Getting cited

SBDI provides several mechanisms that make it easy for researchers and other users to acknowledge your data collection efforts. Read more about these mechanisms here.

Data citations ensure that research is transparent and reproducible. They also make it easier for data-collecting institutions and individuals to demonstrate their impact to funders and other stakeholders. Any user of SBDI data needs to cite the data they use. This is true even if the data are used through other systems that harvest SBDI data.

Data citation through DOIs

When a dataset is shared through SBDI, it is automatically assigned a digital object identifier (DOI). This is a standardized identifier managed by the International DOI Foundation. The DOI allows users to cite the data provider.

To facilitate data citation, all data downloads from SBDI (and GBIF) are accompanied by a citation file. This file provides proper DOI-based citation of all data providers. Users are required to include these citations in any publications resulting from use of the data. See SBDI terms of use and citation guidelines).

GBIF maintains a literature tracking program, which identifies research uses and citations of biodiversity information accessed through GBIF’s global infrastructure. GBIF stores the citation against the DOI and passes this information back to the SBDI Bioatlas. The citations are listed on the dataset pages at GBIF as well as on the SBDI Bioatlas data resource pages. Just search for the dataset to see the citations.

Publishing a data paper

A data paper is a paper describing a particular dataset or collection of datasets. If you publish a data paper, your data becomes easier to find, and it is easier for others to acknowledge your data collecting efforts.

You can automatically generate a template data paper based on the metadata describing your SBDI dataset. See our documentation on how to publish data papers. GBIF provides additional information on data papers here.