ISN SERVICES

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INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS AND SECURITY
NETWORK Managing information, sharing knowledge
The ISN Knowledge Management System
Chris Pallaris ISN Chief Editor
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The ISNs Mission

• To promote global security and cooperation by
  collecting, managing, and sharing specialized
  information for the international relations and
  security community

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ISN A Service Provider to the IR Community

• Limited Area SearchEngine (ISN LASE)
• 9 Million Documents
• Search by
• Full Text Search
• Boolean Search
• Exact Phrase Search
• Backward Links Search
• Grouping of Results
• Multilingual
• ISN LASE Search Form

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ISN A Service Provider to the IR Community

• Facts on International Relationsand Security
  Trends (FIRST)
• Chronologies of Conflictsand Peacekeeping
  Activities
• Data on Arms Productionand Trade
• Lists of Holdings of Conventional and Nuclear
  Weapons
• Military Expenditure
• Information on Armed Forces

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Managing Information in the 21st Century

• The information revolution has changed the
  information needs of the IR practitioner
• The same revolution is encouraging the
  development of new intellectual skills and
  abilities
• The future belongs to those who can identify
  patterns and relationships in seemingly unrelated
  information
• We have to learn to accept and work with the
  chaos and complexity inherent in modern
  information flows

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Leading the Way in the IR Community

• The ISN is leading the way in
• Knowledge leadership championing a culture of
  creating and sharing knowledge and ideas
• Establishing a vision of closer collaboration
  between different academic disciplines and
  knowledge sectors
• Developing a first class ICT infrastructure to
  enable information sharing and communication  
• Encouraging a culture of continuous learning
  through e-learning and training seminars

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The ISN Knowledge Management System (ISN KMS)

• The ISN KMS is designed to
• Overcome the problems of traditional search
  engines
• Identify relationships between different branches
  of knowledge
• Give greater exposure to the research of partner
  organizations
• Present users with new ideas in academic and
  policy circles and place these ideas in their
  wider context
• Bring together the expertise of a diverse
  community of subject and region experts

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The ISN KMS Overview
Content Output

• Subject/Region specific search results
• Content specific results (news, reports, links)
• Organization specific results

Content Input

• Common cataloging and classification standards
  and guidelines
• Defined roles and responsibilities
• Electronic tools to support content contribution

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What is Faceted Classification?

• Faceted classification enables us to
• Reflect the multiple values of all contributed
  content, thus broadening its potential audience
• Make content shareable across a range of academic
  disciplines and services
• Accommodate new ideas and concepts as they enter
  the public realm
• Increase the chance of relevant information
  discovery

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Series/Collection What is Dispalyed
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Publication/Document What is Displayed?
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The Knowledge Cycle
Collect
Publish
Classify
Create
Knowledge Repository
Organize/ Store
Analyze
Use/Exploit
Share/ Disseminate
Gather
Access
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Join the ISN

• The benefits of joining our network include
• Greater exposure at no additional cost through
  KMS technology and software
• Full accreditation for any content/input provided
• The ability to communicate your ideas beyond your
  traditional user group, audience, or geographic
  locale
• Access to the ISNs existing partner network
  your ideas are channelled directly to their front
  door

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Content Sharing Partners

• Center for Security Studies (CSS)
• Comprehensive Risk Analysis and Management
  Network (CRN)
• Swiss Foreign and Security Policy Network (SSN)
• Parallel History Project on NATO and the Warsaw
  Pact (PHP)
• Bonn International Center for Conversion (BICC)
• The Atlantic Council of the United States
• Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue
• International Crisis Group
• Institute of Defence and Strategic Studies (IDSS)
• International Centre for Political Violenceand
  Terrorism Research (ICPVTR)
• Geneva Centre for Democratic Control of Armed
  Forces (DCAF)
• Geneva Centre for Security Policy (GCSP)
• Geneva International Centre for Humanitarian
  Demining (GICHD)

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Content Sharing Partners

• Columbia International Affairs Online (CIAO)
• The Henry L. Stimson Center
• Portuguese Institute for International
  Relationsand Security (IPRIS)
• Saferworld, UK
• Stockholm International Peace Research Institute
  (SIPRI)
• Transnational Crime and Corruption Center
  (TraCCC)
• The Human Security Center

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Thank You

• www.isn.ethz.chManaging information, sharing
  knowledge