1. e-Infrastructure for Cultural Heritage
Rossella CAFFO
Ministero per i beni e le attività culturali
Istituto centrale per il catalogo unico delle biblioteche italiane
EVA/MINERVA 2010 The 7th Jerusalem Conference 1

2. DC-NET in a glance
DC-NET is an ERA-NET - Coordination action contributing to the European Research Area
Research field: e-infrastructure for the digital cultural heritage
Duration: 24 months
Starting 1st December 2009
Rossella CAFFO MiBAC/ICCU
EVA/MINERVA 2010

3. DC-NET partners Endorsed by JPI on cultural heritage and global change
Coordinated by MiBAC-ICCU
Partners:
(*) Belgium: Federal Scientific Policy- STIS
Estonia: Ministry of Culture
France: Ministry of Culture
Greece: Ministry of Culture
Hungary: Ministry of Culture
Slovenia: Ministry of Culture
(*) Sweden: Riksarchivet
(*) in Belgium & Sweden partners were appointed by their Ministries
EVA/MINERVA 2010
Rossella CAFFO
MiBAC/ICCU

4. Where do we come from
A long story of joint efforts among EU Member States:
Brussels Quality Framework 2001
Lund Action Plan 2001
National Representatives Group
Charter of Parma 2003
Minerva, still a reality for EU cultural institutions
Michael, the largest investment of MS in DCH
Member States Experts Group and the support to Europeana, 2007-…
EVA/MINERVA 2010
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5. DIGITAL CULTURAL HERITAGE e-INFRASTRUCTURE
EUROPEANA
Athena
Linked Heritage
INDICATE
DIGITAL CULTURAL HERITAGE
e-INFRASTRUCTURE
DATA MODEL, ORGANISATION,
GOVERNANCE
RECOMMENDATIONS & GUIDELINES
NATIONAL & REGIONAL INITIATIVES

6. Rossella Caffo, MiBAC/ICCU
Our vision
To implement the data and service infrastructure for the research in the digital cultural heritage
To further develop the national/regional frameworks of cooperation with content providers (that is the legacy of MICHAEL)
To secure the committment of the stakeholders to sustain the infrastructure on a medium-long term
EVA/MINERVA 2010
Rossella Caffo, MiBAC/ICCU

7. Scope and objectives of DC-NET
To foster cooperation between cultural sector research bodies and technology and infrastructure providers
To harmonise initiatives of the EU Ministries of Culture into a common strategy for the digital cultural heritage
To develop and to endorse a research agenda for the digital cultural heritage, shared among the MS and the EC
To translate the strategic road map into coordinated programmes and action plans
EVA/MINERVA 2010
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8. Rossella Caffo, MiBAC/ICCU
Joint Activities Plan
Developing a range of guidelines and recommendations for the exploitation of the e-Infrastructures in the digital cultural heritage, based on the successful approach of MINERVA
Implementing of a data and services infrastructure for the digital cultural heritage. This e-infrastructure is an evolution of MICHAEL
Creating a multidisciplinary virtual research community that will start to work in DC-NET.
EVA/MINERVA 2010
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9. The virtual research community
The cultural sector meets technology providers
Cultural Institutions (museums, libraries, archives, audio-visual, archaeology..)
Central Institutes representing the national/regional authorities (standardisation & cataloguing, preservation, restoration, etc.)
Ministries of culture
Regional local cultural bodies
MEET WITH
Universities and academies
Ministries of research
NREN
Other e-Infrastructures (e.g. Grid)
R&D enterprises
Public research centers

10. What is “digital heritage”
Digital items and collections
Digital image archives
Audiovisual
Sounds, music, recordings
Digital born 3D
Databases, digital catalogues and other services
Data from scientific research on cultural heritage
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11. What are “digital libraries”
Two possible approaches:
Databases of digital contents representing cultural items (images, sounds, audiovisuals, ecc.)
Digital catalogues of metadata and other services connected with digital contents in a single platform
Target: general users or professionals or researchers 11 11

12. What are research “e-infrastructure”
Integration of various features:
Advanced software platform
Complex data
Virtual research community
Services
Telematic networks, storage and computing platforms
Target: professionals, researchers –
No general users 12 12

13. What are “portals” and “aggregators”
Both do not include digital resources (in a systematic way) They provide information and services, and forward to external digital libraries and databases for accessing contents Target: mostly general users; Researchers are not the main target
EVA/MINERVA 2010
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14. Rossella Caffo, MiBAC/ICCU
The state of the art
Insufficient use of e-infrastructures
Multilingualism and transnational collaborations
Access to cultural objects
Availability of quality digital contents
Digital libraries: research beyond the text
Towards more and more user interaction
Management and control of IPR
Long-term preservation of digital content
Towards a new digital infrastructure for digital heritage
EVA/MINERVA 2010
Rossella Caffo, MiBAC/ICCU

15. Rossella Caffo, MiBAC/ICCU
Research priorities
Networking
ICT Research
Innovative services and pilots
Excellence networks, competence centres, labs for innovation in cultural heritage
EVA/MINERVA 2010
Rossella Caffo, MiBAC/ICCU

16. 1. Networking Needs analysis Who-is-Who
Policies and programmes profiling
Best practices
Consensus building
Shared recommendations and guidelines
Advocacy
Dissemination and awareness
Commitment of stakeholders

17. Rossella Caffo, MiBAC/ICCU
2. ICT Research
Digitisation and digital documentation of cultural heritage
Quality of digital object and uses
Digital repositories and digital preservation
Innovative services for access
Knowledge infrastructures ecosystems
EVA/MINERVA 2010
Rossella Caffo, MiBAC/ICCU

18. 3. Innovative services and pilots
Services requirements analysis
Evolution of MICHAEL service (integration with national portals)
Authentication and authorization infrastructure
Pilots in audiovisual digital heritage
Pilots integrating scientific data from scientific labs working on tangible heritage (chemistry, physics, geology etc.)
Virtual reality, 3D, GIS, Mobile Technologies
E-Learning, e-collaboration

19. Rossella Caffo, MiBAC/ICCU
4. Competence centres
For example on:
Persistent digital identifiers (PID) management
Authorisation management to copyrighted material
Cost reduction technologies in digitisation and cataloguing
Definition of standards and interoperability protocols
Multilingualism
New models of training ……
EVA/MINERVA 2010
Rossella Caffo, MiBAC/ICCU

20. New professional profiles
Integrated competences in digital heritage and ICT:
Digitisation of cultural documents and creation of digital resources
Digital collection and digital repository management
Management of digital object and data
Digital data curation
Long-term preservation workflows
Multilingual information access
Management of intellectual property
Usability and accessibility of digital resources
Uses and users studies, target analysis etc.

21. Impacts Impact on the e-Infrastructures:
The adoption of the e-Infrastructures by the digital cultural heritage community will open new scenarios of use and exploitation
Impact on the cultural heritage
Cultural managers will become more aware about the potential that the e-infrastructures can offer to their work
Impact on European research:
A better integration of the cultural sector with the e-Infrastructures will enable the research of new advanced services and applications
Impact on the general public:
Digital cultural content will become more usable and re-usable for education, cultural tourism, long-life learning, non-professional cultural interests, …
EVA/MINERVA 2010
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22. A new project for the Mediterranean region: INDICATE in a glance
Started 1st September 2010
Coordinator: MiBAC-ICCU
Participants from:
French Ministry of Culture
Slovenia – Governmental agency for preservation of cultural heritage
National Technical University of Athens
i2CAT in Barcelona
E-Infrastructures: GARR and Cometa
Med countries: Jordan, Turkey and Egypt
EVA/MINERVA 2010
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23. INDICATE Expected results
Dissemination of DC-Net results in the Mediterranean area Pilots about use of e-infrastructures for digital cultural heritage: one is the porting of MICHAEL database onto the e-Infrastructure (NTUA) 1 international conference in Egypt to present result of the pilots 3 thematic workshops: Jordan – virtual exhibitions Turkey –preservation of digital cultural heritage Slovenia – geocoded data for cultural heritage 2 publications, summing up results of pilots and workshops
EVA/MINERVA 2010
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24. DC-Net nexts appointments
Tallin 13-15/1/2011
e-Infrastructure Concertation meeting
Paris 10-11/2/2011
New services workshop
Budapest 23-24/6/2011
International conference under the aegis of the Hungarian Presidency of the EU
Rome November 2011
DC-NET Final conference
EVA/MINERVA 2010
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25. Thank you for your attention Rossella Caffo DC-NET Project Manager 25 25