World Digital Library
Mission:
The World Digital Library (WDL) makes available on the Internet, free of charge and in multilingual format, significant primary materials from countries and cultures around the world.
The principal objectives of the WDL are to:
* Promote international and intercultural understanding;
* Expand the volume and variety of cultural content on the Internet;
* Provide resources for educators, scholars, and general audiences;
* Build capacity in partner institutions to narrow the digital divide within and between countries.
Financial Contributors
The Library of Congress and its WDL partners acknowledge the following financial contributors:
* Google, Inc., for $3 million for the initial development of a WDL plan and the WDL prototype.
* The Qatar Foundation, for $3 million in general support for the WDL, and to support the development of the Central Library of the Qatar Foundation as a key node in the WDL network.
* The Carnegie Corporation of New York, for $2 million to support the inclusion of cultural institutions from sub-Saharan Africa and Eurasia in the WDL.
* The King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, Saudi Arabia, for $1 million to support activities relating to the dissemination, through the WDL, of digital versions of manuscripts and other materials relating to science in the Arab and Islamic worlds.
* Microsoft, Inc., for $1 million in general support.
* The Lawrence and Mary Anne Tucker Foundation to support the establishment of a digital conversion center at the Iraqi National Library and Archives.
* The Bridging Nations Foundation for the development of Middle East-related content for inclusion in the WDL.
