Literature workflows from search to analysis – Workshop report

The accelerating expansion of biodiversity knowledge—across peer-reviewed publications, grey literature, policy documents, and project reports—creates increasing challenges in identifying timely, trustworthy, and policy-relevant evidence. Organisations working at the science–policy interface face rising demands to locate, screen, organise, and prepare ever larger bodies of literature while maintaining transparency, reproducibility, and methodological robustness. To address these shared challenges, a full-day, workshop (CON20: Biodiversity Evidence – Foundations of a Community of Practice to Streamline and Innovate Literature Workflows) was held on Sunday, 14 June 2026 here at the World Biodiversity Forum.

 

This presentation provides an overview of the workshop and the themes, discussions, and needs that emerged throughout the day. In the morning, short talks offered a state-of-the-art snapshot of current tools, techniques, and initiatives, along with case studies illustrating how different communities approach literature identification, screening, and preparation for synthesis. These contributions provided a shared reference point for reflecting on strengths, persistent challenges, and areas where workflows struggle to scale to large and very large bibliographic corpora.

 

In the afternoon, breakout groups explored the requirements of diverse user communities, ranging from science–policy bodies and assessment teams to researchers, practitioners, and independent projects. Discussions focused on what is currently missing, what is needed next, and where improved guidance, interoperability, automation, or standards could help streamline workflows across contexts. Rather than prescribing fixed solutions, the workshop aimed to articulate a clearer picture of the landscape of needs and opportunities.

 

A major component of the workshop was to outline the foundations of a new Community of Practice for Literature Workflows (CoPLit). The presentation will summarise how participants envisioned the role of CoPLit, the areas where collective action may be most beneficial, and the types of collaboration and coordination that could strengthen future development.

 

The session concludes by highlighting how researchers, practitioners, and institutions can engage with CoPLit and help build a coordinated, open, and practical approach to making biodiversity literature more accessible, relevant, and ready for evidence-based research, practice, and policy.