A Nationally Significant Databases and Collections Providers' Group

What are Nationally Significant Databases and Collections?

When Crown Research Institutes (CRI) were formed under the CRI Act in 1992 some Databases and Collections were considered to be of national importance. These Nationally Significant Databases and Collections (NatSigDC) were assigned to individual CRIs for custodianship. NatSigDCs receive funding from New Zealand's Foundation for Research Science and Technology to ensure they are maintained and available to users. With some exceptions, this funding enables raw content to be made available to users at cost of supply. In many cases additional contestably funded research is carried out by the curator's institution to maintain content and keep the collection or database relevant to research and user communities. The original list of NatSigDCs was reviewed in 1996 with some additional databases and collections being added. (see Documents below)

The last 10 years

The NatSigDC List contains links to the homepages for each database and collection. Custodians are responsible for establishing appropriate maintenance and access policies for their databases and collections in accordance with their individual Transfer Agreements (typically 1991, rev. 1997) with the Crown that gave them custodianship. However, information technology has changed, and is continuing to change, dramatically over the past 10 years. The challenge for custodians of databases and collections is to take advantage of advances in information technology in fulfilling their responsibilities.

Over the last few years, the Government has been implementing an eGovt strategy which promotes integration, using the WWW, of information from Government agencies. Government departments have found that this requires a fundamental change in the way information is managed. In addition, funding agencies are seeking collaboration from key science providers, and increased relevance of information to end-user needs. While the eGovt strategy does not automatically apply to CRIs, the challenge is there and meeting it will expose a need for improved communication between database custodians, new ways of managing databases and collections, and enhanced access to them by both providers and users of the information they contain.

The international environment is also changing dramatically. NZ's Biosecurity Strategy and the Kyoto Protocol provide examples of emerging drivers that have a direct impact on NatSigDC use and that bring new challenges to custodians. The requirements imposed by these international drivers are common to many NatSigDC irrespective of the custodian.

NatSigDC - a Providers' Group

As we looked forward to the next 10 years, a group of us decided it was time for providers of NatSigDCs to have a forum to discuss common issues, discover areas with potential for synergy, and assist each other in finding areas for collaboration.

To Join NatSigDC Providers' Group

We have set up an email list as an initial means of keeping in touch. Initially the list is being controlled in two ways;

1. membership of the list is limited to those with direct involvement as a NatSigDC Provider, and
2. anybody may post an email to the list, but posts from non-members will be checked by the administrator before being sent to the list.

These are not intended to be heavy handed controls, merely protection against misuse of the list.

Using the natsigdc-list email list

To subscribe to the email list & find out how to use it visit the NatSigDC list server hosted by GNS.

List Archive

There is also a archive of past postings to natsigdc-list available from the NatSigDC list server which may be read by anyone.

Nationally Significant Databases and Collection Documents

1998 SCIENCE DATABASE AND COLLECTION ISSUES: Oceans of data, vulnerable collections and terabytes of power, Ian Whitehouse
1996 Review of PGSF Funded Nationally Important Databases and Collections

Contacts

NatSigDC Providers' Group initiating team:

• Robert Gibb; Landcare Research
• Diana Kelly; Geological and Nuclear Sciences
• Peter Wood; Geological and Nuclear Sciences

General Disclaimer, Copyright & Acknowledgment

General Disclaimer

NatSigDC Providers' Group makes every effort to ensure the accuracy of information provided on this site but cannot guarantee that it is complete or up to date. We do not accept responsibility for any actions taken in reliance on it or consequences arising from the use of it.

Copyright

This WWW site and its contents are copyright to NatSigDC Providers' Group and may be copied for personal, non-profit or educational purposes provided that the source is acknowledged. The information must not be used for commercial purposes without prior written consent from NatSigDC Providers' Group.

Acknowledgment

NatSigDC Providers' Group thanks Landcare Research for hosting this website. The views expressed on this website are not necessarily those of Landcare Research.