NRC-CISTI, Canada's national science library supports and promotes initiatives that will expand access to digital scientific, technical and medical (STM) information essential to Canada's research, innovation and health communities. The following highlights three main areas of strategic focus and collaboration.

Collaborating to develop national networks of digital research information and data

PubMed Central Canada (PMC Canada)

• NRC-CISTI, the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) and the US National Library of Medicine (NLM) have partnered to create PMC Canada — a free digital archive of peer-reviewed health science research. The first piece of the PMC Canada — the search interface — was launched in October 2009. It allows users to browse, search and download articles.
• PMC Canada is also developing a manuscript submission system that will launch in late 2009. It will support CIHR's Policy on Access to Research Outputs, which requires CIHR grant recipients to make their peer-reviewed publications freely accessible online within six months of publication. When the repository's manuscript submission system goes live, CIHR-funded researchers will be able to deposit their CIHR-funded research, exposing it to a global audience and facilitating collaboration to advance health research.
• PMC Canada is built on the US National Library of Medicine's PubMed Central (PMC) archive and will join UK PubMed Central (UKPMC) as a member of the broader PMC International network.

National Science Library Trusted Digital Repository (TDR)

• NRC-CISTI is developing a digital repository of scientific, technical and medical (STM) publications and data to ensure long-term sustainable access to Canada's record of science.
• The TDR is a foundation element of NRC-CISTI's broader goal to collaborate on building a networked national digital information infrastructure for Canada's research, health and innovation communities, which will also include PMC Canada and the NRC Publications Archive.

Research Data Strategy Working Group

• Ensuring Canada's research data is accessible and usable for current and future generations of researchers — This national, multi-disciplinary initiative is addressing the challenges and issues surrounding the access and preservation of data arising from Canadian research. With broad access to this wealth of data, researchers will have a powerful tool that will enhance their ability to collaborate across disciplines and sectors and accelerate the innovation process.
• NRC-CISTI is playing a coordination role and will contribute to this larger initiative by leveraging its metadata expertise and developing a gateway Web site that will provide access to Canadian scientific data sets and other important data repositories.

Accelerating discovery and innovation

NRC Publications Archive (also called NPArC)

• The National Research Council Publications Archive (NPArC) is a searchable online repository of NRC-authored publications. It includes a wide range of publications from all NRC Institutes, Programs, Branches, and Centres. This web-based archive provides access to NRC's record of science and demonstrates the many ways NRC researchers translate science and technology into value for Canada. NPArC aims to increase access to NRC-authored publications, guarantee long-term access to NRC's research output, and serve as a valuable resource for NRC researchers, collaborators and the public.
  
  NPArC includes technical reports and peer-reviewed publications (such as articles, proceedings, books, and book chapters). NPArC includes over 35,000 publication records. This number includes around 5,000 full-text publications. To learn more about NPArC, please read NPArC FAQ.

WorldWideScience.org

• Sharing knowledge on a global scale — NRC-CISTI is a founding member of this multi-nation alliance to create a single searchable gateway to global scientific databases that will speed up the innovation process.

CISTI Lab

• Collaborating to develop knowledge discovery tools — CISTI Lab is an online lab that enables collaborative development and testing of software and services for next-generation digital library applications and electronic publishing.
• It provides a place where NRC-CISTI and collaborators from other NRC institutes, universities, libraries and the private sector can work together to develop tools that will search, analyze and present information in new and innovative ways to uncover new knowledge and speed innovation.
• To bring even more ideas to fruition, CISTI Lab makes the tools and data at its disposal available to anyone who wishes to contribute to the innovation process.

Expanding access to digital STM information

Federal Science eLibrary (FSeL)

• A collaboration of the six major federal science-based departments/agencies, the FSeL aims to transform the S&T information infrastructure that underpins federal research and innovation by providing immediate cost-effective access to STM information at the desktops of all federal researchers, policy analysts and decision makers.
• The strategy — Integrate seamless access across all departments to eliminate existing inequalities between government departments; and negotiate government-wide site licences for desktop access to STM information. The combined purchasing clout will mean stronger negotiating positions with publishers leading to the best possible price. It will also eliminate duplication of systems and resources across departments.

Canadian Virtual Health Library

• A collaboration with the Canadian Health Libraries Association to link digital health networks to ensure that all health care providers in Canada have equal access to the best information for patient care.
• Status: An investigative stage is currently being funded by the Canada Health Infoway.