About persistent identifiers
Persistent identifiers (PIDs) provide online resources with a unique, unchanging ‘label’ that is universally recognisable and resolvable across different systems and throughout time. Without persistent identification, a resource in one system might be identified differently and consequently be completely unrecognisable in another.
We can think of a PID as a standard bridge design that any public administration can understand and build. Just as engineers across the world use the same core structural principles to ensure bridges safely connect two points separated by a river and withstand the passage of time, PIDs provide a standard and stable way to reference resources. Like a well-constructed bridge that reliably connects two points regardless of changes in the river flow, a PID leads users to a resource it identifies, even if the systems, platforms or locations where the resource is stored change over time.
For example, imagine a painting in a museum’s collection. Without a PID, the painting might be referred to by different names or identifiers across platforms, leading to confusion, potential misattribution and broken links. A PID ensures that, no matter how the painting is catalogued or digitised, it can always be uniquely and consistently identified. Furthermore, because PIDs are resolvable, they provide a direct and reliable link to information about the painting, ensuring that users can easily locate and access its metadata or associated images. By adopting a PID for the painting, the museum not only facilitates global collaboration by enabling other organisations to link to the same painting using the same identifier, but also ensures referential integrity, thereby facilitating data interoperability across systems.
The need for a policy
Even though some organisations already use PIDs, these are still a minority in the sector. To raise awareness of the need for robust identification and boost adoption of PIDs by cultural heritage institutions, the Europeana Initiative and its partners created the Policy for persistent identifiers in the data space. This policy consolidates key requirements and best practices for adopting and managing PIDs, providing clarity for our data partners on what qualifies as a truly persistent identifier and ensuring consistency across the common European data space for cultural heritage.
The policy encourages organisations participating in the data space to integrate 20 principles into their identification processes. This approach allows users to reliably locate and engage with cultural heritage materials, driving research, collaboration and ensuring long-term access. The more organisations that use PIDs and the more reliably these PIDs remain valid and accessible over time, the better the data space can serve its users by creating more trustworthy and reliable services, benefiting everyone involved.
Additionally, the policy sets clear expectations for data partners in documenting their identification practices. By embracing transparency, organisations foster trust among users and partners, enhancing the value and impact of the data space for all.
What’s next?
While the policy establishes a shared understanding of what it takes to make identifiers truly persistent, it is just the first step in supporting organisations to adopt best practices for issuing and managing identifiers. The next phase involves collaborating with a group of cultural heritage institutions to assess their current practices and determine how well they align with the policy’s principles. Through this process, we will identify barriers and explore solutions to address their challenges in adopting PIDs. Our goal is to guide and support selected organisations in implementing more robust identification practices, especially where current identifiers lack stability or consistency.
Insights gathered from this assessment, along with feedback from previous surveys and discussions with data partners, will lead to the creation of recommendations, support documents and guidelines tailored to help organisations implement the policy effectively. Additionally, we will identify common challenges and outline future actions to ensure the sector embraces and sustains the persistent identification of its resources.
Join the effort
We encourage you to explore the policy and consider which principles your organisation is already applying and which could be integrated to strengthen current identification practices to achieve greater persistence. By dedicating resources to more robust and reliable identification methods, you will contribute to a more interconnected, accessible, and sustainable data space, supporting the long-term usability of cultural heritage resources for everyone.
