What is a LifeDesk?

A LifeDesk is an online environment that provides a collaborative space for creating, editing, and publishing species information- either an entire species account or just a few subjects such as habitat and conservation for many species. The goal of using a LifeDesk in many cases is to generate content to publish to the Encyclopedia of Life (EOL). However, LifeDesks can be used in a variety of ways as there is no requirement to publish content out to EOL. Content can also be generated for other taxonomic levels, for example, at the genus or family level.

LifeDesks at a Glance:

• The LifeDesk environment provides content management tools that enable instructors to setup groups (for example, a herpetology class) and manage content evaluation, assignments, and group members.

• Professors/instructors serve as curators and are responsible for vetting students taxon pages to be published to the Encyclopedia of Life. 

• To publish content to EOL, a LifeDesk must apply to become an Encyclopedia of Life content partner.

• To learn more about how LifeDesks have been used in undergraduate biology classes, click here.

For more help, visit our Getting Started help section.