Ancient environmental DNA (aeDNA) is transforming the scientific study of past biodiversity dynamics and the effects of past climate change and intensifying human land use. aeDNA methods permit the detection of past species by recovering ancient fragments of DNA from sediments and matching these fragments to genetic libraries of known species. Because many species preserve poorly and are thus invisible to traditional paleontological approaches, aeDNA is enabling the study of past biodiversity dynamics at an unprecedented combination of taxonomic extent and resolution; in principle the entire tree of life can be studied. aeDNA so far has been at an early stage of research, focusing on methodological refinements and discoveries at individual sites. As the number of aeDNA research teams and records rapidly grows worldwide, the next-stage scientific opportunity is to integrate these many records and thereby study biodiversity responses to past environmental change at regional to global scales. Achieving this global synthesis requires building both the advanced data platforms that can support aeDNA data sharing and the community of experts who will provide and curate this data. This award will enable the next generation of global-scale biodiversity research at unprecedented taxonomic resolution, coverage, and temporal extent, powered by 1) the integration of aeDNA data into a linked open ecosystem of paleoecological and bioinformatic resources and 2) building a closely in