This is urgent and important work. Difficult work! And work that requires that we find new ways to collaborate, form partnerships, engaging the public and develop our global network of ideas, resources and expertise. This job requires something new. The centerpiece of the Smithsonians Web and new media strategy is the creation of the Smithsonian Commons – a new part of our digital presence dedicated to stimulating learning, creation and innovation through open access to Smithsonian research, collections and communities.
This project is just beginning, and depending on who you are and how much you follow digital culture, the idea of a digital commons, let alone an institutional approach based on building a, can be difficult to understand. What is the commons? What will it look like and do? How will it help us to achieve our goals? What needs to change in order to do this?
To understand and deal with these issues we decided to build a prototype in the form of four animated vignettes — four stories to show the attributes and benefits of the Smithsonian Commons as seen through the eyes of our users. We built a prototype through a rapid process of research and development in winter, and in the months since then I have been meeting with colleagues inside and outside the Smithsonian Institution to understand what Commons does to people and how to move it forward.
We think there are four things that, together, will make the Smithsonian Commons a unique and powerful tool. The Smithsonian Commons becomes large, more searchable, shareable, and free.
Large
Anyone in the world can get access to the entire Smithsonian, including access to deep collections and vitality, curiosity and creativity of our staff, visitors, partners and our extended global society. The Smithsonian appears in the middle of an amazing network of ideas, collections and people.
Go to find
Vast and findability go hand in hand. Vastness of the Smithsonian can be detected because the search, navigation, and overall user experience design allows people to find the content they are interested in, as they expect to find it, including recommendations and comments of staff and visitors, external websites and social networks.
Divisible
Sharing is the basis for collaboration and learning. Smithsonian effect can be strengthened greatly if what we have and what we do is easy to share. The Smithsonian Commons will encourage use and re-use for work and pleasure, in social networks, on mobile devices and in the classroom, workshop and laboratory.
Free
The Smithsonian is based on the idea that the tools of discovery and knowledge creation should be available to all. The Smithsonian's lower House will be built on the premise that free, high-quality resources will spread further and create more opportunities for discovery and creation than those who are restricted by unnecessary fees and licenses. Free does not necessarily mean unprofitable: a popular and thriving Smithsonian Commons, built with revenue generation in mind, will open new business opportunities and drive increased traffic to our core e-commerce and membership offerings.
From the feedback we have received so far, it appears to "large, more searchable, shareable, and free" resonates with people's expectations for the Smithsonian in the digital age. Commons concept seems also successfully embodies many of the same goals and values articulated in the Smithsonian's Web and new media strategy:
the importance of Search, findability and citizenship over the institution's Smithsonian websitesthe huge thirst for trusted content and expertisethe benefits to gain by balancing expert opinion with crowdsourcing and user generated contentthe potential of the Smithsonian as a platform for knowledge creation, innovation and learningAt this point in the process, we would love to get more feedback from outside the Department to verify or adjust our assumptions, figuring out what we've been missing, and learn what you want to emphasize. Do you want to see the Smithsonian build a commons? What would you find there? What should we do first? How the Smithsonian Commons help you succeed in your business, for pleasure, or in your lifelong learning journey?