Digital Preservation MetaArchive Cooperative, Digital Preservation Policy Planning Workshop Boston College, Boston, MA October 26, 2010
Session 2
Libraries as Ideal Curators Policies as Catalytic Solutions What is a Digital Preservation Policy? Building on Successful Digital Preservation Policies Preservation Policy Template Schultz, Donovan, Howard, Skinner, 2010
The Goal: To get a glimpse into the higher level concerns that a digital preservation policy attempts to address and the statements used to reflect your Library’s strategic positions. Schultz, Donovan, Howard, Skinner, 2010
Libraries as Curators for the Public Good Librarians have a unique perspective on the needs of their collections and their users Irreplaceable stewards of our collective cultural memory Avoiding the Broker trap Constantly outsourcing preservation roles, services & infrastructure may threaten institutional mission and societal role Reversing the Trends Private LOCKSS Networks are enabling libraries to maintain control of research data and digital collections IIPC is enabling libraries to preserve our shared Web culture Can you think of some other examples? Schultz, Donovan, Howard, Skinner, 2010
Success of the MetaArchive Cooperative Reducing the cost for libraries to engage preservation of their collections through shared resources and open source technology Empowering libraries and other cultural memory institutions through growing expertise and embedding infrastructure in the libraries Actively Addressing Trends in Digital Preservation Schultz, Donovan, Howard, Skinner, 2010
Policies can trigger collaboration and action! Impacts of Institutional Policy Building Content Policy (MetaArchive Cooperative) ▪ Solidified shared commitments while retaining institutional flexibility ETD Preservation Policy (Boston College) ▪ Defined institutional commitment and responsibility and achieved administrative buy-in Other institutional policy examples ▪ Promoting shared infrastructure (ISU) ▪ Guaranteeing open access (FSU) Schultz, Donovan, Howard, Skinner, 2010
“Digital preservation policies document an organization’s commitment to preserve digital content for future use; specify file formats to be preserved and the level of preservation to be provided; and ensure compliance with standards and best practices for responsible stewardship of digital information.” From Long Definition of Digital Preservation, prepared by the ALCTS Preservation and Reformatting Section, Working Group on Defining Digital Preservation, accessed at /defdigpres0408.cfm. /defdigpres0408.cfm Schultz, Donovan, Howard, Skinner, 2010
Digital Preservation Policy Template General Questions for Feedback ▪ Are there additional policy sections that would be helpful for your institution to define? ▪ What are the policy areas that would require the most effort at your institution to define? ▪ How and where would such a policy be promoted and publicized? ▪ Who are the most important audiences for a policy of this type? Schultz, Donovan, Howard, Skinner, 2010
This is a simple statement that relates digital preservation to the institution’s mission and the communities it serves. Schultz, Donovan, Howard, Skinner, 2010
This is a set of simple paragraphs that summarize the overall intent of the institution. Schultz, Donovan, Howard, Skinner, 2010
This section summarizes the resource groups (e.g., units, departments, or external parties) for which the institution takes responsibility and prioritizes these according to institutional importance. Schultz, Donovan, Howard, Skinner, 2010
This section outlines the way decisions are made regarding what will be preserved. Schultz, Donovan, Howard, Skinner, 2010
This section summarizes the lifecycle management practices of the institution. Broad categories might include content creation, content integrity, and content maintenance. Schultz, Donovan, Howard, Skinner, 2010
This section provides overview of methodologies and philosophies undergirding preservation activity (e.g., OAIS, TRAC, etc). Schultz, Donovan, Howard, Skinner, 2010
This section details who is involved and at what level they are involved. Who is charged with preservation responsibility? Schultz, Donovan, Howard, Skinner, 2010
This section describes policy/policies for ascribing metadata to preservation objects. May include schema references or documentation bodies (e.g., LC, DLF, NARA). Schultz, Donovan, Howard, Skinner, 2010
This section documents policies around permissions and access of preserved content. Schultz, Donovan, Howard, Skinner, 2010
This section contains information about what the institution’s relationship is to other institutions, and whether it may partner with other institutions to preserve its own collections or the collections of other institutions and under what circumstances. Schultz, Donovan, Howard, Skinner, 2010
This section documents expected costs and who shoulders the responsibility for those costs. Schultz, Donovan, Howard, Skinner, 2010
This section acknowledges the challenges the institution/field faces in preserving digital collections. Schultz, Donovan, Howard, Skinner, 2010
This section gives an overview of any outreach and education activities undertaken by the institution. Schultz, Donovan, Howard, Skinner, 2010
This section provides the date of last revision and contact information for the authors Schultz, Donovan, Howard, Skinner, 2010
This section lists other institutional documentation that has a relationship to digital preservation and/or this policy itself. Examples might include such documentation as Disaster Plan, Records Management Policy, and Collections Development Policy. Schultz, Donovan, Howard, Skinner, 2010
This section would clarify terms used throughout the document. Schultz, Donovan, Howard, Skinner, 2010