December 2006 / January 2007


Knowledge Ontario celebrates official launch

An ambitious project to create a fully integrated environment for digital information and resources was officially launched in Toronto recently, drawing praise from international colleagues who say Ontario is "at the cutting edge" of digital libraries. Over 300 people from all types of libraries from throughout the province took part in the launch of Knowledge Ontario (formerly the Ontario Digital Library) at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre.

The project is a province-wide collaboration of libraries, archives, museums, heritage organizations, educational institutions, and community groups that have come together to create an integrated and interactive digital environment about, and for, Ontarians.



Peter Rogers, Chair of Knowledge Ontario, addresses the audience at the launch.

The innovative venture is designed to serve the information and learning needs of Ontarians by supporting access and research, collaboration, the creation of critical content, and literacy and learning.

"With its focus and ability to provide equal access to high quality digital information for any Ontarian with a library card, the project affords a unique opportunity for library communities across the province to unite and provide an integrated and interactive digital environment to support the information and learning needs of students and the public at large," said Peter Rogers, Chair of Knowledge Ontario's Management Group.

"Our recent launch gave the library community as well as museums, archives and other interested information providers a chance to celebrate and witness the significant progress our projects have achieved to date and laid the groundwork for the next phase of our development," said Rogers.

Roy Tennant, User Services Architect at the California Digital Library, travelled to Toronto for the event. Tennant, who spoke at the 2001 planning meeting for the Ontario Digital Library, said he was able to see how far the project had come in a few short years and commended its "unprecedented depth and scale." "You are going to enable things that you cannot begin to imagine. You are at the cutting edge of digital library work and there is much to be done."

Two of the six components are already in place: OurOntario.ca and Resources Ontario.

OurOntario.ca is a collaborative initiative to create seamless and integrated access to cultural heritage content that is presently dispersed in over 8,000 of the province's libraries, museums, archives and historical societies. It offers a one-stop-shop to search for and interact with Ontario's cultural heritage content in digital format. The site also enables the creation, hosting and development of new digital cultural content at the local level.

Resources Ontario provides electronic resources and materials that go beyond what is available on the Internet. Online and digital databases and the full-text of newspapers, magazines and books will soon be available at no cost. Resources Ontario is a way for small and large, rural and urban, school, college, university and government libraries to provide equal access to a core set of valuable electronic resources.

Four additional components are still under development:

Ask Ontario will offer 24/7 virtual reference help in locating information, solving problems and understanding issues. It will provide access in real time through email and instant messaging; assistance will be provided by qualified librarians and subject specialists in the public, school, college and university sectors.

Connect Ontario is planned as a multi-level digital space for Ontarians to connect and interact with each other, sharing information and creating new knowledge.

Teach Ontario will offer online modules that will assist students, teachers, businesses and individuals to find, evaluate and use the information they locate through Knowledge Ontario and other Internet resources. It will provide learning tools to assist Ontarians in building their digital literacy and thinking skills.

Video Ontario will provide fast, reliable access to educational video content, promoting and supporting the goals of TeleHealth Ontario. It will become a platform for future educational video content by connecting Ontarians with health information, to help them make sound decisions and informed choices about their health care.

Knowledge Ontario is sponsored by the Government of Ontario, the Ontario Library Association and the Ontario Council of University Libraries.

For more information, visit www.knowledgeontario.ca.

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