What does it take for a country to build a trusted, nationally owned ecosystem map - and what becomes possible once it has one? This session takes a practical deep dive into the Maldives, the first National Accelerator of the Global Ecosystems Atlas, launched through a partnership between the Maldives Ministry of Environment and the Group on Earth Observations, supported by the United Kingdom through Defra.

Representatives from the Maldives, the Global Ecosystems Atlas and partners will walk through how the country developed its national ecosystem map, harmonised with the IUCN Global Ecosystem Typology, combining national expertise with Earth observation data, open methods and targeted technical support. The discussion will explore what the process required in practice, the challenges encountered, and how the resulting ecosystem intelligence can support national reporting, spatial and marine planning, conservation and restoration, and better-targeted investment.

The session will then look beyond the Maldives at what elements of the National Accelerator can be replicated elsewhere, how national capacity can be strengthened, and what's needed to help more countries move from fragmented ecosystem information to operational, nationally owned mapping.

With the approach now extending to Papua New Guinea, the Maldives offers a concrete demonstration of how the Global Ecosystems Atlas can translate global methods into practical country delivery.

With: