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Preservation

Strategic Visions Working Group Meeting Strategic Visions Working Group Meeting

Preservation, version control, and continuity of access to digital information will be critical. As a result of collaborative work involving NLM, other libraries and archives, and a broad array of publishers, many formally published digital works will be released in standards-based formats that facilitate permanent access. There will be tools to assist organizations and individuals to generate records and papers that are inherently archivable. NLM will be part of an international network of trusted digital repositories in libraries and archives supported by governments, universities, and private organizations. By 2025, the network of repositories will have made some progress on establishing a rational division of labor for the expensive initial acquisition of content in a complete archivable format. They will have robust agreements and procedures to ensure that at least some important digital content is archived at multiple independent sites in geographically dispersed locations.

Digital technology will have provided the infrastructure necessary to make progress on another great preservation challenge of the 21st century – preserving and providing permanent access to the physical papers, records, and images that document the huge explosion in biomedical discovery and health policy developments that occurred in the latter half of the previous century.

These great shifts will create a 21st Century Intelligent Health System. The NLM can play a catalytic role in this transformation by identifying and embracing new opportunities - while also paying careful attention to preserving its reputation as a credible source of reliable knowledge and a leader in biomedical informatics.