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October/November 1996, vol. 28, nos. 10-11
by Rolande Blair, Director General, Information Resource Management
The information world is changing fast and Information Resource Management (IRM) is changing with it. Driving these changes is the new electronic environment, which offers different means of communicating worldwide. It also provides new mechanisms and tools for governments to deliver both information and services. As mentioned in previous articles, IRM core responsibilities focus on the development of policies and strategies for better management of information resources and improved access to government information. Therefore, the current move towards an electronic world had quite an impact on our recent initiatives and key activities. When the branch was created in 1994, we knew that we were working in a period of accelerated change. At that time, I wrote that as the National Library moved to fulfill its mandate in the twenty-first century, IRM would be “called upon to communicate the National Librarian’s information vision and strategic directions”.
But we did not realize, even as little as two years ago, how massive and immediate the impact of the explosion of electronic communication would be. Simply put, the way we do business in the information world is radically different today from 10, five or even two years ago. The Internet and the World Wide Web have transformed information management and access. The new formats, especially electronic publications, have raised an assortment of issues about copyright, preservation, collection management and access.
It falls upon IRM as the facilitator, catalyst and coordinator of policy and strategy development within the National Library to be a conduit for information to ensure collective corporate input. And, even as we respond to the constantly altering electronic environment, we must rethink our actions following deep budget cuts resulting from the government-wide Program Review.
The clearest example of the convergence of electronic format explosion and budget implosion is probably offered in the need to revise the Library’s Collections Management Policy. We must re-examine what we do and how we do it in the context of the new formats and reduced resources. As the guardian of the nation’s published heritage, the Library must accommodate the expansion of the volume and variety of formats, while resources shrink. It falls to IRM to coordinate the efforts of representatives from the Library’s various branches who are working together to ensure the right balance.
An interbranch committee, led by IRM, has worked on key revisions to the Collections Management Policy, produced in 1990. Keeping in mind, as a strategic direction, an increased focus on Canadiana in all formats, including Canadian electronic publications, and giving due consideration to the present fiscal environment, the committee reassessed collection policies and established priorities for action. So far, the committee has dealt with such issues as the number of copies of any publication that the National Library should continue to acquire, and has reviewed collections received through exchange agreements with foreign countries. It has also completed a review of foreign serials collections for both cancellation and deselection purposes. A key area for future consideration is the development of policies for our growing collection of Canadian electronic publications, from their selection to long-term access, maintenance and preservation.
Other key aspects of IRM’s work are in preservation and access to government information. In the preservation area, we remain busy coordinating preservation policies dealing with traditional formats. We are, for instance, in the second year of a major cooperative research project with industry and cultural agencies on the effects of lignin on the permanence of paper, which could result in a change in international standards for paper permanence. We must also deal with the pressing question of formulating policies to deal with the preservation of electronic formats — a matter of some urgency as the new formats are even more fragile than their print counterparts.
IRM was also successful in obtaining Treasury Board funding for “Operation Recovery” to rehabilitate and replace material damaged in the major water disasters that occurred between March 1994 and May 1995. All damaged items were either replaced or conserved quickly, due to staff involvement and management support. (The process is to be documented in a future issue of National Library News.)
As the Library builds its electronic collections, particularly in the area of government publications (a priority), IRM has been active in coordinating the implementation of the Electronic Publications Pilot Project (EPPP) recommendations. These range from definition and criteria to copyright issues, from legal deposit to system support, from long-term access to preservation. Interesting results were achieved in providing access to the National Library’s electronic collection and links to key Canadian resources organized by subject.
As the federal government continues to “go electronic”, IRM has been involved in formulating response to the government Blueprint. Its key message was the use of technology in delivering government information and services. Interest in the National Library’s being a key partner in the access to and dissemination of government electronic information was reiterated through documents and models discussed with our federal partners. The National Library is now part of a task force testing the public’s information needs and capabilities of accessing government electronic information. The task force oversees pilot projects to provide broad access to federal government information in electronic format through a network of public access points. The results of the pilots will be used to help determine what government information Canadians require, and to assess the quality, timeliness and methods employed to disseminate it — all vital in developing a government-wide model of information dissemination and publishing policies. It is exciting and rewarding work, driven by a vision of information management and delivery based on user needs.
Major initiatives this year were:
Copyright. The National Library of Canada. (Revised: 1996-11-06).