Data Rescue Houston to convene at Rice’s Fondren Library March 4

MEDIA ADVISORY

David Ruth
david@rice.edu
713-348-6327

Jeff Falk
jfalk@rice.edu
713-348-6775

Data Rescue Houston to convene at Rice’s Fondren Library March 4

HOUSTON – (Feb. 23, 2017) – Programmers, librarians, scientists, students, archivists, technologists and other volunteers will gather at Rice University’s Fondren Library March 4 for Data Rescue Houston, an event to identify, download and help preserve federal online data resources with the goal of protecting the public interest and ensuring the long-term accessibility of these resources.

Credit: shutterstock.com/Rice University

Co-hosted by Fondren Library, Rice’s Ken Kennedy Institute for Information Technology, Office of Information Technology and Center for Civic Leadership as well as University of Houston Libraries and Sketch City, the event is free and open to the public. The event has reached capacity, but those interested in participating can sign up for the wait list at https://datarescuehouston.wordpress.com.

What: Data Rescue Houston.

When: 9:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Saturday, March 4.

Where: Fondren Library, Kyle Morrow Room, 6100 Main St.

“The ultimate goal is to raise awareness of the importance of access to federal information and to preserve this information,” said Lisa Spiro, executive director of digital scholarship services at Fondren and one of the organizers of the event.

The event is part of a national effort led by Libraries Network, the Environmental Data and Governance Initiative and Data Refuge, a project being spearheaded by the library system and environmental humanities program at the University of Pennsylvania.

Fondren’s Kelley Center for Government Information, Data and Geospatial Services, which serves as a federal depository library for the 7th Congressional District of Texas (western Harris County), provides free and effective public access to government information, including patents and trademarks.

For more information and to sign up for the wait list, go to https://datarescuehouston.wordpress.com.

Members of the news media who want to attend should RSVP to Jeff Falk, associate director of national media relations at Rice, at jfalk@rice.edu or 713-348-6775.

For a map of Rice University’s campus with parking information, go to www.rice.edu/maps.

-30-

Follow Fondren Library via Twitter @FondrenLibrary.

Follow Rice News and Media Relations via Twitter @RiceUNews.