(CHIN) - The Year in Perspective
2004-2005

The Canadian Heritage Information Network (CHIN) is a national centre of excellence that provides a visible face to Canada’s heritage through the world of networked information. CHIN’s vision is to connect Canadians and worldwide audiences to Canada’s heritage. Our mission is to promote the development, presentation and preservation of Canada’s digital heritage content for current and future generations of Canadians.

	Table of Contents
6	Message from the Minister
7	Priority one - Enhance skills of museums through technology
10	Priority two - Promote heritage content access and use in civic life
17	Priority three - Increase public engagement and participation
20	Priority four - Promote Canadian content abroad through extended international outreach
22	2004 - 2005 Operational Review

	OBJECT TITLE: Eagle mask - Kwikwam INSTITUTION: U'mista Cultural Centre CREATOR: Robert Brown PHOTO CREDIT: Sharon Eva Granger DATE OF OBJECT'S CREATION: Early 1900 COVERAGE: Kwak'w,k, wakw, Northern Vancouver, Island>
	OBJECT TITLE: Fort La Tour Ceramic Cup INSTITUTION: New Brunswick Museum/ New Brunswick Archaeological Services DATE OF OBJECT'S CREATION: 1630's COVERAGE: 17th century Acadia
	OBJECT TITLE: A watchful basilisk in the Biodôme’s Tropical Forest INSTITUTION: Montréal Biodôme DATE OF OBJECT'S CREATION: 10.01.2004

MESSAGE FROM THE MINISTER WE LIVE IN A NEW ERA

The Internet contributes in a phenomenal way to our knowledge society. Canadian heritage institutions see extraordinary possibilities in this, especially in public education. As the population becomes more and more at ease with digital technology, and a growing number of Canadians have access to the Internet, there are fewer cultural and linguistic boundaries. Gradually, the decreasing cost of access to technology is closing the gap between those who have connectivity and those who do not. We receive information less passively than ever before. We are also participating in the creation and exchange of knowledge. In this digital world, our museums play a more important role by enriching the intellectual capital of our knowledge society, as well as by enabling us to get to know our heritage better and to better understand the world in which we live. As we move forward in this effort, Canadian Heritage Information Network’s (CHIN) award-winning Virtual Museum of Canada (VMC) initiative, which includes the Community Memories program, continues to achieve strong national and international success. In 2004, the VMC received approximately 7 million visits from 142 countries around the world. NUMBER OF CHIN MEMBER INSTITUTIONS: 1242. NUMBER THAT JOINED THIS YEAR: 68. NUMBER OF NEW MEMBERS SINCE THE LAUNCH OF VMC IN 2001: 603. Nevertheless, it is fair to say that many challenges remain to creating digital heritage content. The issues of technological know-how, standards, copyright, intellectual property, and business models are constant preoccupations. With this in mind, CHIN is focusing on how we can best serve and position the museum community in the knowledge society of the 21st century. Based on this, we have established four strategic priorities: Improve the ability of member museums to leverage emerging technologies to develop convenient, personalized, and interactive online services. Enhance the use of heritage content, especially in educational settings, by offering virtual learning environments created from the digital repositories in Canadian museums. Increase Canadians’ interest and participation by better targeting their needs, and by implementing effective communications strategies. Strengthen international collaboration that engages worldwide audiences in Canada’s rich heritage. Over the course of the coming year, in partnership with our members, we look forward to achieving success in each of these four areas. The Honourable Liza Frulla Minister of Canadian Heritage and Minister responsible for Status of Women

CHIN’s first priority is to help our members build the skills necessary for creating, presenting, managing and preserving digital heritage. In addition to giving members access to databases, publications, collections, tools, catalogues, and knowledge, CHIN is also helping them evolve their use of content and realize technology’s fuller potential in areas like education, the development of online communities of practice, and even in the commercial realm.

This priority is supported by the CHIN Web site, where each month about 125,000 heritage professionals access information on the application of technology to museums. We are building on this success by transforming www.chin.gc.ca into an even more comprehensive online knowledge centre that allows for personalization and offers greater convenience. Partnerships and collaborations with provincial museum associations,

the Canadian Museums Association and other related organizations, such as the Learning Coalition and Heritage Network Atlantic, also support professional development. These joint efforts build the technological capacity of network members and enrich the heritage content available to heritage professionals, students, lifelong learners, and the public in Canada and abroad.

We are also building museums’ technical capacity through the development of software tools like the one developed for our Community Memories Investment Program. This easy-to-use software provides a template for the development of local history exhibits drawn from the collections of small and large museums, and the treasures and reminiscences of individuals from local communities.

As well, CHIN participates in various Government Online (GOL) committees. This effort, in turn, helps CHIN determine directions for initiatives such as the application of e-learning metadata.

KEY ACTIVITIES AND PROJECTS

Publications
Part of CHIN’s mandate is to conduct research on behalf of our members. This year, we published two new publications: Research on ‘Quality’ in Online Experiences for Museum Users and A Canadian Museums’ Guide to Developing a Licensing Strategy.

Digital Preservation for Museums Program
Digital heritage preservation is becoming one of CHIN’s central fields of research. This year, CHIN developed a checklist to help museums develop internal policies and strategies for preserving digital heritage.

Provincial Museums Association Meeting
In February 2005, CHIN hosted its seventh annual meeting of provincial museums association directors, their technology coordinators (for those provinces/territories that have such positions) and the Canadian Museums Association, in Ottawa. These annual meetings give participants the opportunity to learn from each other, and establish the groundwork for future collaborations.

Senghor University, Egypt
Since the late 1980s, CHIN has been sharing its many decades of experience in the museum information business. We have provided training to groups from Argentina, the Caribbean, Czech and Slovak

Next Generation
Protecting and promoting our heritage means taking time today to prepare the heritage professionals of tomorrow. In order to inspire and begin training future museums professionals, CHIN is often asked to give orientation sessions and presentations to post-secondary museology students. Meetings were organised in three Quebec and Ontario learning institutions this year.

Young Canada Works (YCW)
CHIN also participates in the delivery of the Young Canada Works At Building Careers In Heritage internship program. These internships provide ideal opportunities for graduates 30 years of age and under to build advanced career-related skills and abilities by participating in innovative heritage projects. This year, CHIN allocated a total of 18 YCW internships to CHIN members participating in executively produced online projects. A joint initiative of the Department of Canadian Heritage and Parks Canada, YCW is part of the Government of Canada’s Youth Employment Strategy (YES).

Professional Development

Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia Federation of Nova Scotian Heritage
Roundtable: “Heritage Conversations:
Community Memories”

Newfoundland
Museum Association of Newfoundland and Labrador
Atelier : “Digitizing Collections”

New Brunswick
Association Museums New Brunswick
Presentation: “Community Memories”

Nova Scotia
Workshop: “Copyright in a Digital Age - A Practical Workshop”

November: ______________________________
Minneapolis Museum Computer Network
Session: “The Next Generation of Virtual
Museums”

The way that people share, discuss, and interact with information has changed dramatically in the last two decades. In Canada, it is estimated that 71% of the public has access to the Internet from home, and this number is growing rapidly. This new environment pushes the boundaries of conventional learning and education, and presents the heritage community with an amazing opportunity to nurture sustained public engagement in heritage content.

Imagine a world where children and adults experience history and culture outside the boundaries of time or geography. The rapid evolution of enabling technologies, their adoption by the public, and the Government of Canada’s ongoing support of digital heritage is making this a reality. By rapidly embracing current technical trends, museums can provide society with a mirror of its past and present, and give people an opportunity to imagine and shape the future.

But this priority is about going beyond merely providing access to information. It’s about making people want to use the information. It is about active learning. Together, CHIN and its member institutions are creating digital educational spaces where teachers and learners can produce and exchange knowledge. Our primary target audience in this area consists of elementary and secondary students and their teachers.

CAPTAIN BERNIER’S EXPEDITION This year, four Canadian schools participated in Captain Bernier’s Expedition, the first Virtual Classroom project organized for the VMC. Approximately 100 students from Quebec, Ontario, and Newfoundland and Labrador met online to transform themselves into early 20th century explorers and create virtual tours across the Canadian Arctic. Coordinated by CHIN, the Communications Research Centre Canada (CRC), and the National Research Council Canada (NRC), this unique project was inspired by the Musée maritime du Québec’s virtual exhibit, Ilititaa... Bernier, His Men and the Inuit. Students teamed up over a live broadband Internet connection to design and present voyages that, like Bernier’s, brought Inuit and Francophone together.

Artefacts Canada
Artefacts Canada is a rich digital repository of authoritative heritage information fed from members’ collections. Today, Artefacts Canada contains 3,466,177 artefacts, of which, 407,259 are accompanied by an image. Over the past year, members contributed more than 149,115 new artefacts — 41,891 of which included images. This year, the Artefacts Canada Redevelopment project began with consultations involving heritage professionals. This process will ultimately lead to the establishment of the Canadian Museum Digital Repository. We have also been creating virtual communities of practice, using online tools, to facilitate collaborative research and best practices in documentation standards. These communities will play a key role in the development of a national data enhancement strategy for Artefacts Canada.

The Virtual Museum of Canada (VMC)
As technologies become less expensive and more accessible to the average person, memory institutions can enhance their knowledge services through informal, self-service electronic learning tools. The VMC stands at the forefront of this type of learning innovation. This year, we have been conducting internal consultations to build the ‘next generation’ of the VMC. In doing so, we are shifting the focus of the VMC beyond content delivery to communications delivery characterized by a fuller understanding of users, their needs, how they learn, and the context of their online behaviours. The VMC’s exciting virtual exhibits, engaging interactive games, and other robust content will continue to evolve, offering heritage institutions a stimulating platform in which to present their collections to a global audience.

Collaboration with Library and Archives Canada
One of our goals is to provide a single point of access to the content available not only from museums but also Library and Archives Canada, in an online educational space. This is both a learning strategy and a long-term content preservation strategy. To this end, we have been laying the groundwork for a more holistic access to resources in museums, library and archives.

Content Statistics
• Exhibits & games: 300 exhibits, 144 games, 160 community memories
• Images: 407,259
• Educational Resources: 770
• Museums presented: 2,757
• Events and activities: 587

VMC INVESTMENT AND COMMUNITY MEMORIES PROGRAMS — EXHIBITS LAUNCHED IN 2004-2005

Canadian heritage is a rich mosaic of cultures, stories, languages, and ways of life. Public engagement and participation in this diverse heritage requires easy access to meaningful and relevant information. Our goal is to collaborate with member institutions and international heritage institutions to give a voice to diversity and test new technologies.

To further increase public engagement, better understand users, and stay on top of new trends and technologies, we have created a Research and Business Intelligence (RBI) work unit. This group will help improve the way information is managed; increase benefits to those who create, disseminate, and use knowledge; and capitalize on business opportunities.

CHIN has been analyzing usage and engagement patterns on the VMC. This research has led us to strengthen our focus on audience issues like engagement, learning, meaning-making, contexts and personalization. In addition to their intrinsic value as cultural tools, many of our exhibits also help CHIN learn—and, in turn, support members’ learning—about processes, standards, and best practices for building high-quality online heritage exhibits.

KEY ACTIVITIES AND PROJECTS

2004 Survey of Visitors to Museums’
Web Space and Physical Space
CHIN and its members are recognized for their innovative research on how audiences use digital heritage information. This year, for instance, CHIN’s 2004 Survey of Visitors to Museums’Web Space and Physical Space, developed with Statistics Canada and completed in collaboration with the Canadian museum community, helped heritage professionals better understand why people visit museums’ Web spaces, and how these visits are linked to visits to the museums’ physical spaces.

Online Visitor Survey
This VMC survey was conducted in order to help us learn more about our audience, including their socio-demographic characteristics, the types of content they would like to see, whether or not it was their first visit, and whether they would return. British Columbia Directory Project Following the model of CHIN’s collaboration with the Canadian Museums Association (CMA), this collaboration between CHIN and the British Columbia Museums Association (BCMA) allows users to access and update information on museums, events, and job postings from either the BCMA or CHIN Web sites (VMC ‘Find a Museum/Event’). This pilot project will serve as a model for collaboration with other provincial museums associations to share data and create provincial views.

Cosmic Quest
Cosmic Quest is a new international VMC exhibit launched this year. Produced in collaboration with many Canadian and international partners, it offers users the opportunity to interact with information on celestial bodies, supplemented with legends, interpretations and artwork from various indigenous cultures around the world. A particulary engaging feature of this exhibit is the Pocket Astronomer tool, which lets cellular telephone users with Web access identify constellations in the sky. Thanks to this creative tool, amateur astronomers are able to receive instructions based on their actual position relative to the stars. Partners include the Montreal Planetarium; the Centre of the Universe at the Herzberg Institute for Astrophysics; the National Research Council of Canada; the Gemini Observatory in Hawaii; the Glenbow Museum; the Manitoba Museum; and Collections Australia Network (CAN) formerly the Australian Museums & Galleries Online (AMOL).

Valentine’s Day: Love and Romance Through the Ages
The Valentine’s Day: Love and Romance Through the Ages exhibit is our first online exhibit adapted for the needs of persons with visual or hearing impairments. It explores the history of Valentine’s Day, covering subjects such as the symbols of love, Valentine’s Day cards from different eras, medieval poetry, and the myths and rites associated with the day. This exhibit was created in collaboration with several museums throughout Canada and around the world, including the Maison Saint-Gabriel in Quebec; the Provincial Museum of Alberta; the Cupids Museum in Newfoundland and Labrador; the Fanshawe Pioneer Village in Ontario; the Musée Colby-Curtis in Quebec; the Doon Heritage Crossroads in Ontario; the St. Mary’s Museum in Ontario; the U.K.’s British Museum; and the Bailey-Matthews Shell Museum in Florida.

Created in response to an international UNESCO convention, our Network has evolved to become one of the world’s foremost centres of excellence around digital standards for heritage content, intellectual property issues, and other fundamental aspects of digital heritage. This expertise is the product of the Canadian museum community’s willingness over the last 30 years to contribute its collections and knowledge for the benefit of Canadian and world heritage. Today, CHIN and its members are not only involved, but are leading global thinking in digital heritage.

CHIN’s objective in the international arena is to increase the visibility of Canadian heritage and heritage institutions for the benefit of Canadian and international heritage professionals and the general public. The entire Network is strengthened when CHIN and its members build strong international connections.

KEY ACTIVITIES AND PROJECTS

The digital Cultural Content Forum (dCCF)
The digital Cultural Content Forum was established in 2001 to foster international information exchange among agencies engaged in the digitization and delivery of global digital cultural heritage. Its objectives are to foster relationships, develop shared knowledge, and promote creativity, innovation and excellence in the digital cultural content sector. dCCF consists of CHIN, the Museums Libraries and Archives Council (MLA) of the United Kingdom, and the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) from the United States.

CHIN acted as an organizing partner for the 2004 dCCF, along with Canadian Culture Online (CCO) and the eCulture Directorate, all on behalf of the Department of Canadian Heritage. The event was attended by 100 delegates involved in digital cultural content creation, curation, and preservation from Europe, America, Asia, Australia, and Africa. Together, we explored digital cultural content and technology; business models for museums and creative industries to sustain digital culture and heritage resources; policy and funding implications for public organizations; applications in learning and education; and understanding audiences and expert users.

HERITAGE COMMUNITY OUTREACH

Presence at Annual Association Gatherings

New CHIN E-Bulletin
In order to expand the breadth and pertinence of CHIN’s communications with the heritage community, CHIN has revamped its monthly newsletter. The new version, read by more than 4,000 museum professionals, contains rich content about best practices, case studies, profiles and interviews that highlight solutions to shared concerns, as well as intriguing initiatives developed by the network’s institutions.

Article Contributions:
Provincial Museums Association Newsletter
In an effort to make heritage sector workers and volunteers aware of local IT-related initiatives, CHIN provides all ten provincial museum associations, as well as the Yukon Historic and Museums Association (YHMA), with customized articles for inclusion in their respective bulletins. Our first series of articles focused on the experience of creating a Web site for the first time, while the second series focused on the experiences and challenges of institutions that have recently set up computerized management systems for their collections.

In September 2004, we introduced this focused and informative newsletter to more than 7,500 educational professionals. The Teachers e-Newsletter is a fantastic means by which to explore lesson plans, online educational games, and fun learning activities.

Web Positioning
This year, the VMC had content visible on a variety of search engines, including the two largest—Yahoo! and Google—as well as Kanoodle and Enhance for the Anglophone market, and NetworldMedia for the Francophone market. Search engine coverage generated more than 500,000 clicks to the VMC.

Reciprocal Linking
In the early months of 2005, each CHIN member who had contributed content to the VMC portal was invited to provide a reciprocal link from their content to the VMC, in order to entice search engine crawlers. This exercise was positively received by members, and the results should soon show the benefits of reciprocal linking.

ONGOING COMMUNICATIONS

Feedback Messages
CHIN communicates regularly with users of the CHIN Web site and the Virtual Museum of Canada. This year, we received 2,297 feedback messages from CHIN visitors, and 1,697 feedback messages from VMC visitors.

Members Help Desk
In addition to increased visibility and ongoing learning about digital heritage, CHIN members also benefit from free access to bilingual expertise. This year, our Help Desk processed a total of 3,147 calls ranging from technical support for creating a Community Memories exhibit to general inquiries about CHIN membership benefits.