphasize continuity, sustainability, and responsible evolution of infrastructure in 2026. Planned activities include further enhancement of AI-enabled tools, continued accessibility improvements, and implementation of archival and post-project access strategies to protect long-term investments. Sustainability planning, including close interfacing with the US Node, will remain central to maintaining core services and infrastructure beyond the current iDigBio funding cycle.

Continue development of hosted portal for HKHBIF to position HKHBIF as a regional data aggregator and curator and to widen its outreach to global investors.

We already listed potential improvements to services, but we still need to discuss what to implement and how.

Plans for 2026 indicate a shift toward implementation and scaling of infrastructure advances. Nodes and regions that acted as early adopters and testbeds in 2025, particularly in Europe and Oceania, are well positioned to support wider rollout of ChecklistBank, Darwin Core Data Packages, enhanced survey and monitoring data handling, and improved user services.

At the same time, the 2026 plans ensure that infrastructure benefits are more evenly distributed across regions, supported by shared tools, documentation, and community-driven feedback mechanisms.

The coming year will prioritize the technical implementation of our data publishing pipeline, targeting the successful ingestion of our foundational datasets into the GBIF index. Following the publication of our initial records, we plan to leverage the GBIF Hosted Portal program to enhance the visibility and accessibility of Mongolian biodiversity data. Furthermore, we will monitor developments in global data standards—specifically the Darwin Core Data Package (DwC-DP)—to ensure our future data products remain robust, interoperable, and aligned with international best practices.

In 2026, GBIF Spain plans to set in motion a focused set of infrastructure-oriented actions aligned with Priority Area 4 of the GBIF Work Programme. These plans include the continued development and consolidation of Elysia Web as a cloud-based platform for collection management, incorporating modules for citizen science and living collections, and the strengthening of the national data portal and spatial services through improved stability, documentation and shared developments within the Living Atlases community.

GBIF Spain will also advance work on data processing, validation and interoperability, including further refinement of Darwin Test, integration of quality indicators, and support for emerging data models such as event-based, metabarcoding and other complex datasets. In parallel, the Node will maintain its leadership role in the development and adoption of international biodiversity data standards (e.g. Plinian Core, geographic vocabularies and ISO processes), ensuring that national infrastructures remain interoperable, sustainable and fully aligned with the evolving GBIF technical framework.

In 2026, infrastructure-related activities will focus on long-term stability, interoperability and alignment with GBIF developments. Planned actions include continued investment in registries and reference data, support for national checklists aligned with official species registers, and further development of hosted portals responding to community needs. Infrastructure improvements will be closely linked to training and onboarding activities, ensuring that technical developments directly support partner capacity and effective participation in the GBIF network.

In 2026, the UK Node will focus on consolidating the new pipelines into a mature, resilient operating model, improving the quality and usability of data products, and aligning national infrastructure with evolving GBIF standards and formats, particularly in event based and DNA derived domains.

Elements of the wider 2026 to 2027 delivery plan are being finalised alongside ongoing funding and partnership conversations, so the priorities below reflect confirmed work and near term commitments, with additional activities to be confirmed as resourcing is secured.

In 2026, the US Node plans to continue promoting engagement in the hosted portal process.