Metadata

Core

The core identifying and classification fields that define each area in Atlas Amazon.

Core metadata holds the fields that let an area be uniquely identified, named, located, and classified. Everything else in the platform — the rest of the metadata, the assessments, the indicators — is built on top of them.

Fields

Field	Description	Example
`id`	Unique Atlas Amazon identifier	AA-ECU-0001
`name`	Primary name of the area	Parque Nacional Yasuní
`name_alt`	Alternative or local names	Yasuní National Park
`country`	Country where the area is located	Ecuador
`area_type`	High-level classification (PCA or Collective Land)	PCA
`area_class`	Governance-based class	Protected Area
`area_designation`	Official or recognized designation	Parque Nacional

Role

These fields do three jobs.

Identity

They establish each area as a unique unit in the system. The id guarantees consistent referencing across datasets, the name fields make records recognizable to people, and country anchors the area geographically.

Classification

Core metadata is also where the Atlas taxonomy is applied to an individual area. Each record is assigned a position in the three-level structure:

Area Type → Area Class → Area Designation

For example:

PCA → Protected Area → Parque Nacional
Collective Land → Indigenous Territory → Resguardo Indígena

Linking

Finally, core fields are what hold the system together. They link spatial geometries to metadata, associate PAME and CASE assessments with the right area, let indicators be aggregated across categories, and connect records across datasets and releases.

Relationship to Taxonomy

The Atlas taxonomy defines the classification system. Core metadata applies that system to each area.

The taxonomy sets out how areas are organized across governance systems and countries; core metadata puts that structure to work through three fields — area_type for the highest-level grouping, area_class for the governance-based category, and area_designation for the country-specific classification. See Taxonomy for the full framework.

Standardization

Because core fields are standardized across every area, classification stays consistent across countries, records remain compatible with indicators and analysis, and the data interoperates with external datasets. The one exception is deliberate: area_designation preserves the original terminology, so legal and cultural meaning is not lost in translation.

Example

Field	Value
id	AA-PER-0023
name	Reserva Nacional Pacaya Samiria
country	Peru
area_type	PCA
area_class	Protected Area
area_designation	Reserva Nacional

In Practice

Core metadata is created when an area is added, is required for every record, and stays relatively stable thereafter. That stability is the point: it gives the rest of the metadata room to evolve without the system losing track of what an area is.