Location Links Almost Everything: Building GIS Skills for Ecologists to Embed Spatial Evidence into Decision-Making

Introduction

Location links almost everything, and provides a powerful framework for informing decision-making; allowing environmental information to be placed in context. As environmental challenges, from biodiversity loss to climate adaptation, become more complex, the demand for robust, timely, and context-relevant ecological evidence continues to grow. I’ll be exploring this topic with my co-presenters (Jessica Elliott from Tyler Grange and Elina Foui from GiGL) and delegates in the workshop, “Location Links Almost Everything: Embedding Spatial Evidence into Decision-Making” at the CIEEM Autumn Conference. I wanted to take the opportunity in this article to reflect on some of the practical skills ecologists can use to integrate environmental information into planning, policy, and operational decisions.

To meet the needs of policymakers, land managers and communities, ecologists must do more than ensure spatial data is trustworthy. They also need to recognise that each project exists within its own unique context, shaped by specific constraints and opportunities. Budgets, staffing, available data, software access, policy or legal frameworks; all influence what is possible. These conditions don’t just define the technical scope, they shape what kinds of evidence are usable and how decisions are made. Understanding context, and working directly with decision-makers within it, is essential to turning ecological evidence into action.

Key Skills

To embed environmental evidence into decision-making, I believe ecologists need a combination of technical skills, spatial reasoning, and contextual awareness. Let’s look at each of these:

1. Integrating Multiple Datasets

Good environmental decisions rely on diverse datasets: habitat surveys, protected area boundaries, hydrology maps, infrastructure plans, and perhaps even demographic data. Ecologists need to be able combine these in GIS to reveal meaningful insights and set a project in context. The ability to navigate open-data portals, and to design and implement data preparation workflows in QGIS, are essential skills to ensure datasets combine together seamlessly. Integration transforms raw data, be it vector and raster data, into decision-ready evidence, enabling stakeholders to act confidently and efficiently.

2. Spatial Analysis and Interpretation

Many ecologists collect invaluable data on field surveys but this is only the first step. Ecologists must analyse spatial distribution patterns and interpret them in the context of planning, management or policy objectives. For example, mapping urban tree cover alongside open spaces and demographic data can guide evidence-based greening initiatives. Add flood risk and heatwave data, and you can begin to create climate change adaptation strategies. I’m currently working on a strategy for Tower Hamlets in London doing just that. Effective spatial analysis requires technical competence, ecological understanding, and the ability to communicate findings clearly to non-specialists.

3. Collaboration Across Disciplines

Environmental decisions rarely happen in isolation. Ecologists routinely work alongside planners, landscape architects, engineers, asset and land managers, and policymakers. Collaboration requires not only technical competence but also the ability to present spatial data in ways that support interdisciplinary understanding. Robust and repeatable methodologies engender trust, and clear visualisations enhance communication, enabling teams to tackle complex problems together.

Understanding context

In the conference workshop, we will consider practical questions for the four sectors below. Perhaps these questions can help you reflect on how your mapping analysis can contribute to creating sustainable real world solutions for nature and people.

Development – Urban and rural planning, regeneration

• How can spatial evidence support better design and planning outcomes?

• What barriers exist to integrating ecological data into development decisions?

• How can planners and developers access and trust ecological spatial data?

Policy – Environmental policy, governance, regulation

• How is spatial data currently used to inform or evaluate policy?

• How can policy cycles be made more responsive to new spatial evidence?

• What partnerships or data standards could improve consistency and uptake?

Land and Asset Management – estates, conservation, agriculture, rural stewardship

• How can spatial tools help balance productivity, biodiversity, and climate goals?

• What practical issues limit GIS or ecological data use on the ground?

• How can local land managers contribute to or benefit from national datasets?

Infrastructure – Transport, utilities, energy, and built environment assets

• How can spatial evidence improve long-term infrastructure planning and maintenance?

• How do environmental constraints shape infrastructure delivery?

• What systems (e.g., asset databases, BIM, GIS) could be better integrated?

Final thoughts

Across all these scenarios, the key is turning data into decision-ready information, not just analysis-ready datasets. Decision-ready data is distilled, contextualised, and immediately actionable, enabling ecologists to influence decisions that help tackle biodiversity loss, and help us all adapt to a changing climate.

Developing GIS skills allows ecologists to move beyond data collection and reporting. By mastering spatial analysis, dataset integration, and collaborative workflows, ecologists can influence planning, inform policy, and improve industry practice. Spatial thinking empowers ecologists to anticipate challenges, identify opportunities, and communicate insights with clarity and confidence.

At SpatialSesh we empower ecologists to collect, analyse, and communicate spatial data with clarity and confidence. Our mission is to give ecologists both roots and wings: a strong grounding in GIS skills and the ability to influence planning decisions, inform policy, and improve industry practice.