Thanks for taking the initiative. I find google.docs to be appropriate for this kind of work. If you prefer an open tool, a less advanced option is a riseup.pad

Hej allihop,

I guess all of us have an outline in mind for the ontology-related paper. Here is what I have in mind; I guess we can build on it, iterate and agree on a suitable structure and contents.
Not sure if groups.io is the best way to keep track of edits in the long run; not sure that google.drive suits everyone either; GitHub would be public; we use BOX.com internally.

INTRODUCTION

§ Paragraph IE

IE's object of study is SEM.

The accounting of social, environmental and economic flows in time and space.

Many fields of sustainability and decision-making towards sustainability rely on such accounting.

Several approaches can exist: MFA / LCA / IOA; but all share the same structure; despite different vocabularies/inconsistencies (ref).

Call to lift up IE methods: Reference to Pauliuk

Call to generalise: Bo, 2018

 

 

§ Paragraph CS

• Ontology definition
• Linked Data, Web of Data, background, e.g. in life sciences and what it has enabled
• Open-source

 

§ IE and CS

Acknowledge previous efforts: LCA ontologies existing, IE GitHub repo open source,…

Still, as of today:

• Conventional databases, ecoinvent; exiobase, have not yet made the move towards these flexible data structures.
• Remains a challenge to have interoperability between databases
• Validation of databases
• Transparency of assumptions (constructs / system model)
• Updates of databases

 

§ Bonsai organisation, strech goals, hackhathon

• BONSAI organisation / Working rules / BEP process
• Strech goals; highlight the sub-goal of the ontology group
• Hackhathon, background info

 

§ Paper's aim

• Describe the ontology developed, providing examples and possible extensions
• Report on BEP process, main choices, alternatives left out + reproducability

 

§ Outline plan of article

[not sure an IMRaD structure is best suited, maybe better to have numbered section]

Section 2 = BEP process, rules, principles

Section 3 = Ontology description (link to online documentation)

Section 4 = Examples (unlinked, linked)

Section 5 = Advanced example, ideally with actual URIs, online;

Section 6 = Discussion of key choices, extensions per field, future enhancements, validation of rdfs

Section 7 = Conclusions, link to other working groups (e.g. correspondance tables, rdf triplestore)

 

SECTION 2  BEP process, rules, principles

Rules for agreeing; definition; BEPs

Principles:

• Minimalist principle: core; complementary ontologies for different fields; extensions upcoming
• On the distinction between A and B; for IA: atmospjhere as a process

 

SECTION 3 Ontology description

Table: 3 columns: Key vocabulary in the ontology; labels as in ontology; other usual names given in different fields (LCA, MFA, IOA, LCC, etc)

 

Figure: online viz of rdfs

 

§ Text description of:

• Classes
• Sub-classes
• Properties, balanceable properties, …
• Sub activities: market, transport, …

 

§ External ontologies

• Measure, location,…

 

§ To add:

• Uncertainty, …

 

 

EXAMPLE / APPLICATION [Section 4 , 5]

§ Current hosting of the ontology; examples are available at the URIs mentioned and on GitHubRepo

 

§ Several examples with figures, from simple to complex

Example Raw data; System model

Example with transport, market, impact assessment

 

DISCUSSION [based on BEPs, Section 6]

• Validation [oops thing]
• Why we have made certain choices
• Alternatives left out
• Reproducibility
• Extensions: field specific extensions, agent theory (usually lacking in our field), linkages with other resources on WebOfData
• Give one example of "re-use" by others of the ontology: accounting framework for Stockholm municipality (REFLOW project), how it fits in the ontology (or not) + ref to

 

CONCLUSIONS / VISION /EXTENSIONS [Section 7]

• how we see them;
• e.g. GDP, economic data
• agent theory (unless we want to add it to the ontology right away)
  

 

 

Some references

 

(1)     Pauliuk, S.; Majeau-Bettez, G.; Mutel, C. L.; Steubing, B.; Stadler, K. Lifting Industrial Ecology Modeling to a New Level of Quality and Transparency: A Call for More Transparent Publications and a Collaborative Open Source Software Framework. J. Ind. Ecol. 2015, 19 (6), 937–949; DOI 10.1111/jiec.12316.

(2)     Pauliuk, S.; Majeau-Bettez, G.; Müller, D. B. A General System Structure and Accounting Framework for Socioeconomic Metabolism. J. Ind. Ecol. 2015, 19 (5), 728–741; DOI 10.1111/jiec.12306.

(3)     Pauliuk, S.; Majeau-Bettez, G.; Müller, D. B.; Hertwich, E. G. Toward a Practical Ontology for Socioeconomic Metabolism. J. Ind. Ecol. 2016, 20 (6), 1260–1272; DOI 10.1111/jiec.12386.

(4)     Weidema, B. P.; Schmidt, J.; Fantke, P.; Pauliuk, S. On the Boundary between Economy and Environment in Life Cycle Assessment. Int. J. Life Cycle Assess. 2018, 23 (9), 1839–1846; DOI 10.1007/s11367-017-1398-4.

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