Clifford A. Lynch has died

Digital Preservation Oracle and Pioneer

Library History Round Table: In Memoriam- Clifford Lynch

Oracle in the culture of networked information.

Clifford Lynch was widely regarded as an oracle in the culture of networked information. Lynch monitored the global information ecosystem for cultural trends and technological developments. He pondered their variables, interdependencies and influencing factors. He conferred with colleagues and drew conclusions. Then he reported his observations through lectures, conference presentations and writings.¹

Coalition for Networked Information

Clifford Lynch led the Coalition for Networked Information since 1997.² CNI, jointly sponsored by the Association of Research Libraries and EDUCAUSE, includes about 200 member organizations concerned with the intelligent use of information technology and networked information to enhance scholarship and intellectual life. CNI’s wide-ranging agenda includes work in digital preservation, data intensive scholarship, teaching, learning and technology, and infrastructure and standards development.

Recognitions

Lynch, held a Ph.D. in computer science from the University of California, Berkeley, . He is both a past president and recipient of the Award of Merit of the American Society for Information Science, and a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the National Information Standards Organization. In 2011 he was appointed co-chair of the National Academies Board on Research Data and Information, where he serves on numerous advisory boards and visiting committees.

His work has been recognized by the American Library Association’s Lippincott Award, the EDUCAUSE Leadership Award in Public Policy and Practice, and the American Society for Engineering Education’s Homer Bernhardt Award.

At its 2025 Spring Membership Meeting the Coalition for Networked Information (CNI) announced the forthcoming publication of a Festschrift in honor of CNI Executive Director Clifford Lynch.³

1. Mike Ashenfelder. Digital Preservation Pioneer: Clifford Lynch. Library of Congress-May 29, 2013.

2. In Memoriam. Clifford Lynch. Coalition of Networked Information.

3. At its 2025 Spring Membership Meeting, held April 7-8 in Milwaukee, WI, the Coalition for Networked Information (CNI) announced publication of a Festschrift in honor of CNI Executive Director Clifford Lynch: Announcing a Festschrift in Honor of Clifford Lynch