In electronic networked environments, metadata communities are working together to develop coherent information architecture and metadata regimes to support information management, discovery and delivery. The main drivers thus far have related to improving information resource identification, discovery and delivery to support information sharing and knowledge transmission via electronic networks which are populated by ever increasing numbers and varieties of document-like information objects.
More recent imperatives relate to supporting the transaction of business via distributed networks.
A key component of the evolving metadata regimes is the use of standard metadata elements, embedded in, encapsulating or persistently linked to information objects. This paper will report on an Australian research project, which aims to develop a framework for standardising metadata in the records and archives community and defining a high level set of recordkeeping metadata within the broader context of the initiatives and imperatives referenced above. The project's main focus is on the definition and conceptual mapping of recordkeeping metadata. It has involved extensive research on records management and archival standards and existing metadata sets in the records and archives sector nationally and internationally, as well as reference to evolving generic metadata sets such as the Dublin Core, and related sector specific sets like the Australian Government Locator Service.