Objectives 2009
Activities and fulfilment of objectives in DEFF are normally dependent upon the prioritisations of the participating libraries and those educational and research institutions that the libraries service. In last year’s report there were expectations that 2008 would be concentrated on the many projects to which the steering committee had granted subsidies at the last meeting in 2007. The action lines in these were numerous. The steering committee had i.a. highly prioritised the preparation of an Open Access Roadmap as an important element in international collaboration, the development of integrated search and data well, strengthening of the data collaboration in DanBib as well as not least the work with the bibliometric indicator.
In 2009 the common data well is placed very high on the agenda. The work in relation to this will probably be quite time-consuming and resource- demanding for both DEFF’s stakeholders and the secretariat. It is expected that during 2009 an agreement between six large research libraries and the DEFF secretariat will be reached concerning a model for participation and further development of the well.
Another central objective is to get Open Access (OA) even more firmly placed on the map. By way of the programme group Information Supply a Danish network for OA responsible/key persons in Danish research libraries and institutions was established. With the help of this network DEFF hopes to be able to promote the spreading of OA-knowledge and -sharing in Denmark. It is likewise the ambition that the network can underpin the rea-lisation of activities within the Knowledge Exchange area. This is quite in harmony with the specific focus and prioritisation of the OA-area in 2009, where also John Houghton’s cost-benefit analysis is expected to contribute to the debate. It has been a pleasure to observe the Research and Innovation Agency’s increased focus on OA.
Despite the fact that DEFF is ’merely’ an adviser in relation to the bibliometric research indicator, this work takes up a lot of resources. This will probably also be the case in 2009, where Technical Committee has predicted that further initiatives are needed. This includes various adjustments in the local systems, the building up of support databases as well as a strengthening of data validation in relation to automatic validation in The Danish Research Database. Also many research libraries are expected to have to dedicate a lot of effort to their reportings to the Research and Innovation Agency.
The secretariat is striving to get a clarification of the future financing of WAYF as project means run out by the end of 2009. The possibility exists that the Research Net will take over and partly finance WAYF. At the very beginning of 2009 more than 500,000 electronic identities were able to use WAYF-login, and the growth is expected to continue into the new year.
The DEFF secretariat is looking forward to the established collaboration with the firm of consultants The Lime Guild about an investigation into future library service to researchers. DEFF is expected to provide secretarial assistance in the process, while The Lime Guild with Hans Siggaard Jensen at the helmet is responsible for content deliveries during the run of the project. Siggaard presented a thought- provoking paper at this year’s annual DEFF review that dealt with new trends within research, education and knowledge systems. The report is also expected to contribute with ideas as to future research and research tendencies, including of course the research library’s role in that context.
In organisational terms the major challenge has been that DEFF by the turn of the year had to appoint a new steering committee for a new four-year period 2009-2012. Kim Østrup, retiring chairman, has found it imperative that a certain continuity in the group should persist. A major clarification effort took place in autumn 2008, but DEFF’s coordination committee did not manage to get the new steering committee appointed before the end of the year. The composition of the committee is however decided upon to the effect that it will consist of three representatives from the Ministry of Culture, the Ministry of Education and the Ministry for Science, Technology and Innovation respectively. To this a chairman has been appointed as the 10. person.
The general upper secondary schools, SOSO schools and the VUCs entered DEFF as per 1. Jan-uary 2009. It means that these institutions in the coming year will bring great influence to bear in the DEFF collaboration. Furthermore, they are to be integrated in DEFF’s programme groups and the DEFF collaboration as such. There are some quite definite challenges facing these institutions in relation to licenses, IT systems and possibly a new library system which DEFF is going to help find the right solution to.
This page forms part of the publication 'Annual report from Denmark’s Electronic Research Library 2008' as chapter 16 of 17
PrintPublication may be found at the address http://www.bibliotekogmedier.dk/fileadmin/publikationer/publikationer_engelske/deff/annualreport_2008/index.htm
© 2009