ENUMERATE is a EC-funded project, led by Collections Trust in the UK.  The primary objective of ENUMERATE is to create a reliable baseline of statistical data about digitization, digital preservation and online access to cultural heritage in Europe. Currently, statistical data on Europe’s digital heritage is tentative and scattered at best. For the European Commission and many of the agencies and actors in the field of culture there is no consistent evidence base for making strategic decisions on investments in digitisation. ENUMERATE will bring about major improvements in the quality and availability of intelligence about digital heritage.

A consortium of ten partners is at the heart of the ENUMERATE 'Thematic Network'. Together they will initiate a Europe-wide community of practice to share statistical data and knowledge on the progress of digitisation. This will be achieved by a multi-annual programme of coordinated surveys. There will be wide-scale harmonized statistical data-gathering and more in-depth surveying of digitization activities by European cultural heritage institutions.  All activities of ENUMERATE start from the principle that heritage institutions will receive useful information in return for sharing their data. Results will be published on an open data platform, where raw and summary data can be viewed and collated by interested parties.

ENUMERATE builds on the results of the NUMERIC project (2007-2009). This was a ground breaking initiative to create a framework for the gathering of statistical data on digital cultural heritage. ENUMERATE will improve and refine the methodology from NUMERIC and will bring the data online for re-use. ENUMERATE will also take into account the results of a recent study of Collections Trust into the costs of digitising Europe’s cultural heritage.

The partners of the ENUMERATE EC-funded project are

• Collections Trust, UK (project coordinator);
• Digitaal Erfgoed Nederland (DEN), Netherlands;
• Stiftung Preußischer Kulturbesitz, Germany;
• Digibís, Spain;
• FARO Vlaams Steunpunt voor Cultureel Erfgoed, Belgium;
• Ministère de la Culture et de la Communication, France;
• Österreichische Nationalbibliothek, Austria;
• Narodna in univerzitetna knjižnica (National and University Library), Slovenia;
• Országos Széchényi Könyvtár (OSZK; National Széchényi Library), Hungary;
• The European Library (hosted by the Koninklijke Bibliotheek, Netherlands).