OurDigitalWorld will be partnering with SOLS to conduct a survey on the state of digitization activities in public libraries across Ontario. We’re undertaking this research in light of the Ontario Culture Strategy goal to promote cultural engagement and inclusion, and the National Heritage Digitization Strategy goals based on medium and creation date. Continue reading Digitization in Ontario Public Libraries
Ontario’s Multicultural History – and an update on our MCC project
With the anniversary of Agnes Macphail’s birthday coming up this Saturday (she was born on March 24th, 1890) we thought we would share some of our work from the Multicultural Community Capacity Grant project we’ve been working on.
Our MCC project is designed to highlight and elevate the stories of Ontarians we don’t hear enough about. We decided to focus on women’s history, and the histories of black and Japanese Ontarians. Continue reading Ontario’s Multicultural History – and an update on our MCC project
We’ll be at the 2018 Creative Commons Summit
We’re excited to be presenting at the Creative Commons Global Summit next month, happening once again in downtown Toronto. It’s an excellent opportunity for heritage workers and copyright enthusiasts in the Ontario area to have inspirational discussions with like-minded people from around the world! Continue reading We’ll be at the 2018 Creative Commons Summit
VITA 6 Design Tips and Tricks Webinar Tomorrow!
Tomorrow, Wednesday February 7th at noon, join us for a free webinar to talk about front-end changes in VITA 6, and how to style your platform.
Continue reading VITA 6 Design Tips and Tricks Webinar Tomorrow!
VITA 6 is here!
Our team has upgraded the platform and moved all your content and site settings over to the newest version of VITA. Lots of changes are behind-the-scenes – you’ll notice a faster and easier VITA without having to learn anything new. Continue reading VITA 6 is here!
Lady Macdonald’s Diary: Some Highlights
Our collaborators at Library and Archives Canada have published some findings from the completed transcription of Lady Macdonald’s diary. Student Ayla Maud wrote a short biography and summary of some of the major news stories Lady Macdonald witnessed firsthand:
Our MCC work is getting started!

Last month, we let you know that we had gotten an Ontario Multicultural Community Capacity Grant (which we’re abbreviating as the MCC project), funding provided by the Government of Ontario.
Because we’re developing educational resources for Ontario students in conjunction with a wide variety of experts and feedback, we want to document our progress on this project as we go along. You’ll see regular MCC update posts on this blog for the next few months.
OurDigitalWorld is the recipient of an Ontario Multicultural Community Capacity Grant

OurDigitalWorld is pleased to announce funding from the Government of Ontario Ministry of Citizenship and Immigration through their Multicultural Community Capacity Grant program. OurDigitalWorld, through its award-winning VITA Digital Toolkit and its one-stop search portal OurOntario.ca, is steward to more than 2 million pieces of digital cultural heritage from Ontario. This funding will support our development of educational tools to promote the history of diverse and underrepresented Ontarians and their contributions to the social and cultural life of the province. These stories, sometimes painful, are part of our heritage.
Our slides from the Creative Commons Canada call
Earlier this week we had a guest spot on the Creative Commons Canada conference call, a monthly-ish event that allows open enthusiasts and practitioners to share their stories. We filled in the Canadian crew on some of the potential activities of the Open GLAM platform and discussed ways in which we can help libraries, archives, and heritage organizations across the country share more of their collections. Continue reading Our slides from the Creative Commons Canada call
The Ontario Historical Society Honours and Awards nominations are now open!
The Ontario Historical Society has opened up nominations rewarding local heroes in heritage and culture:
In 1967, The Ontario Historical Society established an awards program to honour individuals and organizations who have contributed significantly to the preservation and promotion of Ontario’s heritage. Over the years, new awards have been instituted; sixteen are now offered. The Awards program is intended both to acknowledge the work of outstanding individuals and organizations, and to raise public awareness of Ontario’s history and the people who work to preserve and interpret it.
All recipients of awards receive recognition in subsequent publicity, and a framed certificate accompanied by a copy of the citation acknowledging their contribution to the heritage community.
Categories include:
Carnochan Award: Presented to an individual who has contributed many years of service to the heritage community.
President’s Award: Honouring a corporation, business or individual that has contributed to heritage conservation in the recent past.
Scadding Award of Excellence: Awarded to a historical society or heritage group that has made an outstanding contribution to the field of history.
Joseph Brant Award: Honouring the best book on multicultural history in Ontario, published in the past three years.
Fred Landon Award: Honouring the best book on local or regional history in Ontario, published in the past three years.
Alison Prentice Award: Honouring the best book on women’s history in Ontario, published in the past three years.
Check out all the award categories and get your nominations ready!