Plans for collaborative agricultural information and outreach system take shape in the USA

Major agricultural information organisations and networks in the USA have set up a planning group to establish a 'Leadership Council on Agricultural Information and Outreach'. The idea is that the Council will develop a national vision and plan for an agricultural information and education system that is based on collaboration between the agricultural library/information and outreach/extension communities. Such a collaboration could become the basis for a more broad-based national, and even international, agricultural information and educational system involving both the library and extension communities.

It would bring together expertise of AGNIC, USAIN, NAL, and the e-Extension initiative of the US Cooperative Extension services (of the US states and territories, land-grant universities, and the USDA).

At its May 2005 meetings, the planning group reviewed several reports covering best practices for collaboration, standards for interoperability, users of agricultural information and their information needs, and a draft 'national plan for agricultural information management and outreach'. The documents are all online.

Tags: agricultural information agricultural libraries extension usa