- Coalition for Networked Information
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The Coalition for Networked Information (CNI) is an organization whose mission is to promote networked information technology as a way to further the advancement of intellectual collaboration and productivity. It is a joint initiative of the Association of Research Libraries (ARL) as well as EDUCAUSE. It was started in 1990, and its founding executive director, Paul Evan Peters, served until his death in 1996.[1]
Since then it has grown to include over 200 institutions which include both for-profit and non-profit members.[2] It holds semi-annual conferences where its member organizations send representatives to discuss the current trends and activities of the networked information community. Its directors are also frequent contributors to scholarly journals in the information science field. It works on a consultative basis with many of its members: for instance, it is working with the Library of Congress in an effort to map out a National Digital Preservation Program. It also works with international members in countries such as England and Germany.
Contents
Central Themes
Developing and Managing Networked Content
CNI works towards assuring that the network is fully capable of facilitating the needs of education, more specifically the needs of scholarship, teaching and learning. It also works together with its member institutions to further collaboration between scholastic networks. Further, it works to develop a development framework in academic fields to further the creation and management of networks as well as to allow open access to the information.[3]
Transforming Organization, Professions, and Individuals
It also works on developing relationships between institutions, professors, and other sectors to ensure the collaboration of intellectuals across different disciplinary studies. The improvement of dialogue among academics will help in large part to develop new competencies as well as to stimulate new program strategy.[3]
Building Technology Standards and Infrastructure
In addition, CNI also seeks to coordinate an infrastructure increase that would involve many institutions. The point is made that no single institution could build the required infrastructure to allow complete integration of knowledge, so each institution must do its own part in building the network. CNI also seeks to develop and test new technologies in the search for benefits to the networked information community.[3]
Recent Projects
For the 2007-2008 year, CNI was involved with a number of research and development opportunities as it continues to work towards furthering the collaboration of the networked information community. Its activities include close work with the Open Archives Initiative, a focus on increasing campus infrastructure to support research programs, and helping supervise a risk analysis on the implications of the continuing shift towards digital content with respect to business continuity and the future of libraries. It will also be involved with the digital preservation movement and is a leading advocate for the movement towards electronic theses and dissertations.[3]
References
- ^ Paul Evan Peters, CNI's First Executive Director. (2004, March 3). Retrieved from http://www.cni.org/staff/peters_index.html
- ^ [1] Digital Preservation Europe Register
- ^ a b c d [2] CNI Program Plan 2007-2008
External sources
Categories:- Organizations established in 1990
- Educational organizations based in the United States
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
