Virtual Resources Center Infrastructure

THRUST 2: Content for Development (C4D)

This activity, which was originally known as the Virtual Resources Center (VRC) Project, was established because the CGIAR lacked a common point of reference for internal information postings, discussions, and shared inter-Center applications and services. Additionally, there was a need to improve the organizational efficiency and productivity of the CGIAR by supporting the sharing of best practices, and staff skills and experiences, leading to better-informed decision-making. In this context, it was necessary to provide support for internal and external communications, thereby lessening the distance between CGIAR staff and solution providers, both within and outside the CGIAR. An investment in Active Directory, a System-wide infrastructure for information sharing, was being built before the onset of the Project, and it was felt that this was a good time to leverage that investment in a Virtual Resources Center website that would tie together the various components.

Initial Objectives

This objective of this activity were to establish:

• The technical infrastructure for a VRC portal that would provide the CGIAR Intranet, Extranet tools, and CGIAR Expert Directories - who's-who directories that people can connect to in order to find expertise in a certain field or subject area, both within and outside the CGIAR.
• The VRC as the entry point for the products of other ICT-KM activities, such as the Virtual Library Service, E-Publishing, the CGIAR Online Learning Resources and VASAT.
• The VRC as the entry point for document templates and workflow guidelines generated by the e-publishing activity, enabling a one-stop shop experience for staff and partners to create standard documents throughout the CGIAR.
• The VRC with a single sign on and a common search engine.

Progress Update as at March 2006

The Project name was changed from VRC to VRCI (Virtual Resources Center Infrastructure), to reflect the Project's realignment and its specific role of setting up the infrastructure for the VRC.

In February 2005, two prototypes of a potential VRC platform were created. It was finally decided to adopt Plumtree over an open source platform.

The Project then designed, developed and implemented the production site, which went online in early October 2005 under the name of VRC. Shortly after, new branding and navigation were developed, which included changing the name to CGXchange. This was done in time for the launch at the CGIAR's 2005 AGM in Morocco.

CGXchange now serves as a one-stop portal where all CGIAR staff can access System-wide data, information and tools, and shared workspaces, all in support of multi-Center and multi-disciplinary research and decision-making. The site also houses outputs of other ICT-KM projects, such as the Virtual Library (CGVlibrary) and Online Learning Resources. The Plumtree portal framework is augmented with additional collaboration tools and a customized staff directory to keep track of staff skills and expertise. A shared area with a specific search function for documents has been setup and is now populated with initial policies and guidelines to be shared among Centers.

Since the Project was realigned to focus on the infrastructure, the capacity of administrators and developers has been built. This has been supported closely with tutorials and documentation groups involved in populating CGXchange content. However, CGIAR content providers still need to be trained, and this will form part of another project.

The Project continues to provide ongoing support for CGXchange. Although the support to partners was removed from the scope of CGXchange, the infrastructure is there to support them in the future.

An extension of three months was given to the Project to improve the work done on some of the more complex activities and to also tackle new activities. This is particularly relevant as the last three months of the Project will constitute a bridge between the VRCI and the new project supporting the second phase of the CGXchange infrastructure development.

Lead Administrative Center

International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (Bioversity formerly IPGRI)

Project Coordinator

Dario Valori, Information Technology Manager (Bioversity formerly IPGRI)

Project Status

Commencement Date: March 2004
Planned duration of project: 24 months
Project extended to June 2006

For More Information

Contact us at ictkm@cgiar.org