Tools for Building and Enhancing Scholarly Communities on the Web

Scholarly communities face a dilemma in the research communication landscape of the 21st century: their stakeholders are faced with communication and networking responsibilities on top of their already busy agendas. Digital tools, however, can facilitate synthesis and cooperation around research projects and disciplines. With the most recent trends in research funding moving toward global collaboration and networking, it is important for scholarly communities to provide tools that allow stakeholders to communicate both within and outside of their field. This workshop provides an introduction to the barriers and opportunities of scholarly community building and participation on the web, as well as hands-on demonstration of several examples.