Happy New Year all, there’s still time to submit a paper for OR2018 and to apply for the Scholarship programme. Please note that there’s no specific Interest Groups this year but if your proposal is related to EPrints then please indicate that in the submission.

 
Call for papers and scholarships have been extended until the 15th January 2018.
 
The theme for Open Repositories 2018 is Sustaining Open.
 
http://www.or2018.net/call-for-papers/
 
Research and Cultural Heritage communities have embraced the idea of Open; open communities, open source software, open data, scholarly communications, and open access publications and collections. These projects and communities require different modes of thinking and resourcing than purchasing vended products.  While open may be the way forward, mitigating fatigue, finding sustainable funding, and building flexible digital repository platforms is something most of us are striving for.  Submissions this year should focus on the how, why, and what it will take to make open sustainable.  
 
While not limited to the below topics, we’re focusing our attention on issues around the sustainability of:
·  Open source software - sustainability of software developed locally and large open source systems, legacy code
·  Community - reaching out to new audiences, developing a community, governance
·  Content - research data, digital preservation, persistent urls, archiving
·  Teams/People - staff and knowledge within the community, contingency planning, training and development, and succession planning
·  Projects - sustainability of projects beyond the grant, maturing communities
·  Infrastructure/Integrations - integrations between systems, changing technical environments
·  Policy - national, international, local and community policy and decisions
·  Challenges of sustainability - funding, local, technical, community
·  Rights and Copyright - including Data Protection, sharing and storing of content
·  Reuse, standards, and reproducibility - for example: software, data, content types
·  New open technologies and standards
Submission Process
Accepted proposals in all categories will be made available through the conference’s web site https://www.conftool.net/or2018, and later they and associated materials will be made available in an open repository. Some conference sessions may be live streamed or recorded, then made publicly available.
 
Interest Groups
This year there are no separate interest groups for the different repository systems, instead if your 24x7 or presentation submission is related to a specific repository system please indicate so in your proposal.
Presentations
Presentation proposals are expected to be two to four pages (see below for submission templates). Successful submissions in past years have typically described work relevant to a wide audience and applicable beyond a single software system.
 
Presentations are 30 minutes long including questions.
Panels
Panel proposals are expected to be two to four pages (see below for submission templates). Successful submissions in past years have typically described work relevant to a wide audience and applicable beyond a single software system. All panels are expected to include at least some degree of diversity in viewpoints and personal background of the panelists. Panel sessions are expected to include a short presentation from each panel member followed by a discussion. Panels may take an entire session or may be combined with another submission.
 
Panels can be 45 or 90 minutes long.
 
Discussion Question and Answer
Discussion Q&A proposals are expected to be two to four pages (see below for submission templates). This is your opportunity to suggest members of the community to join in a Q&A discussion on various proposed topics.  This is meant to be a deep-dive into why a decision was made, how projects got started, where an idea came from, or anything else that you want to know more about. Imagine this as a 45 - 90 minute grilling at a cocktail party but on a stage in front of your peers. Q&As may take an entire session or may be combined with another submission. This session will not be video recorded.
 
Discussion Q&A can be 45 or 90 minutes long.
24×7 Presentations
24×7 presentations are 7 minute presentations comprising no more than 24 slides. Successful 24x7 presentations have a clear focus on one or a few ideas and a narrower  focus than a 25 minute presentation. Similar to Pecha Kuchas or Lightning Talks, these 24×7 presentations will be grouped into blocks based on conference themes, with each block followed by a moderated question and answer session involving the audience and all block presenters. This format will provide conference goers with a fast-paced survey of like work across many institutions. Proposals for 24×7 presentations should be one to two pages (see below for submission templates).
 
24x7 presentations are 7 minutes long.
Posters
We invite one-page proposals for posters that showcase current work (see below for submission templates). OR2018 will feature physical posters only. Posters will be on display throughout the conference. Instructions for preparing the posters will be distributed to authors of accepted poster proposals prior to the conference. Poster submitters will be expected to give a one-minute teaser to encourage visitors to their poster during the conference.
 
Posters presentations will be 1 minute.
 
Developer Track: Top Tips, Cunning Code and Imaginative Innovation
Each year a significant proportion of the delegates at Open Repositories are software developers who work on repository software or related services. OR2018 will feature a Developer Track that will provide a focus for showcasing work and exchanging ideas.
Building on the success of previous Developer Tracks, where we encouraged live hacking and audience participation, we invite members of the technical community to share the features, systems, tools and best practices that are important to you (see below for submission templates).
 
The 15 minute presentations can be as informal as you like, but we encourage live demonstrations, tours of code repositories, examples of cool features, and the unique viewpoints that so many members of our community possess. Proposals should be one to two pages, including a title, a brief outline of what will be shared with the community, and technologies covered. Developers are also encouraged to contribute to the other tracks.
 
Developer Track presentations are 15 minutes including questions.
Ideas Challenge
OR2018 will also again include the popular Ideas Challenge. Taking part in this competition provides an opportunity to take an active role in repository innovation, in collaboration with your peers and in pursuit of prizes. The Ideas Challenge is open to all conference attendees. Further details and guidance on the Ideas Challenge will be forthcoming closer to the conference.
Workshops and tutorials
The first day of Open Repositories will be dedicated to workshops and tutorials.
One to two-page proposals addressing theoretical or practical issues around digital repositories are welcomed. See below for Proposal Templates; please address the following in your proposal:
·  The subject of the event and what knowledge you intend to convey
·  Length of session (90 minutes, 3 hours or a whole day)
·  A brief statement on the learning outcomes from the session
·  The target audience for your session and how many attendees you plan to accommodate
·  Technology and facility requirements
·  Any other supplies or support required
·  Anything else you believe is pertinent to carrying out the session
 
Please note, the program committee may consider submissions for other tracks and formats, as appropriate.
Submission System
https://www.conftool.net/or2018

Review Process
All submissions will be peer reviewed and evaluated according to the criteria outlined in the call for proposals, including quality of content, significance, originality, and thematic fit.

Code of Conduct
The OR2018 Code of Conduct and Anti-Harassment Policy are available atMailScanner has detected a possible fraud attempt from "or2017.net" claiming to be http://or2018.net/code-of-conduct/.

Scholarship Programme
OR2018 will again run a Scholarship Programme which will enable us to provide support for a small number of full registered places (including the poster reception and conference dinner) for the conference in Bozeman. The programme is open to librarians, repository managers, developers and researchers in digital libraries and related fields. Applicants submitting a proposal for the conference will be given priority consideration for funding. Please note that the programme does not cover costs such as accommodation, travel and subsistence. It is anticipated that the applicant’s home institution will provide financial support to supplement the OR Scholarship Award.

Full details and the Scholarship application form http://www.or2018.net/scholarships/

Key Dates
·  15 January 2018: Deadline for submissions
·  15 January 2018: Deadline for Scholarship Programme applications
·  09 February 2018: Submitters notified of acceptance to Workshops
·  12 February 2018: Registration opens
·  21 February 2018: Submitters notified of acceptance to other tracks
·  21 February 2018: Scholarship Programme winners notified
·  23 February 2018: Submitters notified of acceptance of 24x7, posters, and developer track
·  20 April 2018: Close of Early Bird
·  25 May 2018: Presenter registration deadline
·  4-7 June 2018: OR2018 conference
 
Program Co-Chairs
Claire Knowles and Evviva Weinraub