International Council for Science : Committee on Data for Science and Technology

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C O D A T A

Preservation of and Access to Scientific and Technical Data in Developing Countries

Objectives

• Promote a deeper understanding of the needs of developing countries with regard to long-term preservation, archiving, and permanent access to scientific and technical (S&T) data.
  
• Advance the development and adoption of improved S&T data archiving procedures, technologies, standards, and policies, with special attention to these efforts in developing countries.
  
• Provide an interdisciplinary forum and mechanisms for exchanging information about S&T data archiving requirements and activities, with particular focus on the concerns and needs of developing countries. Publish and disseminate broadly the results of these efforts.

Co-Chairs

W. Christopher Lenhardt
+1 865 574 6332
lenhardtc@ornl.gov 

Professor GU Xingfa
+86 10-64855711
xfgu@irsa.ac.cn

Members

Dr. William L. Anderson (previous co-chair)
Dr. Vishwas Chavan
Prof. Liu Chuang (previous co-chair)
Dr. Fu Xiaofeng
Ms. Gretchen Gano
Dr David L Giaretta
Dr. Hélio Kuramoto
Dr. Lulama Makhubela
Prof. Steve Rossouw
Mr. Raed M. Sharif
Mr. Basanta Shrestha
Dr. Khululmur Sodov
Dr. Alexander M. Sterin
Prof. Morakot Tanticharoen
Prof. D.R.F. Taylor
Prof. Yoshifumi Yasuoka
Paul F. Uhlir, J.D.

Consultant:

Mrs. Henda van der Berg

Recent activities

CODATA2006: Beijing, CHINA

The Task Group organized a keynote session on archiving at the 20^TH CODATA Conference in Beijing, China in 2006. More than 70 participates attended the session. Task Group members presented at several conference paper sessions. LIU Chuang, Task Group Co-chair hosted a dinner for the Task Group attendees.

Co-Lead Organization (team) of the UN GAID e-SDDC Project

As one of the important action of WSIS, UN launched the GAID (Global Alliance for ICT and Development) in 2006. The TG worked with Chinese Academy of Sciences, Internet Society of China, Chinese Association for Science and Technology (CAST), Center of Earth Science Information Network (CIESIN), Columbia University, USA, National Research Foundation of South African (NRF) and National Environmental Reference Center, Brazil to launched the UN GAID e-SDDC (Global Alliance for Enhancing Access to and Application of Scientific Data in Developing Countries), which was approved by UN in 2007. Several members of the Preservation Task Group are participating in a developing United Nations Global Alliance for ICT and Development (UN-GAID) program: Global Alliance for Enhancing Access to and Application of Scientific Data in Developing Countries (e-SDDC). This program is co-chaired by Liu Chuang and Paul Uhlir, and its objectives complement and build on the work of the Preservation Task Group.

The Task Group, in concert with other organizations, sponsored or co-sponsored three workshops in Latin American, African and Asia in 2007.

• Strategies for Open and Permanent Access to Scientific Information in Latin America: Focus on Health and Environmental Information for Sustainable Development

This workshop, held in Atibaia, SP, Brazil, from 8-10 May 2007, was another in the series of regional events that the Task Group has been sponsoring since it's inception in 2001. Together with the USNC, the Brazilian NC, and CRIA (Centro de Referência em Informação Ambiental), this workshop brought together approximately 100 researchers and experts on open and permanent access to S&T data and information from Latin America, the USA, Europe, Asia, and South Africa. The workshop was structured to (1) review and discuss the high-priority issues relating to enabling open and long-term access to data and information and (2) produce concrete, short-term actions that can be taken to address these issues. A comprehensive report on the conference will be available in the first quarter of 2008. The conference program and presentations are available here: http://www.cria.org.br/eventos/codata2007/agenda

• Data Sources for Sustainable Development in SADC Countries

The CODATA Task Group on Data Sources for Sustainable Development in SADC Countries held its initial organizing workshop in collaboration with the ICSU Regional Office for Africa (ROA), the National Research Foundation (NRF) of South Africa, the CODATA Task Group on Preservation of and Access to Scientific and Technical Data in Developing Countries, the South African National Committee for CODATA, and the United States National Committee for CODATA. This meeting was held in South Africa at the National Research Foundation on 14-15 May 2007. The final report can be found here: http://stardata.nrf.ac.za/COdata/CodataSouthAfrica.html

The Task Group on Data Sources and this meeting are a direct outcome of the Preservation Task Group workshop that was held in South Africa in 2005.

• Co-organizer for the International Workshop on UN GAID e-SDDC – A Decentralized Network of Networks on Open Access to and Application of Scientific Data in Developing Countries, December 4-5, 2007, Beijing China

As the co-lead organization of the UN GAID e-SDDC, the TG co-organized the Beijing workshop focused on building a decentralized network of networks in China as well as Asia. More than 70 participants attended the workshop. An implementation plan for building an Open Knowledge Environment (OKE) from the joint action between UN GAID e-SDDC Action Line 5 (Showcase Application) and CODATA TG  action in 2008 and IAP (Inter Academy Panel) project related was discussed. More than 10 countries and more than 40 organizations in Asia will participate in this joint action in 2008.

Outreach

TG Co-chair William Anderson, attended the Open Repository 2007 Conference in San Antonio, Texas. A written report can be retrieved here:http://praxis101.com/docs/OR2007-ConferenceReport.rtf

TG Co-chair LIU Chuang attended the 2^nd Strategy Council Meeting of UN GAID from 27-28 February in California, USA, the UN GAID e-SDDC Implementation Plan for 2007 was presented at the meeting. More information at http://www.un-gaid.org/en/node/237

TG Co-chair LIU Chuang attended the 10^th Conference of Science and Technology for Development of UN from 21-25 May 2007, Geneva. Liu Chuang was invited to be the Panel of UN GAID Session of the Conference and provide a speech on what we may do for developing countries from the aspect of scientific data, information and capacity building.

TG Co-chair LIU Chuang attended the WGISS/CEOS meeting from 15-19 October, Munich, Germany, as the WGISS-CODATA Liaison person and user vice chair of WGISS, LIU Chuang provide two reports, one is the user vice chair report and one is the CODATA liaison report.

TG Co-chair LIU Chuang attended the 2nd IGF (Internet Government Forum) from 12-15 November in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; Liu Chuang was invited to present to the panel session on Multi-culture and Internet Norm.

TG Co-chair LIU Chuang attended the International Workshop on 2007’s Natural Disaster and Emergency Management from 22-24 September, 2007, Beijing, China, which was co-sponsored by the International Society of Emergency Management, Chinese Academy of Sciences and Inter Academy Panel. Liu Chuang provided a presentation on the strategy of the decentralized network of networks of scientific data in developing countries

Final report and executive summary of the Strategies for Open and Permanent Access to Scientific Information in Latin America: Focus on Health and Environmental Information for Sustainable Development workshop, that was held in Atibaia, SP, Brazil, from 8-10 May 2007 will be published and made available 1^st quarter 2008.

Report on building a decentralized network of networks of open access to and application of scientific data in developing countries, will be published in English and in Chinese. The report is jointly published by the UN GAID e-SDDC team, and will be available online at the Task Group web site and as a hard copy publication.

An initial planning committee meeting for a 2009 Kyiv regional workshop will be held in concert with the CODATA 2008 International Conference.

In addition, the Task Group will organize sessions at CODATA 2008 specifically focusing on archiving and long-term preservation and access to S&T data.

The Task Group, through its members, will continue to work with the United Nations Global Alliance for ICT and Development (UN-GAID) program: Global Alliance for Enhancing Access to and Application of Scientific Data in Developing Countries (e-SDDC).

The Task Group will continue to facilitate and participate in the ongoing discussions regarding the issues, challenges, and progress in archiving, preservation, and long-term access to scientific and technical data in developing countries. To date the Task Group has raised the visibility of CODATA in other, related professional and NGO activities in two ways. The CODATA workshops have brought new researchers in contact with CODATA. And TG members do represent CODATA in their other activities.

Plans are underway to hold another in the series of regional workshops on preservation and access in the Kyiv region in 2009.

The Task Group, through its members, will seek to collaborate with other international activities that focus on issues of archiving and preservation of digital resources. Potential activities and organizations include the (1) World Bank archiving group and their learning program on records management; (2) WIPO’s efforts to facilitate intellectual property capacity building and database preservation, and innovation in developing countries. There’s an opportunity to re-connect with the International Council on Archives.

As the volume and use of data collected worldwide continues to grow exponentially, the effective long-term preservation of and access to these information resources likewise increases in importance. The preservation, management, and archiving of digital S&T data in many cases poses greater, and significantly different, challenges than those in print formats. These challenges are not only technical, but involve new scientific, financial, organizational, management, legal, and policy considerations. Moreover, although many of the challenges that require sustainable solutions are the same for digital data across all disciplines, others are distinct or unique for certain disciplines or data types. Developing countries, in particular, face the greatest hurdles, yet there are very few international and interdisciplinary activities addressing S&T data issues and problems in the developing world context. Resolving the many different problems in the preservation and archiving of scientific data successfully today will bear dividends for many generations to come; the costs of failure would be incalculable, but profound.

The Task Group on Preservation of and Access to Scientific and Technical Data in Developing Countries has provided a much-needed focus on the data preservation and archiving practices of developing countries. The Task Group is fully consistent with the international and interdisciplinary goals of CODATA, and directly promotes many of the specific organizational objectives of CODATA as set forth in its Constitution and Statement of Mission. The Task Group also helps fulfil some of the important objectives of ICSU and many of its constituent unions, interdisciplinary ICSU bodies, and affiliated organizations such as the International Council for Scientific and Technical Information (ICSTI). The Task Group members are cognizant of many of the other international efforts in digital archiving that are already underway outside the immediate ICSU organization, particularly in the professional records management, archiving, and library communities, and have and will continue to collaborate and coordinate with those other activities in order to avoid unnecessary redundancies and to maximize the effectiveness of the Task Group’s work.