U.S. Department of the Interior U.S. Geological Survey The NGGDPP's Best Practices in Data Preservation Project Brian Buczkowski U.S. Geological Survey Coastal and Marine Geology Program National Data Preservation Program

Development of the Best Practices project Background and Goals  National Research Council report: Geoscience Data and Collections: National Resources in Peril  Energy Policy Act ( Public Law , Section 351 )  Implementation Plan for the NGGDPP  “establish minimum standards and best practices for the preservation and archiving of … geologic data and collections”  “establish guidelines for the proper preservation of physical samples, as well as original data and derived information”  “coordinate efforts with other organizations that are dedicated to the exchange of information in the geosciences”

Where to begin? 1. Define scope of project  What are we trying to accomplish?  Our mission statement 2. Investigate standards  Look at needs and practices of the Data Preservation community 3. Identify Best Practices  Once we know process of preserving data and making them available...

Scope of the Best Practices project  Provide Community Resource  Reference material  Forum for discussion  Community contribution  Extent of “Community”  Federal Agencies  State Geological Surveys  Academia  Industry

Developing standards What are Standards? “something used as a measure, norm or model in comparative evaluations; a required or agreed level of quality or attainment.” National Standards and Best Practices for U.S. Museums, 2008  Reflect broadly accepted views  Reflect areas where things actually go wrong  Change over time Community Derived

Identifying Best Practices What are “Best Practices?”  Carries an implication of the final answer?  The Best way of doing things? A means to seek improved and applied methods  Lead to the development of newer, better strategies for data and geoscience sample management

Bringing it all together Community of Practice Community of Practice Common Purpose Forum for Dialog Forum for Dialog Share Experiences Share Experiences Common Strategies Standard Methods and Knowledge Adapted from Professional Development for Chinese National Teachers of English accessed 21 October 2010 Identify Best Practices

Online platform myUSGS  Discussion Forum  Document Sharing  Wiki Space  Subscriptions *DISCLAIMER* While the U.S. Geological Survey has initiated, and maintains this Best Practices Project, it is important to note that any use of trade names or references to products is strictly for descriptive purposes only and does not imply any endorsement by the United States Government.

Data Preservation topics Theme Areas  Physical Samples  Paper and Analog Records  Digital Records  Updating Formats  Cataloging and Metadata  Risk Management  Communication and Outreach  Facilities and Infrastructure

Topic structure Look at Physical SamplesPhysical Samples  Background information  Identify standards  Look at common issues  Highlight Best Practices  Provide resources

Ideas for further development Alternate Platforms  MediaWiki (  “a free software open source wiki package written in PHP, originally for use on Wikipedia. It is now used by several other projects of the non- profit Wikimedia Foundation and by many other wikis, including this website, the home of MediaWiki.”  Using a combination of resources  Delicious from Yahoo! for bookmark sharing  Social Networking sites for contact and collaboration  Mendeley for reference management and sharing

Online communities Issues  Content monitoring  Who regulates what’s posted?  Access  How open to the public is it?  Cost  Hosting  Maintenance  Verify links, etc.

Membership in myUSGS BP community

Lessons learned  Make sure the train keeps moving once it’s left the station  Community involvement  Regular meetings/updates  Identify target audiences/groups to solicit information from  Potential resources for participation