CRKN Launches Canadian National Digital Heritage Index (CNDHI)

March 31, 2016

The Canadian Research Knowledge Network (CRKN) today announced the launch of Canadian National Digital Heritage Index (CNDHI), an index of digitized Canadian heritage collections located at Canadian universities and provincial and territorial libraries.

From the CRKN press release:

CRKN is pleased to announce that CNDHI (affectionately pronounced “candy”) is now live at http://cndhi-ipnpc.ca/. CNDHI is funded in part by Library and Archives Canada as part of the Documentary Heritage Community Program.

Libraries, archives and other memory institutions across Canada take the preservation of our national digital heritage very seriously with the goal of preserving both hard-copy and digital materials for present and future generations. CNDHI complements these activities by providing a single point of reference for every digitized collection in Canada that includes relevant metadata and information needed to access the various collections, all with the goal of increasing awareness of and access to these collections.

A current and regularly updated index of the digitized collections in Canada benefits the library and archival community, the general public and researchers.

A tool for the library and archival community: Librarians can use the tool to see which collections have already been digitized, not only to avoid duplication of efforts, but also to work together to achieve a collaborative approach to digitizing Canada’s documentary heritage. Librarians can also point their patrons to the digitized collections of other intuitions as part of an effort to provide access to the widest possible information available to Canadians.

A tool for the general public: Individuals can learn more about Canada’s documentary heritage by accessing content that may not have been previously accessible or discoverable.

 A tool for researchers: Researchers will have access to digitized collections outside of their home institution. An index that includes all collections may also aid in highlighting connections or links between documents. The digital humanities community, in particular, may find this index useful as they search for resources to support their research.

This project is a component of CRKN’s Integrated Digital Scholarship Ecosystem, a program that CRKN has been spearheading since October 2013 with the goal of understanding the complexity of the digital landscape and by seeking opportunities to align key stakeholders and providers around a series of shared objectives.

How Can You Get Involved?

Join the community: Submit your digitization projects to CNDHI by emailing info@cndhi-ipnpc.ca.

Help us to promote the index: Share and use the tool widely with the goal of increasing access to digitized collections across the country.

To get involved or to learn more about the project please email Kimberly Silk, Special Projects Officer – Integrated Digital Scholarship Ecosystem Project, ksilk@cndhi-ipnpc.ca.