Increasing Access to Digital Collections through Collaboration

Libraries today are continually challenged to accommodate the public’s demand for access to both born-digital and digitized items while adhering to budget restrictions.  Frankly, we all want to provide access to the treasures we hold but we don’t want to break the bank in the process.  One means by which this may be accomplished is through collaborative efforts between cultural heritage institutions of all sizes. 

Of course, an equitable arrangement between institutions relies upon shared resources.  Smaller libraries, however, should not be discouraged if their budget for digitization is smaller than that of a larger repository with whom they might like to partner.  It’s important to consider resources as including not only money but time, staff (including volunteers), equipment, and collection items that are of interest to patrons.  Various levels of collaboration, too, may be acceptable; there are no hard-and-fast rules for collaborative efforts, other than finding a relationship that works for all parties.

Nationwide, as cultural heritage institutions are increasingly affected by budget cuts, collaborative relationships are becoming more and more common.  Ohio institutions, too, are turning to collaboration for these very same reasons.

The State Library of Ohio and the Ohio Historical Society, for example, will soon officially announce their own collaborative relationship.  The two institutions have recently begun a joint effort to build an online presence using OCLC’s CONTENTdm content-management product.  As the project progresses, libraries and historical societies both small and large will be invited to join in this effort, so do stay tuned for further announcements.

In an effort to facilitate collaborative efforts statewide, OhioLINK has established the Digital Resource Commons, or DRC.  John Davison of OhioLINK says that Ohio cultural heritage institutions are “treasure troves of knowledge, but valuable resources are often hidden.”  The DRC “uncovers this hidden knowledge, unites it, and makes it freely available to researchers statewide and beyond.”  Currently, only a handful of libraries have gone live with sites based in the DRC (with Wright State’s DRC site provided below as an example), but many more are in development.   As OhioLINK continues to develop the DRC, it will likely prove to be a fantastic option for providing access to digital collections.

As efforts to improve accessibility to digital collections increase, it is likely that institutions will continue to consider collaboration as a way of managing scarce resources while providing the access the public wants and needs.  Meanwhile, the cultural heritage websites below provide great examples of how collaborations might look.  Yours, of course, will probably be completely different, depending on your needs and those of your users.By thinking creatively, however, you will find a relationship that works for you…and everyone will benefit!

For more information, and to view some of the results of digital collection building through collaboration, please visit the following sites:

OhioLINK Digital Resource Commons, Wright State University
Ohio Memory
Cleveland Memory
Ohio’s Heritage Northeast
Digital Shoebox