2026
CRKN Virtual Conference: Creative Collaborations, Collective Momentum
Virtual
May 12 - 14, 2026
Building Scholaris Together: Reflections from Developing a Shared Repository Service through an Early Adopter Program and a Network of Experts
Tuesday May 12, 2026
From 4:00pm to 4:30pm
Scholaris is a new national opt-in shared repository service that aims to support the open discovery and preservation of Canadian scholarship by providing scalable infrastructure and support for institutional repository teams. The shared technical infrastructure, built on the DSpace platform, is hosted and managed by Scholars Portal.
In addition to the many technical considerations of service development, community building is also an essential component to creating a collaborative, forward-thinking service that meets the needs of subscribing institutions and supports alignment with open access initiatives and best practices.
Recognizing the importance of developing the technical and community infrastructure in tandem, a two-year Early Adopter Program was launched in Spring 2024 to migrate participating institutions to the Scholaris infrastructure, identify resource requirements, and establish a model for service delivery and support. Complementing the Early Adopter Program, three Scholaris Network of Expert Groups were convened to provide recommendations on key areas of repository management: metadata and discovery, electronic theses and dissertations, and digital preservation. Taken together, these approaches have proven to be effective mechanisms for building a community-informed service model and fostering a collaborative approach to address shared areas of interest and leverage existing expertise.
This presentation will provide highlights from the Early Adopter Program and Network of Expert Groups and insights from two years of close collaboration with participating members. We will conclude by looking at how these dual approaches have shaped the ongoing development of Scholaris and informed future directions for the Canadian repository community.
Speakers
Digital Projects Librarian - Repositories and Digital Preservation
University of Calgary