Data Documentation Initiative
The Data Documentation Initiative (DDI) is an effort to create an international standard for describing social science data. Expressed in XML, the DDI metadata specification now supports the entire life cycle of social science datasets, accompanying and enabling data conceptualization, collection, processing, distribution, discovery, analysis, repurposing, and archiving.
The DDI Alliance is a self-sustaining membership organization that develops and promotes the DDI specification and associated tools, education, and outreach programs: the latest DDI Specification is available from their site. This international initiative is useful framework for co-operation and support in this area and policy-makers connected to social science departments may wish to note its direction with regard to their own work.
[There are links above to a list of the DDI projects and a set of best practices]
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Publication: DDI Alliance, Ann Arbor, USA, 2010.