Digital Cultural Designer: An introduction to Linked Open Data

READING, U.K. - Aug. 1, 2022 - PRLog -- Digitial Cultural Designer (DCD) is an Erasmus + project funded by the European Commission which seeks to extend and develop the digital skills and competences of young people. Specifically, it aims to introduce young adults to the concept of Linked Open Data so that it becomes more easily accessible and truly open to young people. Linked Open Data is Open Data (data that is freely available on the Internet for anyone to download, modify, and distribute) which is interlinked to other Open Data. Linked Open Data makes it possible to easily find different representations of the same content on the web and to browse through complex data easily and efficiently.

Centred around the development of innovative tools for young adults, the DCD project launched in the last quarter of 2020 and will complete in November this year. The project is being undertaken by a consortium of six organizations from six different European countries. At the core of the consortium is Eurospeak Language School, a UK-based institution which has served as the main project coordinator and overseen the development and implementation of all project activities. The remaining partners are based in Italy, Lithuania, Iceland, Cyprus, and Slovenia.

The partnership is currently working on the development of two cutting-edge products designed to introduce young adults to the concept of Linked Open Data. The first of these products is a handbook which provides an introduction to the topics of the project. It presents the concepts of Digital Culture and Linked Open Data, exploring how they have changed during recent decades and considering their impact on the job market. The handbook unfolds over seven chapters, touching on topics such as the evolution of Digital Culture and Linked Open Data, youth employment and Digital Culture occupations, effective ways to enhance youth digital awareness, and tools and digital resources among others. The handbook was released in September 2021 and is currently available on the project's website (see details below).

The second product is a curriculum for training courses designed for museums, libraries, and other cultural institutions. This curriculum is grounded around the goal of increasing knowledge and abilities in using Linked Open Data for innovation in cultural services and experiences. The curriculum is currently in the development phase and is expected to be released in September 2022.

It is hoped that this project will ultimately lead towards more and better use of Linked Open Data and, in turn, empower young people to become the digital leaders of tomorrow. If you would like to find out more about this project, please visit our website at https://dcd-erasmus.site/. You can also follow us on Facebook at facebook.com/DigitalCulturalDesigner to stay up-to-date with the latest developments in the project!