Measuring the Global Research Environment: Information Science Challenges for the 21 st Century Caryn Anderson Graduate School of Library and Information Science Simmons College Gabriele Bammer National Centre for Epidemiology and Public Health Australian National University Hauser Center for Nonprofit Organizations Harvard University

Our Question: What does the global research environment look like? Particularly global research production? Measuring the Global Research Environment: Information Science Challenges for the 21 st Century

“…no nation that wants to shape informed policies and take effective action … can afford to be without its own independent capacity in science and technology.” Kofi Annan Secretary-General United Nations Science, 2004 Measuring the Global Research Environment: Information Science Challenges for the 21 st Century Annan calls for global cooperation in developing “a large collective reservoir of knowledge and expertise.”

assumed (mistakenly) that data would be readily available a sense of global research production would provide a useful context for development of new field of Integration and Implementation Sciences Why global research production? Measuring the Global Research Environment: Information Science Challenges for the 21 st Century

Integration and Implementation Sciences Developing theory and methods needed for the cross- disciplinary research that supports tackling large-scale, complex, social problems and for the use of that research in informing effective policy and action. Combines: Systems Thinking & Complexity Science Participatory Methods Knowledge Management & Information Science Measuring the Global Research Environment: Information Science Challenges for the 21 st Century

Inquiry into the nature of the global research environment highlights potential information science responses to challenges in the management, exchange and implementation of knowledge globally. Global Research Environment as Case Study Measuring the Global Research Environment: Information Science Challenges for the 21 st Century

Two Dimensions Relevant to Information Science Data Collection Process –challenges in gathering, integrating and presenting data –activities central to the work of information science Research Capacity –inequalities in capacity evident in the results –information needs and knowledge-sharing capacities of specific populations are the concern of information scientists Measuring the Global Research Environment: Information Science Challenges for the 21 st Century

The Investigation UNESCO Research & Development Data ( ) Institute of Scientific Information publications listings (Jan 98 – Mar 03) World of Learning 2002 Reference Volume Measuring the Global Research Environment: Information Science Challenges for the 21 st Century

UNESCO Research & Development Data ( ) Measuring the Global Research Environment: Information Science Challenges for the 21 st Century 0.1 (Zambia) – 19.7 (India) 2 (Honduras) – 86.8 (South Africa) 1 (Trinidad & Tobago) – 193 (Czech Republic) 18.9 (Austria) – 1,083 (Sweden)

Institute of Scientific Information publications listings Measuring the Global Research Environment: Information Science Challenges for the 21 st Century High: 104,865 (India) Median: 236 High: 153,753 (Russian Federation) Median: 737 High: 60,207 (Poland) Median: 1,375 High: 2,060,522 (USA) Median: 19,169

World of Learning 2002 Reference Volume Measuring the Global Research Environment: Information Science Challenges for the 21 st Century Institutes/Organizations of Higher Learning

Limitations of Data Sources UNESCO Research & Development Data ( ) –only 91 countries (38% of 241 listed by ISO) –data not available for all countries in all years –some countries calculated data differently –3 related reports difficult to re-combine and analyze Institute of Scientific Information publications listings (Jan 98 – Mar 03) –author country affiliations had to be searched manually –variations and typos complicated process World of Learning 2002 Reference Volume –no indication of size, reputation or influence of the institutions –structural differences among research institutions Measuring the Global Research Environment: Information Science Challenges for the 21 st Century

Research Production Boundary Issues Beyond the scope of information scientists –poor compliance with standards in primary data collection –lack of local resources –political issues restricting/prohibiting release of data Where information science can contribute –improved information retrieval systems, technologies and policies –simple ways for combining and analyzing diverse information from multiple resources Measuring the Global Research Environment: Information Science Challenges for the 21 st Century

Information Science Strategies Access and Exchange strategies –RSS, OAI-PMH, OpenURL, Open Access Publishing Integration Strategies –standardized data transfer standards customized for domains and cultures (XML, RDF, TEI, EAD, IABIN, EST, etc.) Measuring the Global Research Environment: Information Science Challenges for the 21 st Century

Research Capacity Boundary Issues Beyond the scope of information scientists –lack of infrastructure –lack of local resources –political issues restricting/prohibiting investment in research Where information science can contribute –improved information retrieval systems, technologies and policies –cultural and domain-specific knowledge sharing processes Measuring the Global Research Environment: Information Science Challenges for the 21 st Century

Information Science Strategies Taxonomies and Ontologies –development of semantic structures for cross-disciplinary and cross-language retrieval Information Needs, Seeking Behavior and Use –position information needs and dissemination strategies for specific populations into larger global framework Information Visualization –non-text-based communication methods aid cross- language and cross-disciplinary information sharing Measuring the Global Research Environment: Information Science Challenges for the 21 st Century

Conclusion Measuring the Global Research Environment: Information Science Challenges for the 21 st Century Global Research Environment as Framework –Assessment of the the global research environment highlights the contributions that information scientists can make to strengthening local research capacity in developing nations. Theory, Methods, and Best Practices Exist –Many information scientists are already working on relevant strategies in the areas discussed. Conversation & Action –We hope our investigation will fuel conversation and action in coordinating existing and future information science activity around this global research sharing framework.

Measuring the Global Research Environment: Information Science Challenges for the 21 st Century Global Research Environment Discussion Caryn Anderson Gabriele Bammer Integration & Implementation Sciences Global Research Data