EarthCube Governance Framework: A Proposal to the Community - Documentation, Research, and Recommendations

EarthCube, established by the National Science Foundation (NSF), is envisioned to transform the conduct of research through the development of community-guided cyberinfrastructure for the Geosciences. EarthCube is intended to create a networked, knowledge management system that integrates Earth system and human dimensions data in an open, transparent, and inclusive manner. In order to achieve this vision, EarthCube requires broad community participation in concept, framework, and implementation, and must not be hindered by rigid preconceptions such as assuming one particular management or organizational structure. If successful, EarthCube may be a prototype for development of similar systems across other domain sciences as part of the NSF Cyberinfrastructure for the 21st Century (CIF21) initiative and related efforts nationally and internationally. During the spring of 2012, NSF merged several governance-related Expressions of Interest into a single Governance Working Group, led by the Governance Steering Committee, with connections to a broad network forum of individuals and organizations known as the Governance Forum. The governance research review and community engagement efforts by this group culminated in a Governance Roadmap delivered to the NSF-sponsored June charrette (community event). The Governance Roadmap was the product of six months of research on governance theory and models, historical infrastructure case studies, and community feedback and engagement. Based on our findings from the research review and from community engagement, we the crafted following definition of governance: “Governance refers to the processes, structure and organizational elements that determine, within an organization or system of organizations, how power is exercised, how stakeholders have their say, how decisions are made, and how decision makers are held accountable.”Documents in the AZGS Documents Repository collection are made available by the Arizona Geological Survey (AZGS) and the University Libraries at the University of Arizona. For more information about items in this collection, please contact [email protected]

EarthCube Governance Roadmap Documentation, Research, and Recommendations v. 2.0

EarthCube is a process established to transform the conduct of research through the development of community-guided cyberinfrastructure. Specifically, EarthCube is attempting to integrate data and information knowledge management across the Geosciences; providing capabilities that permit scientists to conduct research in a more productive way, integrating their work with data from other agencies as well as international partners. Thus, EarthCube aims to create a knowledge management system and infrastructure that integrates all Earth system and human dimensions data in an open, transparent, and inclusive manner. EarthCube requires broad community participation in concept, framework, and implementation, and must not be hindered by rigid preconceptions. We were tasked with creating a roadmap for the future governance of EarthCube. This paper provides three complete units for accomplishing this. Part 1 – the Roadmap – provides action items and a timeline for developing and implementing a governance framework. Part 2 – the Roadmap Documentation – provides insight into the ten guidance points presented by the National Science Foundation (NSF) at the onset of this project. Part 3 – provides a complete summary of the research and community outreach conducted to produce parts 1 and 2.Documents in the AZGS Document Repository collection are made available by the Arizona Geological Survey (AZGS) and the University Libraries at the University of Arizona. For more information about items in this collection, please contact [email protected]

EarthCube Governance Roadmap Documentation, Research, and Recommendations v. 2.0

EarthCube is a process established to transform the conduct of research through the development of community-guided cyberinfrastructure. Specifically, EarthCube is attempting to integrate data and information knowledge management across the Geosciences; providing capabilities that permit scientists to conduct research in a more productive way, integrating their work with data from other agencies as well as international partners. Thus, EarthCube aims to create a knowledge management system and infrastructure that integrates all Earth system and human dimensions data in an open, transparent, and inclusive manner. EarthCube requires broad community participation in concept, framework, and implementation, and must not be hindered by rigid preconceptions. We were tasked with creating a roadmap for the future governance of EarthCube. This paper provides three complete units for accomplishing this. Part 1 – the Roadmap – provides action items and a timeline for developing and implementing a governance framework. Part 2 – the Roadmap Documentation – provides insight into the ten guidance points presented by the National Science Foundation (NSF) at the onset of this project. Part 3 – provides a complete summary of the research and community outreach conducted to produce parts 1 and 2.Documents in the AZGS Documents Repository collection are made available by the Arizona Geological Survey (AZGS) and the University Libraries at the University of Arizona. For more information about items in this collection, please contact [email protected])

EarthCube Governance Framework: A Proposal to the Community - Documentation, Research, and Recommendations

EarthCube, established by the National Science Foundation (NSF), is envisioned to transform the conduct of research through the development of community-guided cyberinfrastructure for the Geosciences. EarthCube is intended to create a networked, knowledge management system that integrates Earth system and human dimensions data in an open, transparent, and inclusive manner. In order to achieve this vision, EarthCube requires broad community participation in concept, framework, and implementation, and must not be hindered by rigid preconceptions such as assuming one particular management or organizational structure. If successful, EarthCube may be a prototype for development of similar systems across other domain sciences as part of the NSF Cyberinfrastructure for the 21st Century (CIF21) initiative and related efforts nationally and internationally. During the spring of 2012, NSF merged several governance-related Expressions of Interest into a single Governance Working Group, led by the Governance Steering Committee, with connections to a broad network forum of individuals and organizations known as the Governance Forum. The governance research review and community engagement efforts by this group culminated in a Governance Roadmap delivered to the NSF-sponsored June charrette (community event). The Governance Roadmap was the product of six months of research on governance theory and models, historical infrastructure case studies, and community feedback and engagement. Based on our findings from the research review and from community engagement, we the crafted following definition of governance: “Governance refers to the processes, structure and organizational elements that determine, within an organization or system of organizations, how power is exercised, how stakeholders have their say, how decisions are made, and how decision makers are held accountable.”Documents in the AZGS Document Repository collection are made available by the Arizona Geological Survey (AZGS) and the University Libraries at the University of Arizona. For more information about items in this collection, please contact [email protected]

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Your input is solicited to produce a new, comprehensive, and openly accessible catalog of paleogeoscience resources, including databases, sample repositories, and shared software. Imagine a world where the global community of Earth scientists is well-connected, where resources such as data, software, sample repositories, journal articles, and social networking combine efficiently to accelerate the pace of discovery, where the infrastructure enables new approaches, where the time needed to manage data is reduced enabling more time to do science. This is the world envisioned by EarthCube, a US National Science Foundation sponsored longterm effort to develop cyberinfrastructure, bridge disciplines, and unlock the power o