The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) promotes international cooperation in education, science, culture and communication. Taxonomy and related ecological studies have been among the science subjects fostered during the past decades.

Concern about the erosion of the world's taxonomic heritage led UNESCO in the 1980s to encourage and support the establishment of the Expert-center for Taxonomic Identification (ETI) at the University of Amsterdam. ETI's biodiversity databases and advanced electronic distribution technology are expected to help address global, regional and local biological diversity issues. This requires an interactive, easy accessible flow of information involving data providers and users in all regions of the world. ETI stimulates the international cooperation of scientists and the free exchange of scientific data.