Press Release: The Polar Information Commons (PIC): Establishing the Framework for Long-term Stewardship of Polar Data and Information

"Data are the common wealth of humanity"

By Adama Samassekou, Convener of the UN World Summit on the Information Society

The International Polar Year 2007-2008 (IPY) has been a huge, scientific success, resulting in new insights in how the polar regions work. Now that the IPY officially draws to a close, it is critical to ensure that the data generated by IPY projects are accessible and preserved for future generations to benefit from.  

CODATA, the Committee on Data for Science and Technology, is starting a new initiative to establish a Polar Information Commons (PIC), to further the process of ensuring long-term stewardship of and access to polar data and information coming out of the IPY.

This project: The Polar Information Commons (PIC): Establishing the Framework for Long-term Stewardship of Polar Data and Information, aims to establish a sustainable long-term framework for the preservation and access of polar data, building on recent "commons" approaches developed in other scientific fields and entraining new stakeholders and participants into polar data management.

Experiences in other scientific communities, such as the biodiversity/conservation and neuroscience communities, has shown that a "commons" approach will strengthen incentives for scientists, research institutions, nations, and other groups to contribute and document data, reduce barriers to data sharing, and provide a focal point for community efforts to fill in data gaps, improve data quality, and promote data access and usability.

CODATA looks forward to working with its supporting partners, the International Arctic Science Council (IASC); the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR); the International Union of Geodesy and Geophysics (IUGG); the World Meteorological Organization (WMO); the IPY International Program Office (IPY IPO); the World Data System Transition Team and the Royal Netherlands Academy of Sciences and many stakeholders in the development of this project and it thanks ICSU, the International Council for Science, for its support in the launch of the activity.

For more information, please contact Kathleen Cass, CODATA Executive Director at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

CODATA, the Committee on Data for Science and Technology, is an international scientific organization concerned with the collection, management, manipulation, access to and exploitation of quantitative data in science and technology. For over 40 years, CODATA has been at the centre of international, multi-lateral, multi-disciplinary cooperation for data activities. Through its task groups, conferences and publications, CODATA enriches the scientific world with the latest advances in data and data technology. The CODATA Secretariat is located in Paris, France, and serves a world-wide network of over 20 national committees and 14 scientific union members, as well as many supporting organizations. For more information: www.codata.org

CODATA Secretariat, 5 Auguste Vacquerie, 75016 Paris, France. This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

On February 25th 2009, the IPY Joint Committee will release a report on ‘The State of Polar Research’. In the lead-up to this event, major IPY research projects are releasing information for the press, and making themselves available for media enquiries. A wide range of projects will be profiled reflecting the diversity of IPY. For more information, please visit http://ipy.arcticportal.org/index.php?option=com_k2&id=1997&view=item or contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .