WHAT IS INFORMATION?
The term information is used quite frequently, but it is rarely defined clearly. Understanding this term is the first step to understanding why we need information management and delivery (IMD).
Information is data that informs a decision to reach a goal when the decision-maker has the knowledge needed to interpret that data. Data is only considered useful “information” when it is placed in the context of a goal and the relevant knowledge is available to interpret it.
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KNOWLEDGE
DATA
GOAL
INFORMATION
components of Information
Learn more about the components of information by selecting each term below. The terms contain a definition, a general example (in blue),
and a conservation example (in green).
GOALS
Goals are what you want to accomplish.
You want to have an LDL cholesterol level below 120mg/dL by the end of next year.
You want to reduce the Phragmites population on your land by 50% in 5 years.
DATA
Data consists of basic facts without context.
Your LDL (bad) cholesterol level is 160 mg/dL.
There are 6 parcels of invasive Phragmites reeds ranging in size from .1 acres to 2 acres on your property.
KNOWLEDGE
Knowledge is having the ability to interpret or understand data.
You know that 160 mg/dL is considered high for LDL cholesterol.
You know that eradicating Phragmites can be done efficiently if the number of acres containing Phragmites is relatively small.
INFORMATION
A piece of data becomes useful information when it informs a decision related to reaching a goal, and you have the knowledge to interpret it.
Your LDL cholesterol level is 160 mg/dL, which you know is high. When you use this data and knowledge to decide to make
dietary changes to achieve your goal of having a LDL cholesterol level below 120 mg/dL by the end of next year,it becomes information.
There are 6 parcels of Phragmites ranging in size from 0.1 acres to 2 acres on your property, but you know that eradicating Phragmites is only efficient if you're treating a small area. This data and knowledge becomes information when you use it to inform a decision that will help you achieve your goal of reducing the Phragmites population on your land by 50% in 5 years. In this case you use this information to decide to eradicate Phragmites on the smallest three invaded areas on your land and then evaluate your progress.
If you change or remove the knowledge or goals, then data is no longer useful information. Consider the conservation example in the boxes above. If you change your goal from reducing Phragmites to increasing songbird populations, the data and knowledge you have about Phragmites are no longer relevant and don’t inform your decision. Or, if you don't have the relevant knowledge to understand the Phragmites acreage data, then you can't use that data to make a decision and it's not useful information.
LET'S TAKE A LOOK
Goal: Get to Steve’s house in time for dinner.
Data and knowledge relevant to a decision about how to reach this goal:
- Steve lives at 434 W. 13th Street, Milwaukee, Wisconsin (data), which you know is near a bus stop and a parking lot (knowledge).
- Dinner starts at 7:30pm (data), but you know Steve likes people to be early (knowledge).
- There is a bus that leaves at 6:30 pm and takes 45 minutes to get to Steve’s house (data), and you know that the bus route normally
has light traffic (knowledge). - According to your GPS, it takes 30 minutes to drive to Steve’s house (data), but you know that the route suggested often has heavy traffic (knowledge).
Decision made:
- You decide to take the bus to Steve’s house for dinner because you will not have to sit in traffic and you are more certain you’ll be on time even though it may take a little longer.
Goal: Improve tributary connectivity by 25% in the Great Lakes
in a cost-effective manner.
Data and knowledge relevant to a decision about how to reach this goal:
- Removing barriers in your region costs an average of $100,000 each (data), and financial resources for removing barriers are limited (knowledge).
- A new decision tool has prioritized the important barriers to remove, and the removal of barrier at the top of the list costs $130,000 to remove (data), and you know that the tool prioritizes barriers for removal based on optimizing the cost and ecological outcome (knowledge).
- Upon investigating the top priority project, you see that removing this barrier will improve connectivity by 3% in the Great Lakes region (data), which is a substantial amount of improvement for a single dam removal (knowledge).
Decision made:
- You decide to start by removing the barrier at the top of the decision tool’s list, rather than a lower cost project, because the amount this will improve connectivity is worth the extra cost.
Information Availability Challenges
If a decision-maker has a goal, relevant data, and the knowledge needed to interpret that data, they can make an informed decision as shown in the examples above. In everyday conservation, however, the relevant goals, data, and knowledge needed for making a decision can be difficult to obtain. Here are some of the challenges that can prevent decision-makers from making informed decisions when implementing CAM in the Great Lakes region.
LACK OF GOALS
In the Great Lakes region, we lack shared, regional goals (see Part 1 for more information on goals). Without goals, relevant data is never put into the proper context and cannot inform decisions.
- For example, Sally decides to invest for retirement without setting a goal. She decides to put aside $100/week, which sounds like a lot, but might not be enough in the context of a $1 million retirement goal. She won’t know if she is investing enough money unless she knows how much she would like to save for retirement and how much time she has to save.
LACK OF RELEVANT INFORMATION
Some of the information needed to inform decisions does not exist, so decisions are made with partial information.
FRAGMENTATION OF RELEVANT INFORMATION
The pieces of information needed to inform key decisions are often found in different locations and are not contextualized or coordinated. This happens because:
- Different pieces of information are collected and managed by separate agencies, organizations, and programs.
- These information collectors and providers often do not coordinate their work, so they cannot integrate the relevant pieces of information and deliver them effectively to decision makers.
RELEVANT INFORMATION IS DIFFICULT TO ACCESS
Much of the information needed to inform key decisions is difficult to find or obtain and is not adequately shared with scientists, researchers, policy makers, and other decision-makers. Specifically:
- There is no universal platform that provides access to information about regional conservation goals.
- There is no universal platform that allows key stakeholders to systematically track and report progress towards regional goals. Tracking progress towards goals is important because it allows interested parties to understand the status of their investments.
- There is no centralized venue for people across the region to share and collaborate on resources and information. It is logistically impossible for hundreds of people or groups spread across the basin to collaborate on or share resources by talking to one another in person or via email.
NO IMD PROGRAM
There is currently no program that explicitly facilitates sharing and coordinating information in order to foster more effective communication, coordination, collaboration, and overall collaborative adaptive management.
There is also no program dedicated to ensuring that individuals and organizations can discover and access all of the information they need to implement collaborative adaptive management.
Select Information Management Delivery (IMD) to continue.
Photo credit: © Mark Godfrey (both)