A moment of reflection of for the #OpenGLAM community: I took the data collected by @CultureDoug & @AndeeWallace and visualized it on a map. A pattern that we already knew becomes very clear. The concept of openness makes practical sense in some parts of the world, but not others

There are some caveats: the data reflects the institutions that the survey reached. There are definitely GLAM institutions with open policies that we don't know of.

Also, a choropleth map doesn't reflect the population density, or population prosperity, so read this map with care.

Don't forget that collections in GLAM institutions in Europe especially are often looted from places they colonized earlier. Don't forget that doing open doesn't equal repatriation (but it's often a step in the right direction).

So our task becomes, how do we actively assist those institutions that we couldn't reach, in order to connect to the global network? What does mutual learning look like between, say the National Library of Lebanon, and the British Library?

As always, don't forget to follow @OpenGLAM and read the texts on the blog: https://medium.com/open-glam