Open data and information: opportunities & challenges for the records profession Annual Archives Lecture, Dept of Information Science, UNISA, Pretoria, 5 Nov 2015

This invited lecture considers some of the opportunities and challenges that the open data and information movement presents for records professionals – the role they can play in bringing our principles and practice to bear; the new knowledge and partnerships that they will need to develop in order to contribute; and the potential difference they might make. It begins with an examination of the concept of open data and information, its ideology, motivations and aspirations; moves on to examine some of the key challenges that open data presents in the digital world, and considesr the role of the records professional in this space. This leads to two key opportunities for the records profession and what records professionals will need to be if they are to grasp the opportunties and make a difference.