“The data deluge is affecting scholarship and learning in ways both subtle and profound.” (Borgman p8)
In shaping a strategy for the next decade we must reflect upon some key strategic questions to inform our choices.
In a decade’s time how do we believe:
researchers across different disciplines will access, analyse, create and disseminate research data, research outputs, [...]
The choices here are multi-faceted and are not mutually exclusive. They may be broadly categorised across the following dimensions:
Co-located with teaching spaces
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Located elsewhere
Specific cognate disciplines
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Multidisciplinary
Undergraduate
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Graduate/research
Fewer libraries, longer opening hours, full range of services
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More libraries, small branches located within academic departments/faculties
Here, too, the choices are multi-faceted and not mutually exclusive. They may be broadly categorised across the following dimensions:
Collection spaces
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Study spaces
Open shelving (fewer items)
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Closed access on campus (more items)
Any time, anywhere access
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Physical characteristics and nature of books and artefacts
Physical browsability and serendipity
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Online tools for sophisticated searching, recommendation and discovery
Quiet study spaces
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Collaborative [...]
There will need to be a hierarchy of criteria to determine who can access our libraries, for example by type of user and collection.
The world
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Select scholars
All libraries and their collections
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Specific libraries and/or collections
The choices we make here will determine how and whether we maximise the value and impact of our scholarship.
The main considerations are who would have access to the products of our scholarship, and whether we seek financial return from licensing or other arrangements.
Varying combinations of ‘openness’ are available for:
Publishing our research output (articles, monographs, theses [...]