Public Knowledge: Access and Benefits by Miriam A. Drake Donald T. Hawkins

Author:Miriam A. Drake,Donald T. Hawkins [Miriam A. Drake,Donald T. Hawkins]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Information Today Inc.
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

From Science.gov to WorldWideScience.org

Considering the early success of Science.gov, it was a logical extension of the concept and technology to move toward international collaboration. In June 2006, in Washington, D.C., Warnick represented DOE at the annual conference of ICSTI (International Council for Scientific and Technical Information), which works to “provide leadership in promoting recognition of the value of scientific and technical information to the world’s economic, research, scholarly and social progress.” In a speech, Warnick publicly introduced the concept of a global extension of the national model of Science.gov, an international science gateway that he descriptively called Science.world. Later in 2006, the British Library expressed a desire to partner with DOE in the development of a global science gateway, and on Jan. 21, 2007, in London, then under-secretary for science Raymond L. Orbach signed a bilateral statement of intent with the former chief executive of the British Library, Lynne Brindley. The two officials invited other nations to join in this partnership.16 OSTI committed to work with the British Library and international counterparts to develop a prototype of “Science.world” in 2007. The joint agreement indicated that the objectives of the international science portal would be to:

•Search dispersed, electronic collections in various science disciplines;

•Provide direct, seamless, and free searching of open source collections and portals;

•Build on existing and already-successful national models for searching;

•Complement existing information collections and systems; and

•Raise the visibility and usage of individual sources of quality science information.

“It is timely to make the science offerings of all nations searchable through one global gateway,” Orbach said. “Science is international, and centralizing access will enhance the rate of scientific discovery.”17 Five months later, at the June 2007 ICSTI conference in Nancy, France, OSTI debuted the global science gateway now renamed WorldWideScience.org. At that time, WorldWideScience.org performed federated searching of 12 databases and portals across 10 countries. In addition to the U.S. and U.K., the inaugural portal provided access to research information in English from Australia, Brazil, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Japan, and the Netherlands.18

With the successful opening of WorldWideScience.org and the resulting publicity, several other countries approached OSTI seeking to have their science and technology databases added to the global portal. In addition, discussions ensued among participating countries and ICSTI to transition the bilateral U.S.-U.K. governance of WorldWideScience.org to a multilateral structure, and a Terms of Reference governance document was drafted. In February 2008 at the ICSTI winter meeting in Paris, the Terms of Reference document was ratified, defining the purpose, objectives, terms, conditions, and structure for a WorldWideScience Alliance. The alliance provides strategic direction for the growth and development of WorldWideScience.org, establishes the criteria for adding databases to the portal, defines the funding model and annual budget, and actively markets the global science gateway. The Terms of Reference stipulated that OSTI would serve as the operating agent for WorldWideScience.org and secretariat to the alliance. In addition to its member organizations representing various countries, the alliance is closely affiliated with ICSTI, which serves as a member and primary sponsor.

The WorldWideScience Alliance was officially established and WorldWideScience.

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