March 01, 2022 / by Chantal Huijbers

Call for proposals for COLDP user guideline documentation

The Catalogue of Life (COL) Secretariat seeks proposals from qualified experts to prepare documentation on the COLDP data standard focused on user guidelines.

The COL Data Package (COLDP) is a new exchange format for data to and from ChecklistBank, a joint initiative of COL and GBIF. This format was developed to overcome limitations in existing formats for sharing taxonomic information such as Darwin Core Archive (DwC-A) and the earlier COL submission format ACEF (Annual Checklist Exchange Format).

To enable taxonomic communities to more easily submit their checklists to ChecklistBank, we would like to review the current documentation and user guidelines of the COLDP standard. The COLDP Github readme page already provides information on the new format, but we would like to receive proposals to extend this with information such as:

• Describing the differences between COLDP and DwC-A, and recommendations when to choose which standard when preparing taxonomic checklists;
• Step by step guide on how to prepare data in COLDP format;
• Information on how to clean up data before submission to ChecklistBank;
• Practical examples. We would like to be able to use the documentation for workshops and training for taxonomic communities interested in submitting their checklist to ChecklistBank, both in DwC-A and COLDP format.

We are looking for proposals from individual authors or small teams. Investigation and writing should start in April 2022, preferably as soon as possible, with first drafts completed within 3 months. The Catalogue of Life Secretariat can help identify and communicate with current users and will release the completed documentation for community review. Authors should be prepared to address this feedback and prepare responses and edits.

Please send your proposals to support@catalogueoflife.org, including:

• Summary of the approach to provide the documentation
• Draft outline for the documentation
• Candidate’s knowledge and experience on the topic, preferably with a CV
• Project budget

Key details

• Start of contract: as soon as possible
• Contract duration: maximum of 6 months from start of contract
• Contract fees paid in two (2) instalments
• Indication available budget: €5-7k, to be negotiated

For additional questions about this call, please contact support@catalogueoflife.org.

Also see the call for proposals for COL API documentation.