CRKN’s most important work is done in collaboration with our partners. Whether serving alongside and on behalf of our members, forming new connections with stakeholder organizations, or collaborating toward specific goals, our partnerships are our most vital asset.

CRKN staff participated in the first phase of the Curtin Open Knowledge Initiative (COKI). The goal of COKI is to provide a more holistic picture of research activity based on quantitative data rather than using traditional metrics and tools. As part of the completion of the first phase, COKI launched their Open Access Dashboard: https://open.coki.ac/. CRKN will continue to take an active role in COKI as they develop their long-term vision.

CRKN continues to work closely with our partners at Érudit, including CRKN representation on the Érudit Board and Coalition Publica Stakeholder Advisory Committee. Over the past year, CRKN provided feedback on Érudit’s development of a new journal revenue model to support their transition to full open access and began laying the groundwork for the renewal of the partnership in 2023.

CRKN continues to be an active supporter of the Implementing New Knowledge Environments (INKE) Partnership. Clare Appavoo presented the session “Partnership in Action: CRKN’s Approach to Strategic Partnership in Digitized Documentary Heritage” at INKE’s Putting Open Social Scholarship into Practice event in December 2021. Staff also participated in testing for INKE’s Digital Commons for the Humanities and Social Sciences this year.

With CRKN’s support, the National Heritage Digitization Strategy (NHDS) Executive Committee embarked on an ambitious strategic planning process in 2021-2022.

A survey and four open community calls were held in summer 2021, and a presentation on the NHDS was given at the CRKN Conference in October 2021. Presentations on the NHDS to share and validate the feedback received through these consultations were given at the INKE & CAPOS: Putting Open Social Scholarship into Practice event, and at the 2022 Ontario Library Association (OLA) Superconference.

Individual calls to collect feedback were held with key stakeholders, including the regional consortia, public library associations, archival and museum associations, and more. This feedback was analyzed and compiled into an Engagement Report. Using the Consultation Report as the foundation, the NHDS Advisory Committee underwent a planning exercise to identify and validate high-level goals and priorities for an updated strategic plan, as well as brainstorming potential activities and initiatives.

With this community feedback as a foundation, a draft Strategic Plan was developed in March 2022. This plan will be shared with the community for further feedback and validation.

CRKN joined as a member of the National Indigenous Knowledge and Language Alliance (NIKLA) this year. Members of the CRKN team also provided support to NIKLA in the planning and coordination of meetings to discuss its Respectful Terminology project.

CRKN continued to partner with the Digital Research Alliance of Canada (the Alliance) to manage the DataCite Canada Consortium, which reached 57 members this year. Highlights of our work this year include a new series of webinars and community calls, created in partnership with the DataCite US Consortium hosted by LYRASIS; securing funding from the Alliance to minimize costs for consortium members for a second year; and the re-election of Rebecca Ross of CRKN to the DataCite Board as Deputy President. In addition, CRKN and Alliance staff continue to participate in the Community and Engagement Steering Group as well as the Americas Expert Group.

CRKN continued to support the Canadian ORCID community via the ORCID Canada Consortium (ORCID-CA). As ORCID-CA celebrated its five-year anniversary in 2022, the consortium saw a year of growth in integrations, member engagement, membership, and in developing our community of practice. ORCID iD use grew by over 20,000 users in Canada, and we reached 42 consortial members. The number of integrations increased from 32 to 46 thanks in large part to widespread adoption of the ORCID-OJS plugin developed by the Public Knowledge Project (PKP), which ORCID-CA supported through the certification process, as well as the recent release of ORCID’s Affiliation Manager. This coming year, ORCID-CA is likely to again secure funding from the Digital Research Alliance of Canada to minimize member costs. In governance matters, Clare Appavoo of CRKN entered her second year on the ORCID Board.

CRKN grew its Persistent Identifier program with support from the Canadian Persistent Identifier Advisory Committee (CPIDAC). CRKN hired MoreBrains Consulting Cooperative at the end of 2021 to begin work that will lead to a National Persistent Identifier (PID) Strategy. This first phase of consulting aimed to identify the conditions necessary for successful development of a PID Strategy, and a second phase of this project will begin in 2022-2023.

Staff met regularly with regional consortia this year, focusing on licensing activities at each consortium. CRKN was able to celebrate many open access achievements together with regional consortia, including CRKN transformative agreements and the Council of Prairie and Pacific University Library’s (COPPUL) deals with the Royal Society and the Microbiology Society.