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I N B R I E F
January/February 2013
Table of Contents
DSpace CRIS Module
Contributed by:
Andrea Bollini
IT Architect & Systems Manager
CINECA
Rome, Italy
a.bollini [at] ] cineca.it
David T. Palmer
Associate University Librarian (Digital Strategies)
The University of Hong Kong
Hong Kong SAR
dtpalmer [at] hku.hk
CINECA (Italian University Consortium1) and The University of Hong Kong (HKU) are pleased to announce the immediate availability for download of the first alpha release of the DSpace CRIS module.
Publications are an important output of the research cycle. They allow communication between scholars, and measurement and decision support of research amongst research administrators. DSpace manages this well.
However, there are many other equally important entities in research that need description and tracking, such as projects, grants, patents, organizational units, researcher profiles (people), etc. Integrating and contextualizing all of these entities along with publications, adds greater value to each individual piece, in terms of visibility, discovery, and understanding of the total research picture. One name used for such integrations is "Current Research Information System" (CRIS).
This DSpace add-on enables the ingestion, storage, display and management of metadata & fulltext on these other research entities. This module produces a smooth integration between native DSpace items (publications) and other CRIS entities. All entities (native DSpace items or new CRIS Entities) can be linked with each other using autocomplete/lookup functions in the submission edit phase and the inter-navigation in visualizations.
This is the first public release. Richer versions with more features and functionality will appear soon. These are described in the DSpace CRIS Roadmap. The current version works on a customized version of DSpace 1.8.2 JSPUI and can be installed by following these instructions. This new functionality can be seen now in The HKU Scholars Hub.
A complete upgrade of the DSpace CRIS module to DSpace 3 will be released in the coming months. Some of this code base will make its way into general DSpace releases, such as "Solr Discovery for JSPUI" in DSpace 3. However we envision that most of this work will be an optional add-on, which DSpace developers can choose to implement, or not.
In the spirit of open source, we hope that this DSpace CRIS module will receive wide adoption in the DSpace community. We hope that many will find useful and then build further upon this start. To enable this desired multilateral collaboration, we ask that you send any inquires directly to the DSpace mailing lists (mainly dspace-tech@lists.sourceforge.net).
Up to now, DSpace CRIS has been a collaboration between CILEA and HKU. The HKU Office of Knowledge Exchange sponsored the Libraries in 2009 to design a Hub, to enable, show and measure the new HKU initiative of Knowledge Exchange. The resulting DSpace CRIS module has been developed mostly by Andrea Bollini and Andrea Pascarelli of CINECA.
This is further described in,
Palmer, DT. (2011). Knowledge Exchange: A Strategy for Open Access Success at The University of Hong Kong. Chinese Journal of Library and Information Science (CJLIS). 4(1), 81-94.
Note:
1) CINECA is a merger of Italian University Consortia CILEA, CASPUR and CINECA. CILEA's team (led by Susanna Mornati) has been supporting DSpace and its community since 2003.
Digital Archives Connect Wiki Launched
Contributed by:
Marie Steiner
Volunteer
The National Archives
Kew, London, United Kingdom
The Digital Archives Connect open source wiki (daconnect.wikispaces.com) has been created for archives and similar organizations that are currently active or just starting out in digital preservation. Digital Archives Connect allows them to share their current status in digital preservation by submitting a profile of their organization to the directory. While there is an emphasis on archives located in the UK and Ireland, the wiki is open for public use and welcomes contributions from international organizations as well.
Digital Archives Connect's aims are:
- to share knowledge,
- to encourage collaboration on projects, and
- to promote confidence for starting or increasing digital preservation activities.
The wiki was developed with these aims in mind to address a need for open discussion of digital preservation at all skill levels, and to help professionals identify opportunities for partnerships or collaborations.
Its design allows for easy browsing of profiles by region, and the search function covers all textual content from each wiki page. There is also the option to tag a profile with key words, which we hope to streamline so that organizations can browse other profiles that are utilizing similar tools and are at a similar level of expertise. Lastly, there is a forum for discussions that is open to registered users of Wikispaces.
The wiki format also allows the resource to grow, evolve, and be maintained solely through user contributions and activity.
More information on Digital Archives Connect and how to contribute can be found through the wiki's homepage at daconnect.wikispaces.com.
CENDI / NFAIS Workshop: Hot Topics in Big Data
Contributed by:
Bonnie C. Carroll
Executive Director, CENDI
CEO, Information International Associates
Oak Ridge, Tennessee, USA
bcarroll [at] iiaweb.com
A One-Day Workshop on "Hot Topics in Big Data: What You Need to Know Now!" was held on December 11, 2012, at the Library of Congress. This timely session was sold out a month in advance to 110 attendees! It was co-sponsored by CENDI, a group of scientific and technical information managers from 13 U.S. federal agencies; and the National Federation of Advanced Information Services (NFAIS), a professional association composed of more than 60 organizations involved in the creation or dissemination of information; and the Federal Library Information Network (FEDLINK), whose mission is to foster excellence in federal library and information services through interagency cooperation and to encourage efficient and effective procurement of information resources.
"Big Data" is the term applied to huge data sets that are so large that they cannot be managed by readily available data management tools. They pose special challenges, particularly in analysis and visualization, or more simply put, in making sense and use of them.
A common thread throughout the presentations was references to the long tail in publishing. The long tail refers to the retailing strategy of selling a large number of niche items with relatively small quantities sold of each by analyzing the buying habits of clients and individually promoting items in each client's fields of interest. Several speakers used the long tail as an analogy for Big Data issues due to the challenge of finding value that is often difficult to discover and understand in masses of data.
The conference's opening session provided an overview of the current status of "Big Data." It covered why the growth of scholarly and scientific data is an issue and where it's going, structured versus unstructured data, the volume and diversity of data depending on subject discipline, storage and use capacity, the need for policy and planning, staff skill sets (data management and curation), the new work/analytic tools required to maximize data value, and linking and repositories.
Speakers from organizations that represent large groups of libraries and information centers provided a broad perspective of current trends, including changes in the information landscape in the last 2-3 years, and the impact of the growth of data and how to adapt to it (changes in staff skills needed, workflow issues, data management systems, risk management, policies, etc.). Questions posed were, will we be able to fill the rising demand in new jobs as data scientists, and do the current academic offerings train deeply enough in statistics and analytics. It was noted that new skill sets in visualization of data are now really in the beginning stages.
Another session looked at data citation and data linking issues, and related issues for publishers, librarians, and users. An example is how to handle the journal article or technical report with related supplemental material such as data tables, graphics, spread sheets, etc. For instance, outstanding copyright issues of such related content need to be addressed.
The fourth session focused on manpower issues at the macro level and the skill sets needed at that level. It touched on the McKinsey report which addressed overall numbers of professionals needed and related findings. This session also covered education and training for specific skills needed at the micro level. Michael Chui, principal/senior fellow with the McKinsey Global Institute, stated a clear academic challenge: Focus more on analytical, statistical, and visualization skills and potentially less on calculus. (For the full report on Big Data, see: http://www.mckinsey.com/insights/mgi.)
The closing keynote talk was an overview of the field of data analytics — definitions, description, what all the fuss is about, successful applications, and opportunities and challenges. Dennis Gannon from Microsoft gave a glimpse of the future in Big Data. The CENDI/NFAIS/FEDLINK team combined with the Library of Congress venue helped create a very effective one-day review of the Big Data Challenges.
For more information, speaker biographies and the presentations are available at http://cendi.gov/activities/12_11_2012_CENDI_NFAIS_FEDLINK_post.html.
Report on the ONLINE EDUCA BERLIN 2012 Conference
Contributed by:
Matthew LaBrooy
Editor with the OEB News Team
ICWE GmbH
Berlin, Germany
oeb [at] e3-communications.com
The 18th annual ONLINE EDUCA BERLIN, an international conference on technology supported learning and training, took place at the Hotel Intercontinental in November. The successful event featured more than 400 speakers and 2000 participants from over 100 different countries and continues to be the largest global e-learning conference for the corporate, education and public service sectors.
With a conference theme of 'reaching beyond tomorrow' a key aim of the event was to help participants become attuned to the changes that the rapidly approaching future holds, for the education and training field, and how they can adopt these changes and avoid becoming overwhelmed by the multitude of new technologies and educational frameworks produced daily, each claiming to be the next step in the evolution of learning tools.
To assist the attendees in embracing these innovative practices and tools, a wide range of experts, specialists, researchers and educators chaired pre-conference workshops and plenary sessions where they discussed and presented the latest information and findings for quality technology enhanced learning in the classroom and workplace. 'Quality' was a key formula for the conference and ensuring high quality educational practices are followed — even in the face of groundbreaking technologies — was a concern of many of the presenters.
Another hot topic, and part of the ONLINE EDUCA BERLIN 2012 debate, was that a ban on diplomas and degrees awarded by schools and universities would have a positive impact on competence development and lifelong learning. The results of the debate can be found here.
ONLINE EDUCA BERLIN 2012 explored these issues and more. For additional information on the ONLINE EDUCA BERLIN including: press reports, multimedia resources, programme and conference statistics, click here.
Save the date: OEB 2013 will take place December 4 - 6, 2013!
Report on the International SWIB12 Conference on Semantic Web in Libraries
Contributed by:
Aenne Löhden
Department Innovative Information Systems & Publishing
ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics (Kiel/Hamburg)
Dr. Timo Borst
Head of the Department Innovative Information Systems & Publishing Technologies
ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics (Kiel/Hamburg)
Joachim Neubert (ZBW)
Department Innovative Information Systems & Publishing
ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics (Kiel/Hamburg)
Adrian Pohl (hbz)
Coordinator of the Working Group of the Open Knowledge Foundation
North Rhine-Westphalian Library Service Center (hbz)
The annual conference 'Semantic Web in Bibliotheken' (SWIB) is co-organized by the German National Library of Economics – Leibniz Information Centre for Economics (ZBW) and the North Rhine-Westphalian Library Service Center (hbz). 170 attendees from 23 countries and 4 continents joined the 4th SWIB on 26-28 November in Cologne, Germany. The SWIB12 ('Towards an International Linked Open Data Library Ecosystem') offered workshops, talks, lightning talks, and a panel. Emmanuelle Bermès (Centre Pompidou) and Jon Voss (LODLAM, Historypin) held keynotes; Kevin Ford (Library of Congress) presented the BIBFRAME project. Presentation slides and video recordings are available under http://swib.org.
Integrating Library Linked Open Data (LOD) in the Web of Data
Klaus Tochtermann (ZBW) observed that LOD meanwhile covers the whole scope of library data, including bibliography and authority data as well as institution, usage, and research data. As the Ontology Engineering Group of the Polytechnic University of Madrid (OEG-UPM) subsumed, the library LOD cloud flourishes. Several talks dealt with enriching, linking, and publishing library LOD.
The Culturegraph project considers three options for enrichment, namely copying and linking metadata and supplementing the search index. Florida State University, GESIS, and Biotea presented the expansion of metadata of scientific papers from within their full-texts. A GESIS project exploits bibliography, journal, and conference websites for enhancing metadata of scholarly articles. Automatic processing of thesauri cross concordances was investigated by the 'Ontology Alignment Evaluation Initiative' (OAEI).
By publishing metadata of the French national library on semantic web pages, the data is included in web search engine requests from internet users. A thesis presented at the PhD workshop considered data hidden in the 'deep web' behind library search forms; semantic markup of the search boxes might enable a more structured access from web search engines.
Supporting Authoring and Scholarly Work
In the PhD workshop, approaches to handle research data were presented and discussed. Traceability of data-based studies was the topic of one work. This is supported by modelled, stable referencing of utilized (possibly confidential) data and storage of analysis scripts. Another thesis addressed the automatic description of research data by means of semantic technologies.
To ease authoring of Wikipedia articles in varied languages, or rather handling of included facts, Wikipedia collects and provides the facts within a database. Wikipedia's so-called claims comprise facts (diverging across local Wikipedias) as well as their sources and time contexts.
Employing Library LOD in Productive Environments
Library LOD offerings no longer are primarily experimental, but are becoming productive, stated Tochtermann. Still, reuse of library LOD faces some challenges, as the OEG-UPM and Amsterdam University Library noted and as was discussed in the Metadata Provenance workshop. This regards, e.g., multilingualism of vocabularies and representation of license and provenance information.
Silke Schomburg (hbz) remarked that by now, apart from publishing library LOD, richer services for library users are also provided. Such services were presented at the SWIB12. In the Oslo Deichmanske library, book recensions are findable and linked with the books. By means of RFID tags within the books, monitors at the shelves offer information on the media from library and external sources. The LOD service of the French national library lets users inquire explicitly about works, editions, and individual exemplars, or about persons involved in an edition with a certain role. For searched topics, narrower or broader terms are proposed.
I N T H E N E W S
IU to offer free Information Visualization MOOC designed to illustrate data
January 10, 2013 — "Indiana University's Katy Börner, the Victor H. Yngve Professor of Information Science at the School of Library and Information Science and an international leader in information visualization, will offer a free massive open online course on the topic beginning Jan. 22."
"Börner is curator of the internationally traveled Places & Space: Mapping Science exhibit and author of the Atlas of Science: Visualizing What We Know, published in 2010 by The MIT Press. She specializes in the study of the structure and evolution of scientific disciplines, the analysis and visualization of online activity, and the development of cyberinfrastructures for large-scale scientific collaboration and computation. "
"The course will run seven weeks from the start date, with a target audience of graduate students able to work three to six hours per week. Anyone interested in generating temporal, geospatial, topical or network analyses and visualizations from either personal or professional data would benefit from the course."
For more information please see the full press
release.
Maura Marx Selected as IMLS Deputy Director for the Office of Library Services
January 3, 2013 — "Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) Director Susan H. Hildreth announced today that she has selected Maura Marx to be the IMLS Deputy Director of the Office of Library Services."
"'I am delighted that Ms. Marx has accepted this position,' said Director Hildreth. 'Maura brings a breadth of leadership experience and a depth of understanding about how digital technology is changing the role of libraries in the U.S. She will be a tremendous partner to guide IMLS programs and initiatives as libraries develop new business models to meet the ever changing information needs of the 21st century learner.'..."
"...Ms. Marx currently serves as Director of the Digital Public Library of America Secretariat at the Berkman Center at Harvard University, a position she will continue until she begins working at IMLS in May 2013."
"Previously, she served as Executive Director of the Open Knowledge Commons, where she worked to catalyze and raise funds for libraries working on collaborative digital library initiatives. She founded the digital library program at the Boston Public Library and was responsible for its dedication to open principles. Her interests are in cultural heritage, collaboration, and the promotion of all types of open knowledge."
For more information please see the full press
release.
IMLS Awards $249,999 to the Chicago Public Library Foundation to Create a Maker Space
December 20, 2012 — "The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) announced today a $249,999 grant to support the development of a Maker space within the Chicago Public Library."
"Maker spaces are part of a growing movement of hands-on, mentor-led learning environments to make and remake the physical and digital worlds. They foster experimentation, invention, creation, exploration, and STEM learning. The Maker movement aligns with President Obama's Educate to Innovate initiative, a nationwide effort to help reach the administration's goal of moving American students from the middle to the top of the pack in science and math achievement over the next decade...."
"...The Chicago Public Library Foundation and the Chicago Public Library will partner with the Museum of Science and Industry and the STEM & Entrepreneurship Exchange to plan, design, and pilot a digital design and fabrication lab that will be available to the general public within the library's main branch. The Chicago Maker space will enable mentor-led learning and will introduce adults, families, teens, and children to technology and equipment that is enabling new forms of personal manufacturing and business opportunities."
"The project team also will explore and evaluate viable roles for public libraries as the providers of such spaces and services to communities. In addition to the services and equipment that will be made available locally, the project team will create a how-to guidebook for other public libraries that may wish to create their own similar labs."
For more information please see the full press
release.
InnoCentive and Scientific American Partner to Facilitate Open Innovation
December 12, 2012 — "Science enthusiasts will be able to help solve global scientific problems when the Scientific American Open Innovation Pavilion launches next year. InnoCentive, Inc., the global leader in open innovation, crowdsourcing, and prize competitions, and Scientific American, the leading authoritative publication for science in the general media, today announced a partnership for this online hub, scheduled to go live in the spring of 2013. The Scientific American Open Innovation Pavilion will be jointly hosted on InnoCentive.com and ScientificAmerican.com."
"Commercial organizations, government agencies, and non-profits (known as 'Seekers') will be able to post 'Challenges' on the Scientific American Open Innovation Pavilion. These 'Challenges' are well-articulated descriptions of scientific and technical problems that require innovative solutions. The Scientific American Open Innovation Pavilion provides these 'Seekers' with unprecedented access to a global pool of problem solvers, including InnoCentive's existing 275,000-person-strong solver network and Scientific American's audience of nearly five million monthly visitors to ScientificAmerican.com...."
"...This partnership also marks the growth of InnoCentive's collaboration with Nature Publishing Group (NPG), Scientific American's parent organization. In June 2009, InnoCentive and NPG launched the nature.com Open Innovation Pavilion, which is hosted on InnoCentive.com and nature.com."
For more information please see the full press
release.
IMLS and the Campaign for Grade-Level Reading Convene Experts
December 7, 2012 — "Leaders from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) and the Campaign for Grade-Level Reading met Dec. 5 to host the first in a series of listening activities that will inform the development of a groundbreaking policy report on the role of libraries and museums in early learning. The report, which will be released in April 2013, will lay the foundation for decision makers at the local, state, and federal levels to fully use the capacity of libraries and museums in their early learning efforts...."
"...To launch the conversation, IMLS and the Campaign brought representatives from libraries and museums together with policy makers, practitioners, experts, civic leaders and public and private funders who have made early learning a priority; the invited participants included representatives from the Smithsonian Institution, the Domestic Policy Council, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the U.S. Department of Education, United Way Worldwide, National Civic League, National League of Cities, and National Governors Association."
"The conversation focused on:
- How libraries and museums are filling gaps and expanding early childhood learning experiences in their communities.
- The key policy levers that museums and libraries should be addressing as they develop early learning programs.
- Strategies to engage museums and libraries in early learning decision making at the local, state and federal levels.
- Ways to build relationships with civic leaders, policy makers, and other stakeholders to fully leverage library and museum contributions to meeting our nation's early learning challenges."
"Future listening activities will include webinars, conference calls and one-on-one meetings with thought leaders."
For more information please see the full press
release.
Science.gov: The Power of 10
U.S. government science information search & retrieval
web portal celebrates 10 years of service
December 5, 2012 — "What is the gas mileage of your car? How much of your state is water covered? Where can you download software that will give atomic precision to your computer's clock? These and many other questions can and have been answered by Science.gov – the Federal government's 'one stop' real-time science data website, which is now celebrating its 10th anniversary."
"Science.gov was launched in December 2002 and has broken new ground in interagency collaboration. Senior information managers representing 13 Federal agencies forged a consensus on how national science organizations could improve public access to the nation's rich and diverse scientific research information and partnered to create the Science.gov Web portal...."
"...There are now more than 200 million pages in Science.gov, and the annual page views top 34 million, a 45-fold increase from the earliest days. The founding idea was to provide a comprehensive gateway to federal science information for those who might not know exactly where to find it. The interagency effort would raise scientific and technical literacy, serve as a foundation for future discoveries, and foster greater understanding of the public's return on investment from the government's science and technology efforts."
For more information please see the full press
release.
OpenStax College publishes first iBooks textbook
December 3, 2012 — "OpenStax College has published College Physics, the first iBooks textbook that is based on a free, open-source textbook from
Rice University-based publisher OpenStax College. The open-education
resources (OER) publisher said it plans to create iBooks textbook versions
of additional textbooks for heavily attended college courses from its
growing catalog."
"The dynamic, interactive iBooks textbook version of College Physics costs
$4.99 and contains interactive graphics, videos, quizzes, demos and other
added features that enable students to immerse themselves in the material."
"'Millions of iPads are used in education today, and we want to offer the
benefits of OER to every iPad user,' said OpenStax College director Richard
Baraniuk."
"Baraniuk, Rice's Victor E. Cameron Professor of Electrical and Computer
Engineering, said the iBooks textbook version of College Physics helps
OpenStax College meet two goals. First, it makes OpenStax materials
available to millions of students who either own an iPad or attend a school
that uses them. In addition, the iBooks textbook versions of the books will
provide OpenStax College with a steady source of revenue to pay for the
conversion of future titles for the iPad...."
"...OpenStax College's next three titles – Biology, Concepts of Biology, and
Anatomy and Physiology – will be completed in early 2013, and sample
chapters will be available through the iBookstore this fall. Baraniuk said
OpenStax College also has begun raising funds to develop free textbooks for
algebra, chemistry, economics, U.S. history and psychology."
For more information please see the full press
release.
Saving the digital decade: DPC rewards organizations helping to safeguard our digital memory
December 3, 2012 — "At a prestigious ceremony this evening the Digital Preservation Coalition (DPC) celebrated its tenth anniversary by recognising initiatives and individuals from around the world that have made an outstanding contribution to safeguard digital resources for the future."
"At the DPC's Digital Preservation Awards, which took place at the Wellcome Collection in London on Monday night, three agencies received awards for their exceptional contribution to ensuring the long-term security of digital collections: the University of London Computer Centre for their pioneering and popular 'Digital Preservation Training Programme'; the PLANETS project for its ground-breaking and innovative technologies; and the Archaeology Data Service at the University of York for its outstanding work securing valuable but vulnerable research data...."
"...William Kilbride, Executive Director of the DPC said: 'These awards are important in showcasing the creative solutions that have been developed towards digital preservation. Digital preservation is critical. We know that significant parts of the economy, industry, research, government and the public life depend on the opportunities information technology creates, but the rapid churn in technology means data is also surprisingly fragile. We are the first generation that's had to think about handing on a digital legacy, so we need to act quickly to develop the skills and techniques that will ensure our legacy is protected.'"
"The contributions of nine other exceptional finalists were also marked in the ceremony hosted by Richard Ovenden, Chair of the DPC and Deputy Director of the Bodleian Libraries at University of Oxford, one of the world's premiere memory institutions. It is one of many agencies that have joined the Digital Preservation Coalition to help develop the new skills necessary to preserve their growing digital collections."
For more information please see the full press
release.
Old Treasures Rediscovered
November 28, 2012 — "The beta version of the German Digital Library (DDB) – the German National Portal for Culture – will be introduced today and made available to the public. FIZ Karlsruhe – Leibniz-Institute for Information Infrastructure as operator of the technical infrastructure assures that everybody can access valuable cultural assets. So the original manuscript from 1734 of the renowned Christmas Oratorio ('Weihnachtsoratorium') by Johann Sebastian Bach will be available via a central internet portal in a digital format. In the future, the German National Library will become a network of all German cultural and scientific institutions and their digital collections which are to be integrated into the European digital library Europeana."
"'Shout for joy, exult, rise up, glorify the day', these are the introductory words – very appropriate indeed – to Bach's 'Weihnachtsoratorium'. Its original manuscript, converted to digital format, is now available in the DDB together with about 5.5 million digital objects from culture and science. The DDB interlinks and offers central access to millions of digitized books, materials from archives, paintings, sculptures, monuments, films and music, held in various collections at cultural and scientific institutions in Germany. That means that a search for 'Weihnachtsoratorium' not only leads to the digital version of Bach's original score held in the Staatsbibliothek in Berlin but also to a historical audio recording from 1951, conducted by Günther Ramin, the 12th choir director at St. Thomas Church succeeding Johann Sebastian Bach, from the collection of the SLUB Dresden."
"As the technical operator of the DDB, FIZ Karlsruhe is in charge of the complete IT infrastructure. In addition to the public online portal this includes systems for editing and normalizing data and for supporting the workflow between the partners. In order to guarantee highest standards of performance and availability, the DDB runs on two redundant systems in data centers at different locations. The cloud-like system architecture allows for dynamically adapting the system performance to the number of visitors of the portal. FIZ Karlsruhe also supports the cultural and scientific institutions in technically editing and harmonizing their very heterogeneous data to be included in the DDB. With this combination of technology, content and service, FIZ Karlsruhe offers a sound basis for successfully operating the DDB. 'The DDB has reached a stage now where most technical processes are running smoothly. The portal – albeit not all of its functions – can be used by the public', explains Matthias Razum, the responsible project manager at FIZ Karlsruhe. 'This has laid the foundations for a further growth of the DDB in the years to come, with respect to content as well as to functionality. We are happy that the DDB is online now', Mr. Razum continues, 'and we welcome feedback and suggestions from the visitors of the portal that will help us enhance the DDB together with our partners according to the users' needs.'"
For more information please see the full press
release.
Africa Portal continues to raise the bar as top open-access resource for African policy research
November 26, 2012 — "Celebrating its anniversary, the Africa
Portal continues to achieve great success as the leading open-access resource
for policy research on Africa."
"View a special infographic highlighting the Africa Portal's two years of
achievements, by visiting: http://www.africaportal.org/2nd-anniversary."
"Launched in November 2010, The Africa Portal is an online resource offering
fresh and authoritative insight on Africa's policy challenges – from climate
change and energy issues to food security, conflict resolution, health and
migration. In addition to equipping users with research and information, it
provides a platform to publish work related to Africa on areas of concern to
policy makers and the public...."
"...The Africa Portal now has 26 content partnerships with internationally renowned
research organizations in 15 different countries – including the African
Economic Research Consortium, the Brookings Institution, the International
Crisis Group, and the Electoral Institute for Sustainable Democracy in Africa,
among many others."
For more information please see the full press
release.
CLIR Board Elects New Members, New Officers
November 26, 2012 — "The Board of the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR) has elected new members Kurt De Belder, of the University of Leiden; Kathleen Fitzpatrick, of the Modern Language Association; and Michael A. Keller, of Stanford University. Their terms will begin April 2013."
"Mr. De Belder is university librarian and director of the Leiden University Libraries and Leiden University Press in the Netherlands. His main area of expertise is scholarly communication, digital libraries, e-publishing, and e-learning...."
"...Ms. Fitzpatrick is director of Scholarly Communication at the Modern Language Association, and is on leave from a position as professor of Media Studies at Pomona College in Claremont, California...."
"...Mr. Keller is the Ida M. Green University Librarian at Stanford University, founder and publisher of HighWire Press, and publisher of Stanford University Press. He is an elected Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the American Academy of Arts & Sciences."
For more information please see the full press
release.
OCLC Global Council meets to discuss emerging technologies in libraries, governance and direction of the OCLC cooperative
November 19, 2012 — "OCLC Global Council met November 5-7 in Dublin, Ohio, to discuss direction and governance of the OCLC cooperative. Delegates heard reports from OCLC members and staff on emerging technologies and how they are impacting libraries around the world. Global Council also approved changes in regulations and bylaws of the cooperative."
"Global Council passed a resolution to make changes in the Global Council bylaws by formalizing committee structures, including two new committees: Communications and Finance; clarifying officer terms; and creating a process for establishing alternate delegates...."
"...The OCLC Global Council meeting was webcast live. Video from the webcast is posted on the OCLC website."
"OCLC Global Council comprises Member Delegates elected by the members within each of the three Regional Councils – Americas, Asia Pacific and EMEA – and serves as a key strategic discussion forum and the major communication link among member libraries, Regional Councils and OCLC."
For more information please see the full press
release.
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