MMI Strategic Plan Draft 1/19/07
Note: This very quick draft includes goals and objectives
extrapolated from website, recent NSF proposal, and strategies
(latter from the strategy.txt document from the Oct. Strategic
Planning meeting only).
Include also:
Section on context of MMI (see doc to Tony from a couple of
years ago??)
Need more detail on strategy level
Once drafted, put in spreadsheet to track progress
Vision
To be drafted…
Mission Statement
The mission of the MMI is to promote the exchange, integration
and use of marine data through enhanced data publishing,
discovery, documentation and accessibility.
Goals, Objectives, and Strategies
Summary of Goals
This strategic plan includes the following three
inter-dependent goals:
 Develop, lead, and maintain the marine metadata
community;
 Enhance interoperability between marine and
marine-related data systems, serving scientists
internationally; and
 Develop and maintain central access point for
information about marine metadata, tools, and
technologies.
More here…
Goal 1 Develop, lead, and maintain the marine metadata
community.
Description
To be drafted…
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Objective 1.1 Entrain additional members in MMI,
particularly those from non-represented or underrepresented groups.
Include timeline with milestones here…
Include funding sources (actual and
potential) here…
Strategy 1.1.1 Ongoing, MMI web team to
develop and maintain website…
Strategy 1.1.2 Ongoing, MMI committees and
teams to give presentations…. Targets:
IEEE, oceanography groups, semantic
technology groups
Strategy 1.1.3. Ongoing, MMI committees and
teams to sponsor special sessions at
conferences.
Strategy 1.1.4. Ongoing, MMI committees and
teams to publish papers
Strategy 1.1.5. Ongoing, MMI technical
teams to offer workshops or training
classes, particularly leveraging existing
conferences, etc.
Strategy 1.1.6. By March, 2008, MMI SC to
develop Science Advisory Panel by
consolidating discussions on scientists’
motivations, including a proposed charge to
the SAP, enhancing SAP membership, and
developing a further plan.
Objective 1.2. Maintain and Enhance Visibility
of MMI, as the authoritative entity on marine
metadata.
Include timeline with milestones here…
Include funding sources (actual and
potential) here…
Strategy 1.2.1 By the end of 2008, MMI SC
will formalize MMI as an institution, if
appropriate.
Strategy 1.2.2. By [date], MMI SC to develop
a brand for MMI’s services (highlight
vocabularies) to ensure MMI’s contribution
is known.
Strategy 1.2.3. By [date], MMI SC to
establish an “MMI seal of approval” process.
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The MMI SC will need to agree on the
objectives of the seal of approval, select
domains, create criteria, and consider
multiple levels of approval.
Objective 1.3 Partner with additional public and
private organizations to further the needs of the
marine metadata community.
Include timeline with milestones here…
Include funding sources (actual and
potential) here…
Strategy 1.3.1 By January, 2007, MMI SC to
generate list of potential partners.
List to date: JOI, GEOSS, LockheedMartin, Raytheon, Google, NSF, NOAA
Strategy 1.3.2 Ongoing, MMI to market
community effort to move forward
specifications by holding workshops,
participating on committees, securing
additional funding for building partnerships
(e.g., NSF Partnerships for Innovation)
Objective 1.4 Advocate the development of new
technologies, and the coordination of existing
technologies, for enhancing the utility of marine
metadata.
Include timeline with milestones here…
Include funding sources (actual and
potential) here…
Strategy 1.4.1. Ongoing, MMI SC to
encourage funding agencies to fund the
development of new technologies.
Strategy 1.4.2. Ongoing, MMI Technical Team
to lead membership in brainstorming about
new technologies via website, workshops,
etc.
Strategy 1.4.3. By the end of 2007, MMI
Technical Team and partners to develop a
sensor agreement with manufacturers
Objective 1.5. Initiate easy metadata reporting
program (to NSF and other funding agencies).
Strategy 1.5.1. MMI Technical Team to
identify applicable requirements, evaluate
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clearinghouse demands, determine approach and
execute.
Objective 1.6.
Enhance the educational component
of MMI.
Include timeline with milestones here…
Include funding sources (actual and
potential) here…
Strategy 1.6.1. Ongoing, MMI Technical teams
to enhance and/or develop educational
components of the MMI website and materials.
Strategy 1.6.2. Ongoing, MMI Technical team
to develop recruiting messages, make course
suggestions, identify educational programs
that may be of interest.
Strategy 1.6.3. Ongoing, MMI SC to offer
student stipends.
Strategy 1.6.4. Ongoing, MMI Technical
Teams to develop relevant university-level
curriculum that merges earth and information
sciences.
Objective 1.7. Help match jobs to job seekers in
the field.
Include timeline with milestones here…
Include funding sources (actual and
potential) here…
Strategy 1.7.1. Ongoing, MMI Web Team to
post open positions on the MMI website.
Goal 2 Enhance interoperability between marine and
marine-related data systems, serving scientists
internationally.
Description:
To be drafted…
Objective 2.1 Develop science use cases from
initial question to product.
Include timeline with milestones here…
Include funding sources (actual and
potential) here…
Strategies…
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Objective 2.2. Develop infrastructure use
case(s).
Strategy 2.2.1 By [date], MMI Technical
Team to develop work area on website,
document the goal of the activity, talk to
relevant parties, and draft the use case.
Objective 2.3. Map existing
vocabularies/ontologies, and develop additional
ones when necessary.
Include timeline with milestones here…
Include funding sources (actual and
potential) here…
Strategy 2.3.1. Ongoing, MMI to focus on
vocabularies for sensors and platforms in
the oceanographic realm.
Strategy 2.3.2. By the end of 2008, MMI
Technical teams to evolve vocabularies
towards true ontologies with definitions and
structure.
Objective 2.4. Through a community process,
identify and develop protocols (data transport,
data structure), content standards, and others,
as needed. Development will occur on an as needed
basis.
Strategy 2.4.1. Begin with implementing
recommendations from SMI workshop: MMI
Technical Team, MMI SMI workshop
participants, and partners to implement
sensor metadata interoperability action
items from the SMI workshop.
Action items:
Comparison matrix for sensor
metadata specifications
Specification for a vocabulary
solver interface ? Emailed john
1/12
URI specification for sensors and
platforms
Sensor data model
Sensor registries
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Objective 2.5 Refine focus/foci for
interoperability services, secure necessary
resources, and implement the services.
Include timeline with milestones here…
Include funding sources (actual and
potential) here…
Strategy 2.5.1. By February, 2007, MMI SC
and technical teams to identify the top 3
target groups for implementation services.
Strategy 2.5.2. Ongoing, MMI Technical teams
to pursue partnerships with groups currently
providing similar, operational, services in
other research areas and have them provide
ops staff, etc. (eg. uBio, GCMD)
Strategy 2.4.3. By the end of 2007, MMI SC
to secure funding for staff necessary to
implement the services.
Objective 2.6. Incorporate new and improved
technologies, as appropriate
Include timeline with milestones here…
Include funding sources (actual and
potential) here…
Strategy 2.6.1. Ongoing, MMI Technical Team,
SC, and advisory committees to develop (via
emails, telecon, and website) a list of
candidate technologies to incorporate in
MMI.
List to date: tagging, wiki-pedia,
Google following, agents, Semantic Web
Tools, library science tools (link via
vocabulary mapping).
Strategy 2.6.2. Ongoing, MMI Technical team
to coordinate with, or integrate with, other
ontology development efforts. Example list:
GEON, upper level ontologies, Protégé online
library of ontologies.
Strategy 2.6.3. Ongoing, MMI (who in MMI?)
to sponsor processes that leverage the
technology [not sure what this means??]
Objective 2.7. Enhance Technical Advisory Panel
Strategies here…
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Goal 3 Develop and maintain central access point for
information about marine metadata, tools, and
technologies.
Description:
To be drafted…
Objective 3.1 Maintain and improve the MMI
website
Include timeline with milestones here…
Include funding sources (actual and
potential) here…
Strategy 3.1.1 By [date], MMI web team to
engage the library science community by…
Strategy 3.1.2. Ongoing, MMI web team to
improve links back to the MMI site.
Strategy 3.1.3. By June, 2007, MMI web team
to hold contests on the following: MMI
elevator speech, explanation of why metadata
is necessary, t-shirt design, best science
use cases. Prizes could be t-shirt,
consultation, student stipend, etc.
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