DCI Project

Digital Content Infrastructure Project
 
The Digital Content Infrastructure for the Human and Social Sciences (DCI) project, launched in 2005, supports the development of a new knowledge infrastructure for social sciences and humanities research.
 
This initiative is an expansion of an already successful CRKN program, the Canadian National Site Licensing Project (LINK), which provides Canadian researchers with access to international scholarly publications in science, technology and medicine.
 
DCI represents one of the most significant contributions to humanities and social sciences research in Canada in the last 40 years.
 
The DCI project objectives are threefold:
  • To enable interdisciplinary and innovative research in Canada through systematic, coordinated and national access to the best of global knowledge in the humanities and social sciences
  • To secure durable rights and equitable access to a cohesive portfolio of digital content, in multiple languages and formats, from domestic and international publishing sources
  • To implement access to a broad and high-impact suite of content resources necessary to accelerate research in the social sciences and humanities
 
This project enables Canadian universities to advance research in areas such as aboriginal studies, communications, multiculturalism, economics, sustainable development, law, business and education. All content acquired or licensed under DCI is available to the 67 participating universities.
 
Facts and figures
  • $19.1 million awarded by the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI)
  • $28.6 million in contributions from nine provincial governments and 67 universities across Canada
  • Over 50% of academic researchers and students in Canada are engaged in the social sciences and humanities
  • 14 major research collections now available for over 850,000 researchers and graduate students
 
The first three-year government funded phase of the project was implemented in 2008 through 2010. Under the agreement, a three-year sustainability phase follows funded through member institutions.