Session B-7

Title:                            Databases for integrated assessment of agriculture and rural development

Session organisers:   Erling Andersen (Univ. of Copenhagen, Denmark),  Haluk Kasnakoglu (Middle East Technical Univ.)

Scope of session:   There is an increasing demand for integrated assessments that take into account all aspects, economic, environmental and socio-economic, of agricultural production. This poses special challenges for delivery of consistent datasets processed from data stemming from very different domains and at various spatial and temporal scales. This session will address these challenges, the methods of data processing and the scope and limitations of such integrated databases. This includes issues such as:

  - Difficulties and limitations of integrated assessment of agriculture and rural development with non-integrated   inconsistent and non-compatible data.

  -  Need and feasibility of database integration.

  -  The costs and benefits of integrated databases.

  -  Methods and processes of building integrated databases.

  -  Interpolations, extrapolations and methods for estimating missing data. Reconciling and harmonizing inconsistent data.

  -  Experiences with, and examples of, integrated databases at the national and international levels.

  -  Maintaining, updating, dissemination and pricing of integrated databases.

  -  Handling property rights in integrated databases.