The IDEA Consortium began with the island of Moorea and the nearby atoll of Tetiaroa, in French Polynesia. It is now extending to other islands in the region through the 4Site: Pacific Transect Collaborative, as well as coastal and island communities in Europe. Research data management is a key aspect of the island avatars, and best practices are being developed through the Fair Island Project.
Recently, a growing interest in "Digital Twins", and their extension from industrial products to living systems, is stimulating fruitful exchanges over the transformational opportunities of social-ecological avatars. For example, at the European Marine Board's 7th Forum: Big Data in Marine Science (see Digital Twin Ocean: Island Digital Ecosystem Avatars (IDEA) for Sustainability, p.27).
Recognizing the importance of social-ecological foresight and digital twin technology to address many of society's 'wicked' problems, the Geneva Science and Diplomacy Anticipator (GESDA) carried out an assessment of this emerging capacity (see Scientific Anticipatory Brief, Davies et al. 2020), and developed the 2021 Science Breakthrough Radar (presenting 216 breakthrough predictions at 5, 10 and 25 years’ time horizons) that included the topic: "World Simulation" (Neil Davies, Scientific Moderator), which addresses the capacity to measure and predict relevant interconnections that facilitate evidence-based policymaking and resource management, whether in urban planning or nature conservation.
