Dear BID colleagues,

GBIF is pleased to invite the submission of concept noteshttps://www.gbif.org/article/6YMaBaQKPDDfBSGTO6jvg5/ for project funding from sub-Saharan Africa through Biodiversity Information for Development (BID), a programme funded by the Directorate-General for International Partnershipshttps://ec.europa.eu/international-partnerships/ of the European Union. The call for proposals is also available in Frenchhttps://www.gbif.org/fr/article/6YMaBaQKPDDfBSGTO6jvg5, Portuguesehttps://www.gbif.org/pt/article/6YMaBaQKPDDfBSGTO6jvg5 and Spanishhttps://www.gbif.org/es/article/6YMaBaQKPDDfBSGTO6jvg5.

The BID programmehttps://www.gbif.org/bid aims to enhance capacity for effective mobilization and use of biodiversity data in support of decision- and policymaking for sustainable development in sub-Saharan Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific. The total funding assigned to this call is approximately €600,000.

This call seeks to support projects from sub-Saharan Africa that:

* Mobilize biodiversity data relevant to decisions supporting sustainable development * Use and extend best practices for digitizing natural history collections and mobilizing other biodiversity data * Apply biodiversity data in support of decision-making and research * Develop lasting national, regional or thematic networks to support ongoing data sharing and reuse

The call offers support for four grant types:

* Regional biodiversity data mobilization grantshttps://www.gbif.org/article/5TOFC84d5cGgE32vSBW5EI/ that establish or strengthen international collaborations to increase biodiversity data mobilization for research and policy addressing regional sustainable development needs * National biodiversity data mobilization grantshttps://www.gbif.org/article/1YK0cSSJYJZkaUiKvyUwJp/ that establish or strengthen national biodiversity information facilities and increase biodiversity data mobilization to respond to national priorities * Institution-level biodiversity data mobilization grantshttps://www.gbif.org/article/6URo8ZAfFXzu3dA9uZH0sZ/ that mobilize biodiversity data relevant for sustainable development * Data-use grantshttps://www.gbif.org/article/1as2BEBQfm6itaHkBIsRuQ/ that build on existing relationships between biodiversity data-holding institutions and decision-makers to provide data solutions that respond to a specific policy need

These grants are open to institutions based in eligible countries in sub-Saharan Africahttps://www.gbif.org/article/y4yos8JwOVccTRuS1kYRD#africa. Concept notes must be submitted by 27 August 2020 through the GBIF Grant Portalhttps://gbif.fluxx.io/. Following evaluation of the concept notes, GBIF will invite applicants successful in this round to submit a full proposal.

This call aims to build on the impact of BID’s first phasehttps://assets.ctfassets.net/uo17ejk9rkwj/7ezmj33g285s8mRb1HTpE/36359b4b635e64f28a6ce3ff2b50fd89/191127-BID-Impact-Summary.pdf, in which 63 BID-funded projectshttps://www.gbif.org/programme/82243/bid-biodiversity-information-for-development#projects mobilized 535 biodiversity datasets containing more than 1.3 million records relevant to the regions’ priority policy needshttps://downloads.ctfassets.net/uo17ejk9rkwj/4gmZ9Hz9egtxJIuXKlW7SW/003fef24c10c69b730b8c92c4e22f326/191125-BID-Best-Practices.pdf. The programme's rigorous training and e-learning curriculahttps://www.gbif.org/article/2IE7tH4dlcik1BnmniIPAc/ have also helped improve biodiversity data skills and establish regional communities of practice for hundreds of professionals across sub-Saharan Africa, the Caribbean and Pacific.

GBIF plans to invite simultaneous calls for submission of concept notes for the wider Caribbean (see eligible countrieshttps://www.gbif.org/article/y4yos8JwOVccTRuS1kYRD#caribbean) and the Pacific (see eligible countrieshttps://www.gbif.org/article/y4yos8JwOVccTRuS1kYRD#pacific) in September 2020. To keep up to date with the programme, including upcoming information webinars and other information resources, sign up to the BID mailing listshttp://eepurl.com/du73YP.

If you have questions about the programme or call for proposals, please contact us at BID@gbif.orgmailto:BID@gbif.org.

Best regards, Kyle ===== Kyle Copas Communications Manager ORCID: 0000-0002-6590-599Xhttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-6590-599X

GBIF Secretariat Universitetsparken 15 DK-2100 Copenhagen Ø Denmark +45 35 32 14 75 | mobile +45 28 75 14 75 | Skype kylecopas https://www.gbif.org