TEEAL
Encyclopedia
TEEAL is The Essential Electronic Agricultural Library. Launched in 1999, it is a self-contained agricultural research library with full-text articles and graphics of over 200 major journals. TEEAL is a project of Cornell University
's Albert R. Mann Library in cooperation with over 60 major scientific publishers, societies and index providers. Initial financial support has been provided by the Rockefeller Foundation
, and currently by other foundations and donors.
TEEAL was initially formed as a database
of citations, linking to articles stored on hundreds of CD-ROMs. In 1999, the TEEAL Project sold its first “Library in a Box” — 130 journals with 600,000 pages of articles, stored on 100 compact discs — to the University of Zimbabwe.
Now that local area network
s are more common in institutions and libraries in the developing world, LanTEEAL, the network-based variant of TEEAL, has been released to over 260 institutions.
Annual updates to journals in TEEAL are produced by Mann Library using revenue from sales of sets.
, Zimbabwe
in 1999 to introduce African institutions to TEEAL, conduct training workshops and help interested institutions in writing grants to purchase TEEAL sets. Since 1999, the TEEAL Africa Office has helped place TEEAL sets in Africa and trained over 800 librarians, information specialists, and researchers. The office has created a network of contacts at libraries and information centers at major agricultural universities and national agricultural research institutes throughout sub-Saharan Africa.
In 2005, the TEEAL Africa Office also began to organize training workshops for HINARI
, on behalf of the World Health Organization
. To reflect this wider mandate, the TEEAL Africa Office has established itself as the Information, Training and Outreach Centre for Africa (ITOCA), responsible now more broadly for support in digital information resources for education and research. ITOCA now has a primary office in South Africa
, with a branch office in Harare.
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=MiamiCaptionURL&_method=retrieve&_udi=B6W63-4HTV1F5-2&_image=fig1&_ba=1&_user=492137&_rdoc=1&_fmt=full&_orig=search&_cdi=6587&view=c&_acct=C000022719&_version=1&_urlVersion=0&_userid=492137&md5=291a5ad147bf971beb224f9186326391
The survey also yielded interesting insights into ongoing challenges that institutions face in making TEEAL widely available to users. 90 percent of users responded that they would use TEEAL more if they had better access. Data from the survey showed that use of TEEAL would increase dramatically if constraints, such as restricted hours of use, not enough computers and printers, and expensive printing charges, were addressed. Most TEEAL sets are housed in a library or information resource center.
The study further confirms that access to the Internet continues to be limited both on university campuses and at research institutes in Africa. Thus, until Internet technology is more widely available and affordable, web-based programs such as HINARI
and AGORA
need to be complemented with offline, easily accessible systems like TEEAL.
Cornell University
Cornell University is an Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York, United States. It is a private land-grant university, receiving annual funding from the State of New York for certain educational missions...
's Albert R. Mann Library in cooperation with over 60 major scientific publishers, societies and index providers. Initial financial support has been provided by the Rockefeller Foundation
Rockefeller Foundation
The Rockefeller Foundation is a prominent philanthropic organization and private foundation based at 420 Fifth Avenue, New York City. The preeminent institution established by the six-generation Rockefeller family, it was founded by John D. Rockefeller , along with his son John D. Rockefeller, Jr...
, and currently by other foundations and donors.
History
The idea for TEEAL arose in the 1980s, and was created by Wallace Olsen, former Senior Research Associate, and Jan Olsen, former Director, of Mann Library. During travels to developing countries, the Olsens saw underfunded and out-of-date journal collections. TEEAL was born in order to effect long-term improvements in food security and agricultural development by giving scientists better access to current research.TEEAL was initially formed as a database
Database
A database is an organized collection of data for one or more purposes, usually in digital form. The data are typically organized to model relevant aspects of reality , in a way that supports processes requiring this information...
of citations, linking to articles stored on hundreds of CD-ROMs. In 1999, the TEEAL Project sold its first “Library in a Box” — 130 journals with 600,000 pages of articles, stored on 100 compact discs — to the University of Zimbabwe.
Now that local area network
Local area network
A local area network is a computer network that interconnects computers in a limited area such as a home, school, computer laboratory, or office building...
s are more common in institutions and libraries in the developing world, LanTEEAL, the network-based variant of TEEAL, has been released to over 260 institutions.
Annual updates to journals in TEEAL are produced by Mann Library using revenue from sales of sets.
TEEAL Content
With over 200 journals from over 60 publishers, TEEAL contains articles on many subjects related to the agricultural sciences, including: agricultural economics, agricultural engineering, agronomy, crop and soil science, entomology, natural resources management, forestry, livestock management, nutrition and food science, plant pathology, rural development, sustainable agriculture, and veterinary medicine. A complete list of journals and publishers can be found on the TEEAL website.Outreach and Training
TEEAL sponsors much outreach and training. A two-person office was opened in HarareHarare
Harare before 1982 known as Salisbury) is the largest city and capital of Zimbabwe. It has an estimated population of 1,600,000, with 2,800,000 in its metropolitan area . Administratively, Harare is an independent city equivalent to a province. It is Zimbabwe's largest city and its...
, Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three...
in 1999 to introduce African institutions to TEEAL, conduct training workshops and help interested institutions in writing grants to purchase TEEAL sets. Since 1999, the TEEAL Africa Office has helped place TEEAL sets in Africa and trained over 800 librarians, information specialists, and researchers. The office has created a network of contacts at libraries and information centers at major agricultural universities and national agricultural research institutes throughout sub-Saharan Africa.
In 2005, the TEEAL Africa Office also began to organize training workshops for HINARI
HINARI
HINARI is the Health InterNetwork Access to Research Initiative. It was set up by the World Health Organization and major publishers to enable developing countries to access collections of biomedical and health literature. There are over 7000 journal titles available to health institutions in 109...
, on behalf of the World Health Organization
World Health Organization
The World Health Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations that acts as a coordinating authority on international public health. Established on 7 April 1948, with headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, the agency inherited the mandate and resources of its predecessor, the Health...
. To reflect this wider mandate, the TEEAL Africa Office has established itself as the Information, Training and Outreach Centre for Africa (ITOCA), responsible now more broadly for support in digital information resources for education and research. ITOCA now has a primary office in South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
, with a branch office in Harare.
2004 User Study
IN 2004, the TEEAL User Study was conducted by Mann Library, with funding support from the Rockefeller Foundation. It demonstrated quantitatively and qualitatively the value of improving researchers' and students' access to scientific literature. Results of the TEEAL user study indicate that TEEAL is successfully meeting its objectives. The survey data confirm the high value students and researchers place on access to current scientific literature and the positive role of TEEAL in addressing their literature needs. Students, educators, and researchers consider TEEAL to be very useful in their work, enhancing both their productivity and the quality of their work. The graphs linked below represent general satisfaction with TEEAL by users surveyed.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=MiamiCaptionURL&_method=retrieve&_udi=B6W63-4HTV1F5-2&_image=fig1&_ba=1&_user=492137&_rdoc=1&_fmt=full&_orig=search&_cdi=6587&view=c&_acct=C000022719&_version=1&_urlVersion=0&_userid=492137&md5=291a5ad147bf971beb224f9186326391
The survey also yielded interesting insights into ongoing challenges that institutions face in making TEEAL widely available to users. 90 percent of users responded that they would use TEEAL more if they had better access. Data from the survey showed that use of TEEAL would increase dramatically if constraints, such as restricted hours of use, not enough computers and printers, and expensive printing charges, were addressed. Most TEEAL sets are housed in a library or information resource center.
The study further confirms that access to the Internet continues to be limited both on university campuses and at research institutes in Africa. Thus, until Internet technology is more widely available and affordable, web-based programs such as HINARI
HINARI
HINARI is the Health InterNetwork Access to Research Initiative. It was set up by the World Health Organization and major publishers to enable developing countries to access collections of biomedical and health literature. There are over 7000 journal titles available to health institutions in 109...
and AGORA
AGORA
AGORA is the acronym for the Access to Global Online Research on Agriculture program. It was started by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations with a number of publishing partners to provide developing countries access to scientific information on food, agriculture,...
need to be complemented with offline, easily accessible systems like TEEAL.
Restrictions
TEEAL is available to public sector and not-for-profit educational and research organizations institutions in 116 of the lowest income countries (as listed in the World Bank's 1998-99 World Development Report) to support agricultural development. The cost of TEEAL is kept relatively low, compared to the cost of individual subscriptions to its journals. If subscribed to individually, the cost of the journals in TEEAL would be worth over $1 million US dollars.Related initiatives
- HINARIHINARIHINARI is the Health InterNetwork Access to Research Initiative. It was set up by the World Health Organization and major publishers to enable developing countries to access collections of biomedical and health literature. There are over 7000 journal titles available to health institutions in 109...
(Health InterNetwork Access to Research Initiative), launched in January 2002 and set up by the World Health OrganizationWorld Health OrganizationThe World Health Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations that acts as a coordinating authority on international public health. Established on 7 April 1948, with headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, the agency inherited the mandate and resources of its predecessor, the Health...
(WHO).
- AGORAAGORAAGORA is the acronym for the Access to Global Online Research on Agriculture program. It was started by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations with a number of publishing partners to provide developing countries access to scientific information on food, agriculture,...
(Access to Global Online Research in Agriculture), launched in October 2003 and is administered by Food and Agriculture OrganizationFood and Agriculture OrganizationThe Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations is a specialised agency of the United Nations that leads international efforts to defeat hunger. Serving both developed and developing countries, FAO acts as a neutral forum where all nations meet as equals to negotiate agreements and...
of the United Nations (FAO).
- OAREOareThere are at least four villages called Oare in England:*Oare, Berkshire, near Newbury*Oare Marshes, Kent, internationally important nature reserve near Faversham*Oare, Kent, near Faversham*Oare, Somerset, near Minehead*Oare, Wiltshire, near Marlborough...
(Online Access to Research in the Environment), launched in October 2006 and is coordinated by the United Nations Environment ProgrammeUnited Nations Environment ProgrammeThe United Nations Environment Programme coordinates United Nations environmental activities, assisting developing countries in implementing environmentally sound policies and practices. It was founded as a result of the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment in June 1972 and has its...
(UNEP)