The National Library of Ireland is the latest organisation to join the Digital Preservation Coalition, helping the Library to address the challenges and opportunities associated with long term management of digital collections.
'The core mission of the National Library of Ireland (NLI) is to collect, preserve, promote and make accessible the documentary and intellectual record of the life of Ireland,' explained Della Murphy, Assistant Keeper at NLI. 'One of our key strategic aims is the development of a digital collections policy with preservation and access infrastructure to match. By putting in place the necessary policy and infrastructure, we will maximise access to our resources, enhance and expand the services we offer, and enable users to work with the Library and Library collections in new and innovative ways.'
'The National Library of Ireland believes that working with partners in the DPC will vitally inform and support the implementation of best practice in relation to policy and infrastructural development in the area of digital preservation.'
William Kilbride, Executive Director of the DPC, welcomed the new membership. 'Digital preservation is a daunting challenge for organisations that want to ensure long term value from the collections for which they are responsible. The problem is bigger than any one agency. Collaboration is the key to efficient and successful deployment of the emerging solutions and services that will make our digital memory accessible tomorrow. Membership of the DPC gives NLI a ready-made network of peers and colleagues - all of whom share a common challenge. This will expedite their work and mean that others can benefit more immediately from the expertise that they bring.'
'It's great news that the National Library of Ireland has joined' noted Richard Ovenden, chair of the DPC. 'The coalition is growing quite quickly. NLI is the second agency to join the Coalition this year, taking our membership to thirty seven - the highest it has ever been. Agencies simply can't afford to work in isolation when faced with a shared challenge. So the opportunities for knowledge transfer, policy development and collaboration that the DPC offers have never been more attractive or necessary.'