[with apologies for cross-posting]

OTTAWA, June 21 - The Canadian National Site Licensing Project
(CNSLP) has won the 2002 Innovation Achievement Award of the Canadian
Association of College and University Libraries (CACUL), a division of
the
Canadian Library Association (CLA).

The award is sponsored by the SIRSI Corporation and recognizes
academic
libraries, which, through innovation in ongoing programs/services or in
a
special event/project, have contributed to the advancement of academic
librarianship and library development.

CACUL President, E. Jane Philipps, Head, Engineering and Science
Library
Douglas Library, Queen's University, said that the Canadian National
Site
Licensing Project demonstrates the five essential criteria of the
Innovation
Achievement award: innovation, utility, long-term impact, ambition and
currency. According to Philipps, "CNSLP is a ground-breaking digital
library
initiative that provides a solution to the growing demand for
efficient
purchase, storage, management and dissemination of scholarly
information in
electronic form. A major achievement of this project is establishment
of a
model license agreement for use with publishers of digital content, one
that
is governed by Canadian law, and secures generous and across-the-board
rights
for all bona fide academic users and usage of the content. This
inclusive
licensing model, along with the innovative cost-sharing approach, has
been
widely acclaimed in Canada and abroad."

CNSLP Executive Director Deb deBruijn accepted the award on behalf of
the
project's 64 member libraries at a ceremony held in conjunction with
the CACUL
Annual General Meeting in Halifax on Friday, June 21, 2002. deBruijn
noted
that " the unprecedented collaboration of universities working across
political jurisdictions and diverse programs coast to coast is a major
factor
in CNSLP's success."

The Chair of the national CNSLP Steering Committee is Dr. Howard
Alper,
Vice-Rector (Research) at the University of Ottawa. According to Alper,
" The
CACUL award recognizes the significant contribution that CNSLP has made
in
strengthening universities' capacity for research and innovation.
CNSLP
provides equitable access to leading edge resources that underpin
world-class
research and allow Canadian researchers to remain internationally
competitive."

About CNSLP: The CNSLP is a consortium of 64 university libraries
aimed
at bolstering the research and innovation capacity of Canada's
universities.
CNSLP's mission is to expand the universe of digital research
information to
Canada's academic research community, through the co-ordinated services
and
expertise of academic libraries. The project offers an innovative model
for
licensing -on a national scale- electronic versions of scholarly
publication
and research databases in science, engineering, health and
environmental
disciplines. The CNSLP is governed by a national Steering Committee
representing university libraries, administrators, researchers and
academic
associations.

CNSLP has received pilot funding from the Canada Foundation for
Innovation, member universities, provincial governments, and the
Atlantic
Canada Opportunities Agency .Its administrative centre is located at
the
University of Ottawa, Canada's largest bilingual university. More
information
about the CNSLP is available at: http://www.uottawa.ca/library/cnslp/.


About CACUL: The Canadian Association of College and University
Libraries
(CACUL) exists to develop high standards of librarianship and of
library and
information services, promoting these in institutions of
post-secondary
education. CACUL is a division of the Canadian Library Association,
the
national English language association representing the interests of all
types
of libraries and library workers. More information about CACUL and its
programs is available at: http://www.cla.ca/divisions/CACUL/cacul.htm

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For further information: Media Contact: Leacy O'Callaghan-O'Brien,
Communications Director, CNSLP, Phone: (613) 562-5800, x3712, Fax:
(613) 562-5195, E-mail: [log in to unmask]


Canadian Library Association
328 Frank Street
Ottawa, Ontario
CANADA K2P 0X8
(613) 232-9625; Fax: (613) 563-9895
http://www.cla.ca